A Wonderful Relationship

In general, this blog is dedicated to sharing information with those looking to explore the significance and practical sides of bris milah.

On the one hand, it is meant to answer questions you may have related to the significance of the mitzvah, the specific practices, the rituals, the pieces of the ceremony that have been introduced and innovated over the centuries.

On the other hand, it is meant to provide you with hands-on information that is most useful for the parent who wants to know what happens during a bris, what happens to the baby, what the healing process is, and how things will be different after the bris. It also provides information for first time parents (or first-time parents of a boy who may already have a daughter or two (or more!)) about what needs to be done to put together a bris. You may have friends who will help you, but if you have trouble finding information, it's all here.

So, in this posting, I will detour to the personal side of this role I play from time to time.

I was invited to perform the bris for the second son of a friend of mine, who I've known for close to thirty years. (I had the honor of doing their first son's bris two and a half years ago) We'd been in and out of touch for the better part of our formative years, but a reconnection 6 years ago tightened our friendship to this day. I am better off because of it, and for that I am grateful.

I cannot express in words how special it feels to play such a significant role at any family's bris. Being invited into the inner circle at such a significant time, being given a tremendous level of trust and good faith is something I cherish from all the people who call me at this joyous, yet vulnerable time in a family's growth.

And when the parents of the baby are such dear friends, the feeling is exponentially greater.

And so NOA, I thank you from the bottom of my heart for being true friends,
 for helping me have a wonderful weekend, and for giving me the opportunity to celebrate with you and to watch your family grow. Your children are, thank God, beautiful. Their names (see previous posting) are significant on many levels. As you put it, they'll carry a memory of me forever ;).  But I also look forward to the baby who will come who will not have such a "privilege" so the circle can be complete in whatever way you choose to complete it. (V'dai lachakima...) Of course, based on one level of your family's track record, that may take some time... but only the Ribboinoi Shel Oilum knows how these things really work. May it be for a blessing, no matter how things turn out.

Please share my blessings with your awe-inspiring family. You are a marvel to uphold and a source of inspiration to everyone blessed with the privilege of knowing you.