RP: Shabbat Dinner
Date: 2 February 2005
Characters: Rose, Eleanor
Location: Eleanor's house
Status: Private
Summary: Rose and Eleanor share Shabbat dinner and catch up on their week.
Completion: Incomplete
Rose was finished with classes early on Fridays. She'd made her schedule so in order to return home to prepare for Shabbat. She wasn't the most observant of Masorti Jews, really, but there were certain things with which she'd grown up, and Shabbat was one of them. It was second nature to her now. At home, it was family time, but here she had no family, nor even another Jew in the whole of Stoatshead (as far as she knew). If she wanted to go to synagogue, she had to go into Exeter but Apparation was considered 'traveling,' so she couldn't get there unless she used her feet. Of course, she'd known all that when she'd decided to move out to Stoatshead, but it was important for her to be with other magical people as much as it was important for her to be with other Jews. She belonged to both communities.
Her way of compromising was to observe Shabbat carefully. And as Eleanor was the closest thing she had to family here, that meant including Eleanor in the process.
Rose used the time after class and before sunset to prepare food for the meal, and get the house ready. Eleanor had followed her around the previous Friday, watching, curious as Rose set magical timers and even unscrewed the lightbulb in the Muggle fridge so it wouldn't come on when the door opened. "Electricity is counted as fire," Rose had explained.
Now, house and food preparations complete, showered and dressed properly, she set the table with a white tablecloth and prepared the good dishes, the candles, some flowers. All the food was ready. She actually rather liked the process, always had. There should be one meal a week where everybody sat down to something nice, not in a hurry to run off somewhere else.
"We're ready!" she called out to Eleanor, then covered her head and watched the clock. At 18 minutes to sunset, she struck a match to light the candles. "Barukh atah adonai eloheinu melech haolam asher kidshanu be-mitzvotav ve-tzivanu lehadlik ner shel shabbat." Then translating for Eleanor's sake, "Blessed are you Lord our G-d, King of the universe who has sanctified our lives through His commandments, commanding us to kindle the Sabbath lights." They wouldn't be going to synagogue, obviously, so she skipped ahead to the Kiddush, raising the glass of wine. "Baruch ata adonai eloheinu melech haolam, borei pri hagafen. Blessed are you ruler of the universe, who created the fruit of the vine ..."
And on it went. She grinned at Eleanor watching, then passed her the bowl and cup to wash her hands. "Two cupfuls over each hand," she instructed. Her smiled widened. "I'm really glad to have you to eat with."
Finally, all the blessings done, they sat down to eat. And visit. "How are you feeling now?" Rose asked. Eleanor had been ill and stuck in the house.
Characters: Rose, Eleanor
Location: Eleanor's house
Status: Private
Summary: Rose and Eleanor share Shabbat dinner and catch up on their week.
Completion: Incomplete
Rose was finished with classes early on Fridays. She'd made her schedule so in order to return home to prepare for Shabbat. She wasn't the most observant of Masorti Jews, really, but there were certain things with which she'd grown up, and Shabbat was one of them. It was second nature to her now. At home, it was family time, but here she had no family, nor even another Jew in the whole of Stoatshead (as far as she knew). If she wanted to go to synagogue, she had to go into Exeter but Apparation was considered 'traveling,' so she couldn't get there unless she used her feet. Of course, she'd known all that when she'd decided to move out to Stoatshead, but it was important for her to be with other magical people as much as it was important for her to be with other Jews. She belonged to both communities.
Her way of compromising was to observe Shabbat carefully. And as Eleanor was the closest thing she had to family here, that meant including Eleanor in the process.
Rose used the time after class and before sunset to prepare food for the meal, and get the house ready. Eleanor had followed her around the previous Friday, watching, curious as Rose set magical timers and even unscrewed the lightbulb in the Muggle fridge so it wouldn't come on when the door opened. "Electricity is counted as fire," Rose had explained.
Now, house and food preparations complete, showered and dressed properly, she set the table with a white tablecloth and prepared the good dishes, the candles, some flowers. All the food was ready. She actually rather liked the process, always had. There should be one meal a week where everybody sat down to something nice, not in a hurry to run off somewhere else.
"We're ready!" she called out to Eleanor, then covered her head and watched the clock. At 18 minutes to sunset, she struck a match to light the candles. "Barukh atah adonai eloheinu melech haolam asher kidshanu be-mitzvotav ve-tzivanu lehadlik ner shel shabbat." Then translating for Eleanor's sake, "Blessed are you Lord our G-d, King of the universe who has sanctified our lives through His commandments, commanding us to kindle the Sabbath lights." They wouldn't be going to synagogue, obviously, so she skipped ahead to the Kiddush, raising the glass of wine. "Baruch ata adonai eloheinu melech haolam, borei pri hagafen. Blessed are you ruler of the universe, who created the fruit of the vine ..."
And on it went. She grinned at Eleanor watching, then passed her the bowl and cup to wash her hands. "Two cupfuls over each hand," she instructed. Her smiled widened. "I'm really glad to have you to eat with."
Finally, all the blessings done, they sat down to eat. And visit. "How are you feeling now?" Rose asked. Eleanor had been ill and stuck in the house.