hands of my father

every time i see a deaf person signing i am mesmorized. its a most beautiful language to watch. i always hope im not being impolite when i am watching.

often there are people signing at book readings or shiurim that i have attended. most recently there was a translator signing at barnes and noble at union square for a larry king book reading. though i wanted to watch the signing it was also distracting, not unlike subtitles in foreign movies. if you dont need the translation it can be distracting.

as a child i learned the alphabet in sign language which proved to be more fun than passing notes in class. at some point i remember learning how to sign shema as well.

over shabbos i read the most incredible book. hands of my father by myron uhlberg . this is about the hearing son of two deaf parents. this is one of the most beautifully written books i have ever come across. the photos that are included are fabulous. myron uhlberg's parents were born in the early 1900's to jewish immigrant families. though their parents never learned sign language themselves, they loved their deaf children enough to send them to deaf schools so that they would be able to read and write .they learned sign language from their school friends. louis and sarah uhlberg married and had children during the depression. louis uhlberg supported his family as a printer. both of myron's parents knew that hearing people did not think of deaf people as being completely human or intelligent. they did not care. the times they lived in were not very accepting of those with disabilities. they persisted and lived full lives. they had a strong marital bond and deeply loved their children.

for young myron it was challenging to be the hearing child of deaf parents. his first language was sign . the first words he signed were 'i love you' . from the time he was six years old he became his fathers voice when needed. he also heard what hearing people said about deaf people which was tough for a child. especially tough for a child who knew how very special his parents were.

the most wonderful part of the book is how the author really lets the reader get to know his parents, especially his father. his father did not let his disability get in his way. he could not hear, but his other senses were heightened . because he could not hear he could clearly see who people were . he could not be fooled by people whose words did not match their facial expressions, because he could not hear them in the first place. it was also wonderful to read how this hearing boy had a normal childhood even in such a unique situation. he had to be adult when he had to speak for his father, but his father still wanted him to be a child.

louis and sarah uhlberg grew up in a tough time for deaf people, but they were very strong people. they had families who never truly understood them or had faith in their abilities , but managed to have a marriage any couple could envy and raise two very special children.

unfortunately louis uhlberg's parents werent able to give him a connection to judaism. it was also hard for louis uhlberg to reconcile how hashem could have made him deaf. in his youth shul's werent deaf friendly.

it was a pleasure reading such a loving tribute from a son to his parents. it was such a pleasure getting to know them. it was hard to put the book down.

this is a book of triumph over the face of adversity which i highly recommend.

kindle

ever since the kindle has been invented i have considered buying one. not being one to make snap decisions i still have not purchased one. one reason i havent purchased one yet is because you cant use a kindle on shabbos. of course i usually read magazines on shabbos . but this is besides the point. a kindle is certainly lighter to carry around than a book. you dont need a computer to upload the books either, they can be put directly onto the kindle itself. now there are also some cool kindle covers that are even in my favorite color purple.
im not sure how i feel about viewing book pictures on a kindle. its a different experience. looking at a print of a photo is totally different than viewing a digital photo on the camera itself. i think it might be hard to get used to . with a kindle you can buy a book and even store it on the kindle or on your computer for reading at different juncture. you own the book, but just virtually. its not exactly the same thing. then again, i am still one of the few who borrow books from the public library. the books on loan from the library are never really mine either and it doesnt bother me all that much.
travel would be easier with a kindle . i wouldnt have to buy as many books pre-vacation. i would still need to bring some books if i was to go a away for a long yom tov. a kindle would still lighten my luggage.
eventually i will break down and get one. too bad im so technologically reluctant.

melt down

sometimes i feel like my life is running on high speed and i cant seem to slow it down. i get up, rush to get ready for work. go to work. work is a high paced environment. i scramble to do errands after work. i rush to get together with friends. on days off im overbooked with social commitments. before i know it monday rolls around and i havent had more than five hours of sleep each night. when does it end? is it just the life of a new yorker or is this life in general? the economy is what it is , but i feel like im experiencing merry-go-round meltdown. need some change fast before its too late!

swine who?

i hate to admit it but my life has been so hectic lately that i havent given much thought to the "swine flu plague". last week i did actually see an elderly woman wearing a surgical mask. its great. she's shielding her mouth so whatever she is emitting wont spring into my air.
im not saying we shouldnt be careful, but i think that the media is going overboard. ive never heard of so many schools being shut down due to an illness that it doesnt seem like too many people have contracted. b"h . i suppose i could say that there arent so many cases of swine flu because the schools have been closed, but im not completely sold on that concept.
though im not busy obsessing about swine flu i do think that people should take heed of personal hygeine like washing one's hands when one come's home after riding public transportation, etc.
to health! l'chaim!

barbie

dylan's candy shop had some great barbie doll art. unfortunately there were no pictures of ken.

old young people

i have friends who like to kvetch that they are old. it bugs me because i dont think of myself as old. when my friends start kvetching about aches i keep thinking is it just them or am i in deep denial? (btw, my actual age is irrelevant for this topic, so dont even go there in your brain) part of my feeling of agelessness is due to the fact i do not have kids or even nieces or nephews. another reason i feel young is due to my upbringing. i grew up surounded by elders who felt young at heart no matter what their age. they may have looked aged but that was where it ended. i have a great uncle who started drawing in his late seventies. my grandmother was an associate travel agent who oraganized and led trips for senior citizens until she was eighty. i have been fortunate to have elders who always seemed up to date with life instead of living in the past.i try to emulate them. i think that this is what keeps me young. i try to be able to relate to young and old alike in an age appropriate manner.
i dont want to get old before my time. many of my peers have cried old at 35. to me this is so sad. why waste time feeling old? maximize life. feeling old never helps. it just makes one feel depressed. i really dont feel old . what good would feeling old do anyway? three years from now i will wish that i was as young as i am today. i want to feel the hope of youth as long as i can, if not always. when one stops striving one becomes old. when one stops having hope GAME OVER.

salute to israel parade 2009

it was a beautiful day for a parade, except for the brief rain at 4:20 yesterday afternoon when i was leaving the post - parade concert in central park.

the parade was as enjoyable as ever. kahane chai or jdl or whatever they are calling themselves these days were there selling meir kahane's books. they had the book why be jewish . that book had been out of print for years. i had been trying to find it ever since i took it out of the library about ten years ago. though the pop-culture references in the book are dated, the sentiment is not.

its always fun to see the professional marching bands mixed with the usual hodgepodge of parade marchers.

enjoy the pictures.