Back in September, one of my New Year Resolutions was to start having Friday night Shabbos dinners again. When my kids were small we had Friday night dinners faithfully. It was the focal point of the week, actually. We had at least one other family join us, usually two or three, and I made the challah and the dessert from scratch. Intoxicating aromas came from my kitchen as I tried new Jewish/Israeli recipes from the latest cookbook I had found. The house was full of noise and laughter and most of all, love.
It was a great way to raise kids. We were what Jews considered 'frum,' meaning we had Friday night Shabbos dinner, then Saturday we went to shul and for the rest of the day relaxed until Havdallah. I look back on those days and realize what precious moments those were. Hopefully, my children will remember them with the same fondness I do.
Our eldest son, Joshua, was so enthusiastic about Shabbos that my husband and I thought for sure he would become a rabbi. No such luck there. By the time he was fifteen he didn't even want to be Jewish anymore. Eventually, the other two kids drifted away from the Shabbos concept as well, and we just stopped having it altogether.
So, last August, my daughter announced that she was engaged, and my son had given his longtime girlfriend a 'Promise' ring. Neither of them are Jewish, although the fiance is converting.
How do you explain why Judaism is so important to these non- Jewish kids? I thought a lot about it and decided that giving them books to read just doesn't cut the mustard. How can explain I the ambiance of a loving Jewish home?
And then I had an epiphany. Shabbos! And if I really wanted to make my point, all of the other holidays as well. Hence, my family's return to Friday night dinners. Everyone in my family, including the fiance and girlfriend know that they are expected to be at my house on Friday nights.
I had thought this concept would receive protestations of the grandest nature. I really did. But to my wonderment and joy there were none. In fact, one Friday my husband and I had been invited out for the evening, and my daughter pouted. "But what about Shabbos?" she said.
We cancelled our night out.
Once again, the Goldstein house is full of noise and laughter and a lot of love on Friday nights. The celebration usually doesn't end until well after midnight. No one seems to want to leave! And in this day and age it's a wonderful feeling for this mom to know that.
I think that from now on Shabbos will continue to be a permanent fixture in the Goldstein household.

Sad to say, this week has seen the ending of another great era in Windsor, the life of Sara Kirzner. It was my great pleasure and honour to have known this lady for nearly thirty years. If there was a simcha or a death in our little community, Sarah was there, saying just the right words. And always, always she came with a dessert. One of her all time favourites was lemon tarts.
Sarah looked exactly like Carol Channing; same smile, same eyes, same build, and same hairstyle!And just like Carol Channing, Sarah had an incredible joie de vivre, gifted at making people laugh.
Sarah loved the theatre, even was an actress for a while. She and I often found ourselves at the same movie or play and we immediately discussed our impressions of what we had seen. But her interests didn't stop there. She was keenly interested in politics and Israel and loved learning. She was involved in book clubs and even took courses at the university.
There didn't seem to be a topic that Sarah didn't know something about it. Often her opinions were a ribald display of her love for life.
This city and our Jewish community will not be the same without her, and I will miss her very much indeed. My sincerest condolences to Sarah's family.