|
Tu B'Shvat for the Jewish people is a festival of joy and hope,
it is the time when nature revives and starts giving birth to the new crop.
On January 17 Mazal Tov and Hesed on Wheels programs together with
the Warm Home celebrated the New Year of Trees in Burunday village. Children
and adults welcomed the guests. I, the head of Mazal Tov program Natalya Ilyina,
told the audience about the history of Tu B'Shvat and the way Jewish communities
of other countries celebrate it. Children recited poems about Israel, sang songs,
and together with the head of the Warm Home said prayers over the fruits.
By tradition we planted a date and orange seed. And also all children
made a surprise for their mothers - they planted parsley and coriander
into small flowerpots. But it is a secret! Mothers will find it out only in
a month.
On the festive table in Burunday there were seven kinds of fruits:
olives, figs, dates, oranges, mandarins, pomegranates, and apples. In spite
of the frost thoughts about the Motherland and the smell of exotic fruits made
the guests' eyes sparkle. Children were happy and tried to taste all the fruits.
Natalya Ilyina |
