I am pretty sure that half of my readers just said "huh?" to themselves and another chunk are about to comment "Mazal tov!" :)For the first group: A tichel is a head scarf married Jewish women wear.For the second group and now the first who are in the mazal tov category: No, I have not gotten married. :)Recently we celebrated the Jewish holiday of Purim. My personal favorite holiday of the Jewish year (maybe because I was born on Purim and it is my Hebrew birthday). Purim is NOT the Jewish Halloween though there are a few similar traditions. The biggest similarity being that we dress up in costume. It's a day when everything is backwards and upside down.This year for Purim, my self-described 'work-wife,' Mel, and I decided that we would switch identities and come to work as each other. This was particularly hilarious since we both have very a specific style of fashion which are different and unique... oh and she is married and wears a tichel or scarf all the time. Let the hilarity begin!We went shopping together to pick out outfits that the other would wear. It was pretty hilarious. "Okay Mel, would 
you wear this?" "Yeah, I would totally wear those... but will you wear them outside of Purim because you shouldn't spend the money otherwise." HA we were very cost conscious and thoughtful about it! But the most interesting part came the morning of Purim.I arrived at Mel's house at 7:45 am. She was dressed as me and I was dressed as her. Her husband had a good chuckle at us and we went to work. We picked out jewelry and then got down to the good part. I had to pick out a scarf to wear and she had to get her brand new wig situated. Yes wig. My dear friend, who hasn't had hair graze the back of her neck in more than two years, purchased a 'lovely' (read: cheap) red wig to mimic my hair. We dissolved into giggles and I helped her position it. Then it was my turn. We picked out a lovely plain brown scarf and then a fun, silky giraffe print scarf to top it off. She put it on my head and tied it for me...WOW.I went from wacky single to mature married lady in one quick tie! It was a complete change for me... I felt different. Modest. Amazing. We drove to work and stopped at a fruit and veg mart to get some goodies for our co-workers. I felt funny... oddly conspicuous and inconspicuous at the same time. For a minute I wanted to shout... "THIS ISN'T ME! I'M NOT MARRIED YET!" but I also wanted to revel in the respect people paid me. More than anything... I started getting a crick in my neck! I felt like I had a work of art on my head and I couldn't move.We got to work ... and well everyone was shocked! Half couldn't figure it out... even though we were wearing each other's name tags but a few got it right away. Interestingly, everyone recognized me immediately and saw I was in costume but Mel, well they thought she was a new employee! It is truly amazing what some hair, or the lack of it, can do.
Mel and I got very different reactions... or maybe the same reaction but the flip sides.
Everyone asked me why I would cover my hair and how can I cover my 'beautiful' locks? Their reactions to Mel were joyful. They loved her even with the cheap, plastic, nearly purple hair. They begged her to consider wearing a wig or sheitel occasionally.For sure this was an interesting experience for both of us. Together, as dear friends, we learned a lot and have had some great conversations regarding hair, tzniut (modesty) and married life. To hear Mel's reaction to wearing a wig, check out her blog here, Redefining Rebbetzin.To cap off the experience, Mel and I went to a sheitel sale shortly after Purim at a friend's house. She sells and styles wigs for a living and we went to play. I have to say, after trying both I find the wigs more comfortable and an easier transition for me from single with hair to married without my own mane showing. After wearing the tichel for 12 hours, I couldn't wait to get it off and scratch my scalp!What are your experiences with wigs or scarves or covering (or not) your hair after marriage?And just for fun, a friend who dressed as a Jerusalem Ultra-Orthodox Jew and I pose in the "Frum Lean," typically seen at a vort or engagement celebration. Here are some other examples of the lean: Extreme Lean & Only Simchas Lean.
My Friend Mayim
That sounds like she is imaginary but it's not. I am very excited because an article I wrote about Mayim Bialik just went up on Chabad.org. So exciting because I have been A. working on this piece for a while, B. wanting to have an article go live on Chabad for a long time, C. Mayim is amazing and I am so excited to share her awesomeness. Here's an except. Go read it!
In a sense I had known Mayim Bialik most of my life. I grew up with her as my television best friend when she starred on the TV show, Blossom. I remember being shocked that here was a girl who looked like me, with a ‘Jewy’ name like me, a Jewish kid on television! I thought Blossom was the coolest thing since sliced bread...
Read more here: Mayim Bialik: Actress, neurobiologist, mom, proud Jewish woman
We put the Mon in Hamantaschen!
