Between The Clouds

Beware. This May Get Deep.

Flying from country to country and then state to state I’d been up in the sky for more hours than I was on the ground. My body clock was so off I wasn’t sure if it was morning, noon, or night when I finally landed from place to place but the one thing I did know? I was headed in the right direction.

Everywhere I went, I was taken care of. I made all my connections with ease and was greeted by happy faces, people all happy to see me, just as happy as I was to see them. My purpose? I flew to America for my niece’s wedding. I arrived in New Jersey via Italy – where everyone is stunning – just by the way – oh and I had the most amazing ( sarcastic ) trip in, no kosher food. I was completely wiped out and my brother & sister-in-law made sure to feed me, give me a really comfy bed to sleep in before I headed out on the red-eye the next morning to Denver via Cincinnati. My nieces and nephews were making fun of me because I wasn’t making any sense and my eyes were half closed as I tried to keep up with the conversations. Finally I gave up and was in bed by 8:30 PM, awake by 4AM – flying out again…with only a 45 minute stopover I had just barely enough time to make my connection.

Landing in Colorado?

Surreal.

While mid-air, through thin clouds, I saw the Rockies.

Seriously, breath-catching.

Absolutely amazing and made me feel so small.

I just could not stop looking out the window thinking how wonderful it was to have the opportunity to witness something so grand in my life.

Sure, Israel has given me many of these moments, but I thought I was done exploring the possibilities in the States. This was an added bonus, since my sole purpose for the trip was to visit my 96-year-old grandmother.

There was another point on a different flight, where the clouds were so incredibly puffy, I felt like I wanted to jump out and hop from cloud to cloud.

Just a few days ago, I was driving on the Highway 60 en route to my home when the fog started to creep down towards the cars on the road. It was like I was driving in 3D, the pockets of mist kept popping up around me and I literally felt like I was floating or drifting on the highway.

After reading a very serious heartfelt post yesterday from my friend Yarden, I felt downtrodden. As I have mentioned before, his wife is undergoing chemo for the second time and its taking its toll on her, on him, and their extended family, namely us. He asked that we not make food at random and just drop in to bring it by or to even visit, but rather email first – not even call, so you know its pretty serious.

I sat thinking how can I make a difference, how can I let them know I think and pray for them every day. How can I express that when I think of how she is suffering physically and he emotionally, that I feel their pain as well. One of the 10 commandments is Love your neighbor, and I do. WE all do, everyone in my neighborhood is like a small family. So I thought, what is the happiest moment I can remember of the 2 of us together, me and Stella and I remember this one moment that was captured on camera.

We were at a community event a few years ago, using fondant and our hands were covered by the dye all colorful and fun. I kept laughing at my attempt to be creative and can remember even today joking around with Stella all the while she using encouraging words to build me up with my silly design. That’s what we do, we try to elevate each other. Good friends are like that. Even though she may be too sick to read this today, I know she supports me and my little blog and will get to it eventually, and I know there are people all over the world that are praying for her good health but we do what we can to spread the word. Since my words have reached over 50 countries I hope to spread this message, love your neighbor.

Encouragement can go a long way. So without making any calls or pop ins, without sending an email (because I am sure they have hundreds already) this message is a reminder to look between the clouds. For there in heaven we all imagine G-d sitting on a throne looking down at his people and seeing how we are doing, day-to-day. Do we help each other out? Do we encourage our fellow-man? Do we treat each other with respect? Do we recognize that we are limitless in our abundance to believe that miracles can happen? Are we prepared to shake the heavens with our requests for good health for ourselves, for our friends, for our neighbors?

Lots of big questions, the challenge today is to do at least one good deed to help a friend out. May we all be blessed to have friends like Stella & Yarden. I know I am.

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