(C) Daily Kos This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . A Song of Zion Open Thread: Esther's Things [1] ['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.'] Date: 2023-11-02 Happy Thursday folks. For today I bring you the story of Esther, no not that Esther; rather the story of a Jewish American woman from Maryland. About a year ago, down here in southern Florida I was working at a local thrift store. And like all thrift stores, we had a drop off area where people could dump on us their sometimes treasures, and atother times garbage. We frequently got large estate drops. One day, in this very non-Jewish area, a whole bunch of super Jewish stuff, beautiful things, started to appear. It was obvious that it was from one person- someone who loved Judaism, and loved entertaining. Judging by the contents it was almost certainly an older Jewish woman who retired to Florida. Seeing her stuff made feel like I almost knew her, so I started referring to her as “Esther”. I hope you enjoy this celebration of Esther’s life through what she left behind. You can see I’ve already made good use of these Shabbos candle holders. The message on this platter translates to English as, “To honor holy Sabbath”. Esther gave me everything I need to celebrate Shabbat that I didn’t have. To think I used to be an orthodox Jew, and I didn’t even have a pair of Shabbos candle holders! And now I have a beautiful challah cutting board for holidays and Shabbat. I also managed to scoop up a large Shabbat platter, which is so pristine that I’m guessing it was never used, or was only used to pass around challah. *If folks are confused by my use of Shabbos and Shabbat, it should be understood they are different acceptable ways to pronounce “Sabbath” in Hebrew. Shabbat is more Israeli modern Hebrew, and Shabbos is traditional American Ashkenazi. Usually people stick with one version, but I use both. On this challah board the message is, “To honor Shabbat and holidays”. And here’s what I was most excited about, Esther’s beautiful Havdalah (end of Sabbath ritual) set: This Havdalah set is hand painted by Israeli Judaica artist Yair Emanuel Handmade in Ukraine. Aren’t they lovely? I could see that the Havdalah set had been used. There were still cloves in the spice holder, and the inside of the cup is stained with wine. I like to think Esther was leading Havdalah for her loved ones until her last Shabbos. The meticulous Esther always kept it stored in it’s original box, with a sticker that said, “Israeli Accents” with an address in Rockville, Maryland. Rockville is a heavily Jewish area, and I was able to verify that the shop still exists. That’s why I figured she’s from Maryland, like me. I purchased the these beautiful Ukrainian beeswax candles so I could start doing Havdalah. You’ll notice I have a blue and yellow one to represent the Ukrainian flag. They smell lovely, and are made by Judaica company Averbuh. I am sorry to admit that I haven’t used the candles or Esther’s Havdalah set yet. I’ve never done Havdalah myself, and admit I’m intimidated, despite how many times I’ve seen it done. In addition to lots of Shabbos stuff, Esther also had quite a bit of holiday goodies, especially for Chanukah. She had Chanukah stuffed animals, salt and pepper shakers, and even napkin holders. Oh, and she had dreidels, lots and lots of decorative dreidels. These decorative dreidels are amazing. I’m sure it was always a happy Chanukah for Esther. As a stuffie collector I was thrilled to snag these Chanukah themed bears. There was also a lot of Judaica artwork, dishware, and a gorgeous tzedakah (charity) box that I missed. We were only allowed to shop on our days off, so I had to watch a bunch of stuff go. I did however, snag these incredible bookends: Mosaic bookends with Star of David Thank you Esther! May your memory be a blessing. I’ve never met you, but you’ve helped feed my Jewish soul. I finally have what I need for Shabbat. I hope you can see me lighting my candles, and that it brings you joy. And with that, I give you a Shabbos throwback: Welcome folks! This is our weekly open thread and check-in for the Daily Kos Jewish community. Thanks for getting this started Ninalyn! As Xe said last week: This is a safe post to talk about your struggles and concerns here on DKos and beyond, discuss your grief, and generally just…rest. If you’re a goy you’re not unwelcome, but I would request you take this opportunity to listen, rather than to speak. It’s a very different world on this side of the shul. So how’s everyone doing? 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