I know I know, the headline is silly. But here's something you may not know (unless you speak Yiddish or German), the word hamantaschen means 'poppy seed pockets' montashn in Yiddish or mohntaschen in German. Mon is poppy seed and taschen means pockets. They are also called oznai Haman or Haman's ears in Hebrew. It has become a modern folklore that Haman wore a three-cornered hat and thus we are eating his hat.
Whoa whoa, slow down now. Who is this Haman character? Well it's all related to my favorite holiday, Purim. I could be partial because I was born on Purim but I just love it! Traditionally we eat these little pockets filled with many delicious flavors but the two traditional flavors are poppy seed (mon) and plum (I refuse to call it prune because they get a bad rap). Plum happens to be my favorite but you can make them with any filling. I prefer the Solo fillings which are Kosher dairy. They are the best brand, in my opinion, with great flavors and fillings of the right consistency. You can find them in just about any grocery store.
If you want to learn more about the holiday of Purim, I suggest going here.
Now, I am about to share something very special with you... my special Hamantaschen recipe. This was given to me by a dear friend and truly is the best dough I have ever found for Hamantaschen. Please use and enjoy and please credit us for this recipe.
Hamantaschen
1 1/4 cups of sugar
4 eggs
1 Tablespoon lemon juice
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup oil
Mix these together. Then add:
5 cups of flour (I mix whole wheat and white. You may need more oil because the whole wheat sucks it up.)
1 Tablespoon baking powder (only have baking soda? That's okay, click here for my magical recipe to make baking POWDER from baking SODA... and NO they are NOT interchangeable.)
1/2 teaspoon of salt
You will also need one 10-12oz jar of fruit filling per recipe. (Again, I like Solo but Baker's also works. Thick jams can work too.)
Mix the dough until it clings together and is smooth - when it is too stiff to mix with a spoon or mixer, mix the dough with your hands.
Roll the dough out on a floured surface to about 1/4 inch thick.
Cut out circles (I use a glass) and put the excess dough back in the bowl to be re-rolled.
Put approx 1/2 to 1 teaspoon of filling in the middle of the circle. It depends on the size of your circle.
Fold the dough up into a triangle shape and pinch closed. Leave an opening at the top for the filling to show through.
Place cookies on an UNGREASED cookie sheet approx 1/2 inch apart.
Re-roll the dough until all is used.
Bake at 350 degrees for 19-21 minutes or until light brown (WATCH THEM! You don't want black bottoms on your cookies!)
Place on cooling rack and store in airtight containers.
This recipe should make 40-44 cookies.
A special shout out to the World's Greatest Hamantaschen Maker who taught me everything I know and shared this recipe with me. Thanks Mommy Schlammy! :)
The Dating Crisis
Dating has been on my mind a lot lately. And by lately I don't mean the past few days... We are talking months folks. I have been thinking a lot about dating and how to date and who to date and how to find people to date and all sorts of permutations. But it has all come to a head recently as I am no longer single. Very happy to say that, very happy in general. BUT that is not the point. I have been talking to friends over the past few years about how to date and I have even shifted the way I date based on what I have learned.Way back in my younger days, when I was in my early 20's, dating was just pure fun. Right, so I knew a few things like I wanted to get married and have a Jewish home but eh, I'm 22.... I have time. Dating was a fear of having a conversation "too deep" because it might scare him off. Get a free meal, have some fun, and maybe you'll see him for more than a few dates. Don't get me wrong, I was always searching for Mr. Right... I just didn't know how else to do it. I figured if we had enough fun together the substance part will happen.And then I got older.And older.And I realized my 20's were a string of mediocre first dates with guys who really weren't a good match for me but for some reason or another I found them attractive. I learned a lot from them, yes but no soul mate. So here I am, trucking along into my late 20's with no flipping clue how to find the right guy or know that he is the right one. This ain't no fairy tale, right? No fairy godmothers to go bipity bopity boo. And while a gut can tell you a lot (if you have a good one and trust it), you need to ask the right questions too (which was recently brought to my attention).So I have dated in a secular manner and I have dated through the traditional shidduch (matchmaker) style. Now looking back, there are a lot of benefits in the Jewish Orthodox shidduch dating. Why, you ask? How can you really know someone when you can't touch them? Ah, grasshopper, let me tell you about it...I have dated men in the past, as have some of my girl friends, who can't keep their hands off you. From the first minute of the first date. I don't need to hold your hand on the first date. I don't need a goodnight kiss and I really will not end up in bed with you. How anyone thinks that is appropriate, I don't know. Why? Because I am not looking for a partner tonight. I am looking for a life mate. The physicality overshadows everything. Substitute the touching for intense conversation and learning about each other? Yes please.So instead of touching you are talking. Getting to know each other deeply... in the brain. That sets the stage for a growing relationship. As one of my friends said, "We Orthodox don't look for boyfriends, love or romance... we look to KNOW the other person for purposes of marriage. Find a man you KNOW will respect you as a princess and all the rest will come with later!" Now, I may not agree 100% but that is how she approached her dating and she is very happily married with two little girls. I want love and romance but I know that is doesn't just appear out of thin air. It needs a base to grow on.So where does that base come from? Well, as I got myself deeper into this I learned... questions. Asking questions. That is how you develop the strong base. What kind of questions? Well I asked my focus group (my Facebook friends) this question. Here is what we came up with:
- If you were evacuated from your home, what four things would you grab first? (Assume all people and pets are able to get out safely on their own)
- What are four qualities that you have that you wouldn't want your children to have?
