This shabbas I am visiting Paula at Moshav Habonim, so today was my last chance to attend the Ra'anana Conservative Congregation. Luckily Ella and Yuval were still around to wake the girls and get them off to Kaytana. Up at 6:30AM, showered, shaved (yes, even shaved), and out of the house by 6:55AM. Just enough time to hop on my bike and get to Shul on time. This time I remembered my loose change for Tzedakah, my new tefillin, and my tallis -- I only forgot tissues. Either I'm alergic to the early morning Ra'anana air, or I am alergic to shul, because I can go through a full box of tissues in the time it takes to Daven Shachrit.
I had called Rabbi Resnick last night, and he said I could Leyn, as little or as much as I wanted. Parshat Balak. With everything going on, I decided to be realistic and just read the first aliyah -- all of 3 psukim. Not complicated trope, and just a couple Kamatz Katanim. I was able to master it in the half an hour between 12:00am and 12:30am while doing a load of laundry. I read the first Aliyah without problem, and went back to sit down. Then as I was day dreaming and trying to find my place in the siddur again, somebody calls Yehudah for the 3rd Aliyah. Everybody looks around, and then I realize they are staring at me. Ooops! I don't get that many aliyot, and I've long since forgotten how to recognize my name in Hebrew. Oops..
Ilana, announced the birth of her grandson, we sang Siman Tov uMazal Tov, the Thursday morning crowd wished me good luck and I walked back to Hefetz Haim with Ilana.
