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I am not necessarily a big fan of Chabad. Many things they do and believe are most definitely not in my line of thinking. Nor are they in most mainstream Orthodox circles. But let’s face it: No one comes close to the international care for Jews as they do. No one spreads the joy and pride of being Jewish like they do.

Proper etiquette dictates that if you lose a contest or a game, you’re supposed to be stoic about it, inhale deeply, and move on. No sense in being a sore loser or being a spoiled brat. Lick your wounds and go forward.

There’s the law of gravity, the law that water seeks its own level, the commonly accepted law that darkness is the absence of light, or that for every action there is a reaction. Ask any physicist or man in the street, and he or she will offer you a whole list of laws of nature that keep the world going, including the survival of the fittest.

I literally just returned from a week in Israel to spend time with my sisters whom I haven’t seen since the start of the October 7 Swords of Iron War. My 1:00 a.m. flight was delayed for six hours and then we had to drive from Newark Airport to Baltimore. Thus, I was left with no time and little energy to write this week’s article, which should have been focused on my trip.

My little, and of course very precious, grandson Yehuda has a very special first-grade rebbi in Baltimore. He has been a rebbi for at least 50 years, likely more. In fact, he was the rebbi of one of my Baltimore mechutanim. His greatness is that he loves all his little talmidim and is as enthusiastic as his first-year teaching.

I was going to write about the current situation from a religious and political perspective. Specifically, I was going to write in detail how many of our local Queens representatives on all levels and from all neighborhoods in the borough have disappointed us. Some are shocking, as they were previously very helpful – and helpful to the Jewish community. Almost all of them have the local organized Jewish community to thank for their election. I did warn them that this would happen, if the loyalty of the elected officials to the community was never allowed to be questioned; so I am entitled to say, “I told you so!” But I will leave that for another time.