- What posuk (verse) do you feel most connected to and why?
- What abstract nouns they think are the most important for a good relationship between people (kindness, humor, patience, chemistry, whatever can be the answer). (Then compare to what you think the most successful relationships you know--the ones you want to emulate--have going for them.)
- Where do you see yourself in 5 years? 10 years?
- What are your hobbies?
- What are your happiest / saddest / proudest / most embarrassing moments?
- What are your personal goals?
- What would you say are your philosophies about life?
- How about children? Want 'em? How do you want to raise 'em?
- Tell me about you financial habits, goals, and philosophies.
- Biggest financial weakness?
- How do you communicate? Do you like to solve problems or would rather not deal with them?
I love these. Some are so creative and some really hit to the heart of the matter. You want to know how you can get along with someone in the long term. How, as you grow in your relationship, you will react to each other and potentially grow together.
Absolutely Disgusting
I can't find any other words for it.The new viral movie 180movie.com (I refuse to link to it. Watch it if you want. It's disgusting.) equates the cold blooded murder of more than 11 million men, women, and children with abortion. The indoctrination of an entire people (the Germans) to view grow adults as subhuman as the same as a personal choice to end a pregnancy.So I guess I have to espouse my own beliefs at this point. I am pro-choice but also a lover of life. Abortion needs to be legal and available in our society however, the widespread nature of abortion as a solution is not appropriate. It is important that this life altering procedure is undertaken with eyes wide open and not used as emergency birth control.But it is a completely different story than 6 million Jews who were starved and beaten and shot in cold blood. To show the corpses of my family, my people and the ignorance of today's youth (who couldn't identify who Hitler - yimach shemo: May his name be obliterated - is) and abortion in the same breath is disgusting and ignorant. I will NEVER stand for EXPLOITING the images of dead and dying Jews for other uses. It was a horrible time in history.I will leave the Anti-Defamation League to finish this. And I am turning off the comments. This is not a pro-choice vs pro-life forum. This is about 6 million murdered Jews.
"The film is a perverse attempt to make a case against abortion in America through the cynical abuse of the memory of those killed in the Holocaust," said Abraham H. Foxman, ADL National Director and a Holocaust survivor. "Not only does the film try to assert a moral equivalency between the Holocaust and abortion, but it also brings Jews and Jewish history into the discussion and then calls on its viewers to repent and accept Jesus as their savior. It is, quite frankly, one of the most offensive and outrageous abuses of the memory of the Holocaust we have seen in years."
Recharge. Refresh. Return.
