Havadalah Service: Beach-Side

My Beach-life takes place at Cape Henlopen State Park a.k.a CHSP @ The Point and @ the Beach Pavillion/Hawk Watch. It's my spot. Thus when my community life joins me there; Life is Sweet! The occasion was to celebrate the end of Shabbat.

Our Seaside Jewish Community took over the Picnic Pavillion; we ate leisurely, timing the meal to end just before sundown, 8:15PM for the Havdalah Service.

Full of grilled steak, tabbuleh, and too many desserts we climbed over the now sand-dune covered WW11 Bunker to the Ocean Beach! A tight circle we became, with the children centered on their beach blankets....... thus the service began and ended with lots of singing.

Havdalah celebrates the senses: visuals of the lighted twisted candle and the coast-line, tastes of wine and salt air, the smell of the spice box and the salty-sea, hearing our voices in song and prayer and the waves crashing!

Afterwards, we had just enough time to see the Common Night Hawks catching their dinner above the pines and then take in the sunset over the Fishing Pier!

http://www.seasidejewishcommunity.com/

Shalom,

Ocean City's Bike Week, Yom Kippur @ SJC, Shofar Blasts

In Fall of 2004 at my beachy-cottage, my very first night was to the accompanying rumbles of bikes, bikes, and more bikes. As my cottage is near a street light: it was more like hearing the idling varooms gear into blasts.

I was very unhappy. I assumed this was the " nightly norm". I had not a clue about the once a year event of OC's: Bike Week!

I was kinda happy when a tricked-out Harley broke down right in front of my cottage and spent the day in my driveway!

This year, Bike Week occurred the same week as Yom Kippur!

The Shofar is a ram's horn that is ritually blown in certain named notes and patterns to announce the beginning of Rosh Ha Shonah and the end of Yom Kippur.

I spent a wonderful day with Seaside Jewish Community (SJC) in services at our host, Epworth Church, I left in a prayerful mode, but as I drove back to my cottage, I was surrounded by blasts of bikes!

For the weekend 250,000 bikes descended on Ocean City! Again my cottage was besieged by the noise. I was very unhappy.

Oddly the varoom-varooms reminded me of the Shofar blasts!

One Blast: Tekiyah!

Three Short Blasts: Shevarim!

Rapid Line Blasts: Teruah!

The Blast of All Blasts: Tekiyah Gedolah!!!

Then I was happy, and happy even during the night of rumbling, and almost sad when morning came, and not a Bike Blast around to remind me of the Shofar and the call to The New Year: 5771.

La Shanah Tova,

Rosh Ha Shonah and Hawk Watch

For the Erev Rosh Ha Shonah evening service, I made certain I was dressed up: Simply Vera Wang dress, fancy drop-pearl earrings, gold circle bangle, and Italian sandals, ruched-black handbag.

Because...... The next day, for Saturday Morning Rosh Ha Shonah services I was dressed in a tee-shirt, capris, and a backpack.

Fashion format follows the function: I was positively giddy from the effect of going between Hawk Watch before and after services.

I was more proud of my fat-with-binoculars backpack than the fancy black leather-tasseled handbag. This memory brought back the wonderful youthful moments of picking out a new outfit to wear for Rosh Ha Shonah. .... And now as an adult I am in a tee-shirt!

The morning service sent me off with the Shofar Blasts exciting me to charge into the new year ahead.

After Hawk Watch I attended, just around the corner, the Tashlich ceremony at the Lewes Cape Shores Pier where we threw our leafs inscribed with our woes to the Delaware Bay.

Combining all the above activities can only happen in Sussex County! The effect of which made me for the entire day beyond grateful for my beachy-life.

Beach Blessings,

Midway's Screening Room and SJC.

One of my most favorite Summer socials is Seaside Jewish Community's ( SJC) Movie Night!

We were a small group....... ~ 20........ definitely the retired age group. The chosen movie, "Defiance"........ the extreme violence was not for a family night-out.

I love having The Midway's Screening Room "all to ourselves". It is fun and intimate, bonds form with the food and the ability to vocalize during the movie our "oh's and oy's".

For the menu we had a salad bar with ordered-in pizza! Lots of desserts from fresh figs to chocolate torte. Of course, Popcorn was served at movie time!!!

My Musical Succoth with Pizza!

If I can arrive at Seaside Jewish Community in time for Shabbat services...... my evening is made. 

 This time it was even better with Grotto Pizza ordered-in for dinner, Pizza In The Hut, The Succoth Hut! Afterwards we had the Succoth Service in the hut as the evening winds blew about.... gently swaying the structure.  One gust blew into the entrance and did a heave-ho, but the Succoth hut remained sound :-)

For certain prayers we needed to face East.  I was in disbelief when 75% of the worshippers knew not the direction of East!  As in the direction of  THE OCEAN not even 2 miles away!!!! How can you live at The Beach and not know this? 

 Ok, we will excuse Dewey Beach members... as no one awakes to witness the ocean sunrise, maybe awake for High Noon, yes.

A lovely Oneg social followed and then on home I went to take in the Dewey Beach Music Conference. (See the preceding Blog posting).

I took notice that I was continuing the celebration of Succoth by wandering from one Musical Hut to another!  No other way to describe the Dewey Beach venues other than Huts!

Beach Blessings,