In blessed Memory

The walls of Jerusalem were breached again

Today was a fast day, the tenth of Teves commemerating the sad day when the walls of Jerusalem were breached by the Romans. 
I woke this morning in a cranky mood. Just knowing that I would start the day without a cup of coffee to jumpstart my brain set me off on the wrong foot. 
OK- its a short fast. How many days do I barely eat until 4. But my beloved cup of morning joe....
And then I opened my phone to this:

, These are Jewish children.  The media loves to say that they were "soldiers". Yet in any other country they would be carefree college students-not in uniform ready to defend its tiny borders.

As I looked into their faces I cried. Each is a child, a grandchild, a brother, sister, friend, aunt, uncle, boyfriend, girlfriend- a bright and shining soul with a future filled with hopes and dreams. 
Mercilessly, cruelly cut short.

I won't respond to the obvious- the lack of coverage in the American press. How the world twists this act of ruthless terror to appear as if it was a deserved act of revenge.
As if standing with their companions waiting for a tour was an illegal act of trespassing in the land that was bought with the blood of their fathers.

No, this is a wake up call.

The fast will be over, I'll have my coffee and go on, pained by the story. The horror will linger, and the injustice of it all will continue to infuriate me, but there are suppers to cook, laundry to do, calls to make, errands to do.

Really what can we do? We are not politicians or prophets.

Can we Protest?...  Yes  Sign petitions?...  Yes  Pray ...Of course

But we have a weapon to fight that comes from within.

Embrace the good that G-d has given us and raise our families with joy, as Jews in an enticing world that longs to swallow us.

Celebrate the daily moments and realize that by making brochas (blessings) with your kids, the food is transformed from lunch to a holy act. Coins can be elevated from change at the grocery to charity for a family in need. Infusing our children with a life of Torah raises the mundane to magnificent. 

Our enemies can't fight that.  

A truck is used for good when transporting materials or construction - on an ordinary day.
Or it can be used for evil as a weapon of murder - on an extraordinary day.

Our lives are filled with everyday vehicles that can be used to destroy or be elevated to holiness.

When you get out the keys in the morning and drive a van full of laughing children to their Jewish day school, it might seem like the start of an ordinary day, but you have just turned a truck into a weapon.... for GOOD.
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 We pray for a refuah shlaimah, a complete recovery  for those that were wounded.
​
May the memories of
-Yael Yekutiel (20)
- Shir Hajaj (22)
- Shira Tzur (20)
- Erez Orbach (20)
​ be a blessing and may their families be comforted among the mourners of Zion.