I am returning home from a pilgrimage to one of my spiritual homelands, Crown Heights, Brooklyn. Visiting Crown Heights is a chance for me to plug-in and recharge my Judaism and spirituality. Living in gulous or the diaspora makes Judaism and being observant a challenge. Lack of kosher options, living around people who don't follow the same rules and who don't see the reason for them, constantly explaining why and what... It starts to take a toll. And while I love to teach others about my traditions and why I do what I do, sometimes I need to recharge.Without having the resources (or time) to jet over to Eretz Yisrael any time I want, my weak substitute (ok, not weak but different) is Crown Heights, Brooklyn. The world headquarters of the Chabad Lubavitch movement of Judaism. For those not familiar, Chabad is an ultra-orthodox sect of Judaism (not using ultra-orthodox as a pejorative, just a descriptor). While all groups have their fanatical and conservative and wacky members, Chabad is no exception. But as a rule, the Chabad people I know are amazing. They are warm and open and welcoming. Chabad was the catalyst for my journey into exploring observance, as it was for many of my friends.I arrived in NYC on Thursday night and almost immediately received an emergency call from the kallah (bride, I was in town for a wedding) needing help. She needed four green ties for the gentlemen in her wedding on Sunday and had no time to get it. I had no problem stopping at Macy's on my way from Manhattan to Brooklyn. Friday morning I got up, packed my bag, bought four green ties and hopped on the 3 to Crown Heights.It's almost an hour train ride from the city... I listened to podcasts from NPR and crocheted my way through almost a full scarf. I arrived at the Kingston St station and made my way up the stairs, lugging my suitcase... Annoyed and a bit warm, I emerged from the station... Into a new world.Men in black suits and hats rush down the sidewalk. Women in beautiful wigs, dressed modestly, pushing strollers and toting kids. Every one greeting each other on the street. The giant dreidel on the corner by the children's museum. AhhhhMy first visit to Crown Heights I was lost! I felt at home but as if I forgot my address. Going on my, oh I don't know, 50th visit or so I had it down. I walked down the street and ran into gobs of friends. I found the kallah and delivered the ties. She delivered multiple hugs to me and we quickly parted ways. Shabbat (the sabbath) was coming and we both had to get ready. I saw many more friends. There is this particular sound that happens when Orthodox girls see each other for the first time in a while. It's usually called a "Seminary Squeal." It is characterized as a loud, high-pitched squeal followed quickly by a huge, bouncing hug. Let's just say this scene was repeated over and over that day.But there was an important errand to run. Gummy bears. You read me right. Gummy bears, of the kosher variety. They happen to be my favorite snack, however in Denver they cost $5 a bag!! Yes, those chewy little bears you can buy for $.99, cost me $5! But in Crown Heights I can get them for only $2.50!! What a steal, I know. With eight bags of gummy bears in my bag, yes EIGHT bags, I headed to my NY sisters' apartment.In this tiny basement apartment, I found my home. I spent the next three days with my friends and adopted family celebrating Shabbat and the marriage of a dear friend. I shut off my phone and all electronics. As soon as we lit candles and shabbat began, we took a nap. Amazing how we rush and rush until shabbat and the minute it comes in, a calm settles over us. We walked to dinner with friends/family for Shabbat. We laughed and played and talked. People left, people went to bed, we relaxed. In Denver, this is hard for me. I can't walk to people so I have to decide if I break Shabbat to drive, stay home alone, or sleep at someone's house every sabbath. We went home and slept, we woke up and relaxed, we read, we visited friends, we went to our respective lunches. I recharged my batteries. I recharged my Judaism. I reignited my passion for my observance.Spending Sunday running around with friends, getting ready for my friend's wedding. That night I danced with such joy at my friend's joy. Maybe then my chassidishe soul was recharged.It is traditional to give each other blessings at a wedding, especially for the bride to give her guests blessings. The themes of the blessings I was given on Sunday was 1. Revealed good 2. Clarity and 3. That I should find my beshert (soulmate).Just being there with friends and deep within a Jewish community gave me one and two. I saw such good in friends and the people around me this weekend and the clarity... oh the clarity.Sometimes we have to return to a place that may have been foreign at one point but now holds friends and memories to find a center, a balance, to remember what's important.Oh and stock up on gummy bears.
L'Havdil - This Week's Separation and New Year's
Tomorrow night we will celebrate two important milestones. They both have a similar shoresh (root) but they are different.Tomorrow night, at approx 72 minutes past sunset (click here to get the exact time), we will say baruch hamavdil ben kodesh l'chol... and a few other brachot by the light of a braided candle. We will be doing havdallah. We will be creating a separation between the sacred and the everyday. On Shabbis (Shabbat, Sabbath) we hold our actions to a higher standard than usual. Whether that means you don't drive or cook or turn on light or tear toilet paper... or it means that you spend time with your family and chill out... no matter how you do it, you make Shabbat a special time. (And if you don't, think about trying it sometime. Start simple and slow... maybe choose to not spend any money or do things that you feel are work or maybe... shocking... turn off your cell phone. Trying it for one 26 hour period. It will change your life, it changed mine!) And at the end of this special time, at the end of Shabbat, we must have a ritual to remind us that we can take the (w)holy feeling that we got from that time forward into our week but the week has a different feel to it. Havdallah creates a distinction. It derives from the same root as l'havdil which means to create a separation between something incredible and something ordinary.So shortly after havdalah (okay, a few hours later), we will ring in the secular new year. The Jewish calendar already flipped years back at Rosh Hashanah but the Gregorian calendar will change tomorrow night at midnight. You kinda can't avoid the celebrations. The parties all night long, the goofy glasses that say 2012, the drunks, Dick Clark on tv despite his health... It's fun, it's secular yes, but it's still fun. This is another time l'havdil... to separate. Not from something incredible to something ordinary but from something that has become routine and maybe even boring to a promise of something new and better and extraordinary.Baruch hamavdil ben kodesh l'chol - Blessed are you who creates a separation between sacred and common. Perhaps at midnight tomorrow night we should say baruch hamavdil ben chol l'kodesh or even baruch hamavdil ben zakain l'hadash -blessed are you who creates a separation between old and new - or even... baruch hamavdil ben h'avar uvain ha'atid - Blessed are you who created a separation between the past and the future.May you all be blessed in this up coming new year. See you in 2012!
