parsha bit: Lech L'cha

This morning's parsha bit:

This week's parsha ends with the mitzvah of circumcission. The midrash [Sefer ha-Chinuch] tells of a roman general who asked Rabbi Akiva: "if your God is so great and powerful, and he wanted men to be circumcised, why didn't he just make them that way?" Akiva answered that of course God could have done this, but the mitzvot were given to Israel so that we could perfect ourselves and the world through them. Circumcision reminds us that just as we are commanded to perfect ourselves physically, we are also commanded to perfect ourselves spiritually.

(Yes, I realize that it's kind of dicey for a woman to talk about circumcision positively. This was the most appealing of the non-famous midrashim I found on the portion.)

family visit

We're going to Toronto this weekend to visit Dani's relatives and, more specifically, attend a birthday party for his mother. I'm going to go back to the congregation I visited over Pesach (Beit HaMinyan) because they seemed friendly. Their web site mentions a "lunch and learn" for this Saturday, but no one answered the email I sent them about it so I don't know if it's "advance reservations and real food" or "kiddush++ and everyone's welcome". So I'll wing it.

I like Dani's mother (and his sister, with whom we'll be staying). One thing I don't care for that seems to be a family habit is their style of "party games". For example, the first time I attended their seder I was told -- with no advance warning -- that I had to sing a song. I don't know any Hebrew songs, I said; they said sing anything, and they suggested I sing something I sing with On the Mark. Later I realized just how unusual and inappropriate that was, but at the time what did I know from seders? (I'd been to some and never seen this, but to enough that I knew singing in some fashion was normal.) Other gatherings have involved treasure hunts or going around the room answering some question. While this sort of thing is fine in some contexts (most notably, my Shabbat morning minyan -- where passing on the question is also always an option!), I don't really like this sort of thing at family gatherings. At least not when there are outsiders present.

The invitation to this party includes the following instruction: "bring a saying or two that you used to hear when you were growing up". On the face of it that doesn't seem outrageous, but I find I'm resenting it a little anyway. I don't know what this is going to turn into, but I'd rather not play. And I can't tell whether that will offend my mother-in-law (whose party this is), or if this is something her daughter thought up and she doesn't care one way or the other. I guess I'll try to tease that out before the party Saturday night.

It doesn't help that no obvious candidates come to mind. My family didn't really run to trite sayings when I was growing up, or if we did they didn't stick. I suppose I could make something up, but my MIL is in regular contact with my parents and it would come out eventually.

It's such a stupid little thing. It doesn't matter and I shouldn't feel imposed upon. But I do.