This afternoon, while we were making kreplach for yom tov, there was a knock at the door. Usually it’s a meshulah collecting money or wanting to borrow something, but it turned out to be a teenage neighbor inviting my younger sons to a “kriat shema” for his newborn nephew. (Disclaimer: I could have sent my 2yo daughter if I had wanted to, but the12yo daughter is definitely too old.) The custom is for the boys say the shema prayer with the baby on the evening before his brit (circumcision). My kids enjoy these parties because they come home with a goody bag, which they willingly shared with their sisters tonight after supper.

I think it was probably chance that the baby’s uncle ended up knocking on our door, as there is a good supply of boys in our apartment building, but it happens that his mother, the baby’s grandmother, is one of my favorite people. She always greets me and my children as if she has been eagerly waiting to see us and frequently invited us to visit so the children could play together. I once introduced her to a friend and she commented to her how beautiful her son’s name was (Eliahu). My friend thought she was a bit over the top and I had to explain that she was sincere. Looking back, it seems that early on we realized we had similar parenting outlooks despite the difference in our ages and religious circle (her children attend charedi schools) and we usually have frank discussions about our children when we run into each other. She once told me that she convinced her husband that it was okay to nurse her youngest son past three because I had told her about a woman from Bnei Brak who weaned her daughter on her fourth birthday.

We have four sons but only made a kriat shema for the youngest. The liturgy contains the verse from Bereshit (Genesis 48:16) ????? ????? ???? ??? ?? ???? ?? ??????. . . May the angel that protects me from all evil bless the children. . . Mazal tov !!

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