As The Candles Gutter Out
Today is the last day of Chanukah. Last night we lit our last candles of this holiday.With all the hype that led up to Chanukah, it's hard to imagine that it is over. I can't image what it feels like for Christians who have (I feel) an even bigger build up to their holiday and then only one night and one day Xmas.With all this holiday spirit and war on Xmas talk... what are we, as Jews to feel when we look at our lit chanukiah?Our chanukiah brings light into the world. We are obligated to light it in a window or so it can be seen from the street. Why? Well it came from a time when we could not do that. When we were forced to hide who we were for fear of persecution or death. Since we no longer live in that fear, since we have the freedom to worship as we want here, we show the world that we are Jews by lighting our menorot in the window. So the menorah, or chanukiah, is like a symbol of our freedom, right? A shining (literally) example of our right to worship. Our Chanukah lights shout from our homes "WE ARE JEWS!"Well, we aren't always about shouting... shouting isn't always the right reaction, correct? Sometimes an outward symbol also teaches us something internally. So we light these candles every night and we gather as families. In my family, at least, we tell stories of Chanukahs past. We sing the same songs that my father sung with his parents (laughing in the same spots at our terrible voices). The candles burn with the warmth of family and love and history and tradition. They are lit in a safe space, for them (on tin foil to make sure they don't burn down the house, says my father and to keep wax off the furniture, says my moms), and a safe space for us. A space where you can be you and you will be loved and accepted and held in the warm arms of generations gone before.But that's how I feel communally and with my family, what about me... personally... what does the chanukiah bring into MY life? So the word Chanukah come from the Hebrew verb - חנך - chanach meaning 'to dedicate.' Funny that this time of year falls within proximity to the secular new year, which is a time for resolutions... or rededicating yourself to ideals and efforts.So as I watched the candles gutter out last night for the last time this year, I thought to myself... to what shall I rededicate myself this year? Well, dear readers, here is my list.
Talia Hava's Chanukah Rededication List:
- Blogging. I will be better about blogging more regularly, really.
- Subhead - Writing in general. I would really love to publish more work.
- Photography. My camera and I have had a chilly relationship lately. I plan on warming that up soon!
- Me. I get bogged down in all the work and other stuff that I forget about me. That means exercising and doing things I enjoy (see numbers 1 & 2 above).
- Volunteering and philanthropic work. I miss it. When I was in school, in my sorority, that was a focus. Let's get back out and help people!
- Sticking to a budget. I'm trying, I really am... but numbers isn't my strong suit!
- Dating. A very wise rebbetzin once told me, "Talia, if you want to get married you have to make dating your full time job." Ugh, but you were right! Here goes...
- Learn how to crochet. Seriously! I've learned twice and I keep forgetting!
- Start an Etsy store with my friend Amanda, fill it with our art, my photography, her knitting, and other goodies, and sell lots of fun stuff!
- STUDY MORE TORAH AND HALACHA! Very key. I miss the regular learning I was doing in Israel. Gotta get going again!
