That's life 3-12

Dear That’s Life,

Last week I had a lunch meeting at the well-known Manhattan steakhouse, Le Marais, where, despite its excellent reputation for aged beef and the like, I ordered salmon.

Afterward, I was in the mood for ice cream, my favorite food, but wondered if, given the nature of the kitchen where my pareve meal was prepared, I might actually be fleishig. After giving the matter some thought I decided to call my rav, Rabbi Dovid Goldwasser, for his opinion.

Quickly, I laid out the scenario but the rav’s gut reaction caught me off guard: ‘You went to Le Marais and ordered fish?’

Zelig Bergman
Brooklyn

Dear That’s Life,

Some kids don’t know where food really comes from; my city-raised four-year-old, Naftali, seems to be quite clear on the subject.

At the Prospect Park Zoo on Sunday afternoon we looked at the roosters and hens together and then I noticed some much larger roosters around a corner. I hoisted him up and said, “Look at those!”
Clearly, he was ready for dinner because he said, “Wow, those are huge! That one would last a week!”

Mayer Fertig

Dear That’s Life,

If (and when?) we ever announced we were making aliyah, my eldest son would probably look at me and say something along the lines of, “Well, it’s about time.”

He has told me more than once that we do not speak enough Hebrew around the house. “Jews speak Hebrew,” he said. He has wanted to know why it takes longer to get back from Israel than it takes to get there. Before launching into a short explanation of tailwinds, I explained that Hashem wants to make it easier for us to get to Israel and harder for us to leave.

And then, I explained about the tailwinds.

After my last trip to Israel, besides the gum, chocolate eggs and various other treats I had purchased, I bought him a watch. He told me recently it wasn’t working well. “The watch doesn’t keep the right time,” he said. I was perplexed. “I set the watch myself,” I replied, “and it seemed to be working just fine.”

He shook his head. “It doesn’t,” he said. “I want it to be on Israel time.” Even more perplexed, I asked him why. “What’s the point in wearing a watch on Israel time?”

Looking at me straight in the eye, he answered: “The point,” he said, “is that I’m Jewish and Jewish people should always know what time it is in Israel.”

Game. Set. Match.

MLW