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It happens all the time. Our family will be guests enjoying a Shabbos meal at the home of friends, and I or my wife will tell the hostess that one of the dishes, perhaps a dessert, looks delectable and is particularly delicious. The hostess will invariably respond, “Oh! It was so easy to make! Really, it was nothing! It looks so fancy, but it took like five minutes. It’s the simplest thing. I saw it in last week’s – (whichever magazine). I’ll give you the recipe after Shabbos!”

I know people are busy, so I’m going to try to keep this short.

The month of June is a wonderful time of year. By now, the flowers and leaves are in full bloom, and summer is already in the air. The world has come back to life in its annually miraculous way.

 Last Shabbos, we headed up to the mountains to participate in a wonderful Shabbaton with the ninth and tenth grades of Heichal HaTorah. The car was packed up with linen, luggage, and half our children (the rest went to their grandparents).

Although the pandemic was a world-wide challenge that caused incredible loss and suffering, not everyone fared badly. Most prominently, within weeks of the beginning of the pandemic, “Zoom” became ubiquitous. It seemed like everything was on Zoom: meetings, parties, family get-togethers, shiurim, yoga, etc. Pfizer and Moderna have also done well in recent months.

When anyone asked “why” in her presence, my Bubby, Rebbetzin Fruma (Frances) Kohn would repeat the quip, “Why is a crooked letter!” However, with her European accented English, it would come across as “Vy is a crooked letter.” The irony and G-d’s humor was that for the last decade of her life, Vy was the name of Bubby’s Latin-American caretaker. Every time I went to visit Bubby and she called Vy, I had to restrain myself from repeating the quote I heard from her so often.

American youth are familiar with Oscar the Grouch. Oscar, a green monster who resides in a garbage can, is an iconic character on Sesame Street. Oscar is perpetually grumpy and impatient with others and seems to enjoy everything everyone else doesn’t.