Well, those are mine... what does your rededication list look like? May you all have nothing but Mazal, Bracha, Hatzlacha, Briut, v'Shalom for the (secular) new year! (Definition: luck, blessing, success, health, and peace)
Chanukah A Time For Re-Dedication
I work for the Allied Jewish Federation of Colorado and being a Jewish organization, we begin every meeting with a bissel Torah (a bit of Torah learning). We call them d'vars (though, the correct way to make d'var plural in Hebrew would be Divrei). A d'var is general a talk on a section of Torah. More often than not, our divrei are on current topics in Israel or America or relating to holidays or a teaching we recently heard or saw. This is the d'var I gave at our all staff meeting on December 2nd. I wanted to talk about Chanukah, the weekly parsha (Torah portion), our Chanukah ephilanthropy and a project our staff was engaged in. A lot to tie together but I think I did alright. Let me know what you think:
I want to start today's dvar by introducing you to our Chanukkah Campaign. Everyday heroes. Heroes don't always wear capes or leap tall buildings in a single bound. Heroes are people who make a difference everyday. Our donors are heroes. You are a hero when you help an elderly woman with her groceries. When you pick up a fallen object for someone. It can often be the small acts that are more impact-ful then the grand ones. Every time you think outside your box, every time you do something for someone else that is beyond what you would normally do, you are a hero. We are all heroes.What does being a hero have to do with Chanukkah, you ask? There are so many layers. The word Chanukah means dedication, as in the time that the Jews took to rededicate the Temple after it had been desecrated instead of celebrating their military victory. Dedication is a key part of being a hero. Dedication to self, to values, to things that make you passionate, and to other human beings.The true story of Chanukkah is not the story of the mythical miracle of the oil lasting 8 days, no it is the story of the Maccabees, the guerrilla army that defeated an army 10, 20 times it's size. It's of every day men who decided that the oppression of their freedom was just not acceptable any longer. It's the story of passion and compassion. Passion and compassion are key parts of being a hero.In observance of Chanukkah, we light candles every night. We illuminate the darkest days of the year with our candles and illuminate the darkest parts of our soul as well. It's the inner light that reminds us of the continuity of past, present, and future. A hero lights the path for others, goes first into the darkness to ensure others safety, and never forgets where he or she came from. Our past colors our future and molds our present. Heroes respect that connection.In this week's parsha, Vayeitzay, we get the overview of the future of the Jewish people. Jacob makes a pact G-d, meets and marries Rachel and Leah, and father's 13 children... with children who are to be the future of the Jewish people... children who are in their own rights, heroes.So today, we look back at our past and are thankful that Jacob, Yaakov, made the tough decisions that he made. And we look back at the Maccabees, descendents of Jacob, and are thankful they made tough decisions to free the Jewish people from an oppressive regime.And we look forward to the Jewish future where tough decisions will be required of us and our children... We must then look upon ourselves today. What can I do today to positively impact tomorrow, either for my children or for other people's children? Well as the Federation, our campaign supports many, many Jewish people all over the world... and as a staff we will be directly impacting two families with an incredible need. So I will wrap this dvar up by saying this... if you haven't already, please speak to Lisa Soicher about how you can be a hero to these two families for Christmas that we have adopted from JFS, and remember... every action counts.
A song to make your Chanukah happy & an easy way to give back!
Yes, folks! It's that time of year! Prep your Chanukiah, Chanukah is here!Beginning tomorrow night we will be lighting candles for 8 nights to honor our forefathers, the Maccabees who fought bravely against the Greeks to regain control of our Holy Temple. Many people tell this story as one of a miracle of oil. Sure, the oil may have lasted for eight whole days but the true miracle was the military victory. Against all odds, a small guerrilla army of Jews led by Judah Maccabee fought the mighty Greeks. The Greeks who were constantly oppressing us, taking away our freedoms... freedom to live, to worship, to be Jews. They desecrated our Holy Temple in Jerusalem. They stole treasures, slaughtered pigs in the sacred spaces and destroyed the external holiness.But they couldn't touch our internal holiness... the Kadosh, the holy sacred special separate different-ness we carry with us where ever we go.The Maccabees fought back and won. But, instead of celebrating their victory with wine and parties... they all gathered as a community and went to the Holy Temple and began the process of cleaning and rededicating the space. Because sometimes we all need a holy space.In honor of our forefather Macabees, the Yeshiva University Maccabeats have put out a new video for Chanukah. But in addition to the video, they are spearheading an initiative to help get tests processed from the Gift of Life Bone Marrow Foundation. It's an easy swab to be registered but they need funding t0 process all the swabs! It takes $54 to get a donor in the registry.So enjoy this Chanukah video by the Maccabeats then another video with Mayim Bialik (yes from Blossom and Big Bang Theory) on why to participate, then click on the link and donate! They are trying to raise $80,000 - $10,000 for each night of Chanukah! Let's do this!Videos after the jump...Maccabeats: Miracle by Matisyahu[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oHwyTxxQHmQ]Mayim Bialik and the Maccabeats Miracle Match Campaign:[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s40Zk4xALRY]