Fridays with Manny

  

All Saints Eve

On a walk with Max in our neighborhood recently, we saw a huge inflatable black cat turning his head, on a neighbors’ lawn. Max was scared and cautiously went around it looking back, as we continued our walk.

Welcome to Halloween, or Hallowe’en which is a contraction of All Hallows’ evening less commonly known as All Halloween, All Hollows’ Eve, or All Saints Eve. I learned more about Halloween in Wikipedia. Halloween originated as a Celtic festival about 2000 years ago, and went through many transformations. This day was considered the end of summer and the harvest and beginning of the dark, cold winter, often associated with death. In our times, it is essentially just a fun event for children to dress up in costumes and go around the neighborhood accompanied by adults to Trick or Treat, which has its own tradition.

What surprises me is how some adults take the decorations of their homes and front lawns seriously and spend a lot of money for the short lasting fun. Some of the decorations are very creative, which you can see in these three images.

Have a lot of fun!

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Fridays with Manny

  

In the Beginning

For the Jews who follow tradition, last Tuesday signified the end of one and the beginning of a new cycle. The holiday to celebrate this event is called Simchat Torah – the Joy of Torah. On that day during the synagogue service, the Rabbi reads from the Torah’s last chapter, which lists blessings. “Moses the man of God, bestowed upon the children of Israel” (Deuteronomy 33:1). And then the Rabbi begins reading the first chapter. “In the beginning of God’s creating the heavens and the earth”. (Genesis 1:1). 

And what if you are not Jewish, is there anything for you in this tradition? My answer is definitely “yes”. Regardless of what your beliefs or religious affiliations are, we all go through different cycles in our lives. Just think about the current economic conditions. Regardless how dark it seems now, light always follows because this was part of the creation process. “God saw that the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness. God called the light “day,” and the darkness he called “night.” (Genesis 1:4-5).

I used good light to photograph the heavens and the earth from the plane, with my artistic input.

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Fridays with Manny

  

Philosophical Lessons

Since there was so much to share about our trip to Alaska, after a short break, I am continuing to report about my daily experiences to you.

This morning started with a typically foggy and cold Alaskan day. Since we arrived in Anchorage seven days ago, it was warm and pleasant when we came on the ship. It was even too hot to stay on the deck during the day. Now it is raining, quite chilly and incredibly beautiful. Because of its relatively small size, our ship can go through narrow fjords. I am awed by the view of cliffs with running water on the steep slopes, and pieces of ice of different sizes and colors floating in the water. I stood on the balcony for a long time seeing and feeling what is impossible to describe in words. As one often sees on a postcard, “Wish you were here”.

The plan this morning was to go on the Zodiacs to see the glaciers up close. However, when we arrived there, it was discovered that there were about thirty baby seals resting on the floating ice. So as not to disturb them, the ship turned around to visit another inlet for different fjords. Since there were no special activities planned for today, it gave me some time to finish reading “Plato and Platypus Walk Into a Bar… Understanding Philosophy Through Jokes” written by Thomas Cathcart & Daniel Klein. I was not surprised to recognize many of the jokes in the book. As far as philosophy or a play with words to give them meaning, I am very good at this as well. Therefore, I will finish today’s story with an observation from this trip. “While you are on the journey called life – enjoy every moment and laugh at yourself”. If you need assistance, you can order “42 Encounters with Laughter”. 

It was challenging to choose three images to convey the special feelings I had. Here are my choices.

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Fridays with Manny

  

Dreams Come True

Actually, it was not our dream; but rather, our desire to see our granddaughter and her parents in Portland, Oregon, which brought us here to celebrate Rosh Hashanah, the beginning of the new year, 5783. Our granddaughter recently turned two, and we have not seen her since last December. We had the opportunity to spend time together and for her to get to know her grandparents and for us to have the joy of her company.

The title of today’s essay actually came from the name of a rose. Within walking distance of their home are four neighborhood rose gardens, and the roses are in bloom. What a delight for the eyes and nose. There are so many names and varieties. There is obviously a good reason why Portland is called The City of Roses. I photograph roses all the time. They grow in front of our house, in our neighborhood, and in the Rose Garden in Golden Gate Park. I am fascinated by their beauty and never paid attention to their names. In Portland, I encountered Dreams Come True, Coral Cove, Apricots N’ Cream, Hot Cocoa, Sentimental, Elle and many others. 

Online I found the fascinating history of roses, and how the new varieties are constantly developed. Since I am only sharing with you three roses here, you will be able to find more on my new website, thehealingimages.com.

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Fridays with Manny

  

How to Ask for Forgiveness,
and from Whom

Many years ago as a teenager, I did or said something which upset my mother. I knew that I was wrong, but kept quiet. The next day, my father suggested that I should ask her for forgiveness. “But Mom forgot about it already”, I responded. “Yes”, father said, “but you still carry guilt inside yourself. It does not matter what you think right now, you should still ask for forgiveness.” It took me years to accept my father’s advice, but now I freely admit my faults and shortcomings and ask for forgiveness.

During Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement), which falls on Wednesday, October 5th, during the services in the Synagogue, I am going to read from the prayer book during the whole day, with many prayers asking God for forgiveness. However, before we deal with God, we address our requests for forgiveness to the people in our lives. Therefore, I use this opportunity to ask for your forgiveness for anything I knowingly or unknowingly did or said. Thank you in advance. 

After being forgiven, it is a good idea to enjoy bouquets of flowers.

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