Theatre Mode

 

This evening I attended the theatre, for the first time since my eldest daughter was in primary school, and then only to watch her dance a solo on stage.

    Tonight was very different. I was fetched and carried all the way there and back and my ticket was paid for. The two friends who blessed me in these ways attended with me, and we all sat together in Row N.

    My friend's daughter was in the show - and it was really beautiful to watch. There was a tiny tot of two in a couple of numbers. She was in a world of her own, making up her own original choreography as she went along. So adorable.

    The performances were very well executed and energetic, right up to the last footstep and twirl.

    Some of the brave dads donned tutus and made us laugh with their antics on stage. The music was very good and the performances polished. Although there wasn't a huge crowd, we made up for it with loud applause and lots of "whoo-hoos". A thoroughly delightful and enjoyable time was had by all.

    As I walked in the door at home afterwards, it was time to log in for our bi-weekly reading of the Jerusalem Talmud. There were three of us today instead of just two and it was a case of "the more, the merrier". We learned a lot about how the Sages of Israel struggled their way through putting the prayers down into the consolidated form we have them in today. It is truly amazing that they were able to memorise all the prayers. Today, we have siddurim that are a thousand pages long!

    As I sit here now, contemplating my day in preparation to retire for the night, I am so thankful to the Lord for His many, many blessings to me. I may not have a lot by some people's standards, but I am content with whatever HaShem chooses to give me. I am able to Zoom with my beloved grandson each and every day, my son - who I see very seldom - is coming to have pre-Shabbat pizza with me tomorrow to celebrate his 28th birthday, I am sharing a Slichot service with some friends and then going to collect my new calendar before Rosh HaShannah. I hope to throw in a couple of 24-hour candles too.

    I did the bulk of my Shabbat cooking today, so I only have the finishing touches to apply tomorrow after Slichot. It'll be the first time in years that I've eaten Brussel Sprouts!

    We did an hour of Torah study, prayed Mincha and attended our monthly Zoom meeting with one of our teachers, who is going through the Shacharit prayers with us. I did miss my class on the inner meaning of the Torah when I went to the theatre tonight, but I am blessed that the recordings are always available.

    I read through what I call my Yom Kippur list several times a day. Half of them are things that need doing, or refraining from doing, and I am happy to report that all is going well in that department, only due to the fact that I am receiving Help from the Heavens. The other half of the list is more focused on adjusting my middot, my characteristics, or behaviours. Even those I can see an improvement in, again, with the Help of the Heavens. A long way to still go, though, but at least I am on the path. 

    My body is telling me loud and clear that it is tired, so all that remains is for me to say the bedtime Shema and put my head on the pillow. Tomorrow I have new things to look forward to.

Layla tov!