Joke lists and this picture would have made it on!

My Dad, Jerry Michaels, Z'L had a great sense of humor.  He sent out different curated lists of jokes to family and friends.  Some of the grandkids were thrilled when they graduated to the more salacious jokes that Dad sent out.  Arthur's friends were also surprised that he was on the "dirty Joke" list when he shared it out to his friends and family.  

Dad loved sending out these jokes and was even happier when people would respond to his jokes.  He would comment to me that he spent time and effort on these emails and didn't always hear back from some of the recipients.  

Now I am not saying that Dad would have brought the paperclips shown below but I am Not saying he would Not have bought them.  I know that  he would have thought these were hilarious and he would have sent it out on one of his joke lists, or on more than one Joke list.  Thanks to Shira for sending this on to us!

Sheloshim is the Hebrew word for 30 and it is also the first prescribed mourning time and to find out how we did sheloshim and what Wendy and I said please look below.  We continue to miss Dad and as we tell stories and send jokes we keep his memory alive.

 From Sheloshim - Words From Wendy and Vanessa

Wendy: It has been thirty days since our dad and Mom’s husband, Jerrold, Jerry Michaels died. Sheloshim, the Hebrew word for thirty, commemorates the death of a loved one and the first stage of Jewish mourning. During Sheloshim you come across many firsts: the first Shabbat dinner without dad, the first Pesach, Passover seder, and even his birthday. On April 21, 15 days after he died, Jerry would have turned 89 years old.  

Vanessa: This week’s Torah portion Emor from Vayikra, Leviticus, teaches us about the laws regulating our lives and the way sacrifices by the priests should be presented. (21:1-22:33) Special dates within the Jewish calendar are also named and described: the Sabbath, Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, and the Pilgrimage Festivals of Pesach, Shavuot, and Sukkot. (23:1-44)

Vanessa:  We are in the time of Sefirot HaOmer, the counting of the Omer which is 49 days from Pesach to Shavuot, the giving of the Torah. The period of counting the Omer is a time of semi-mourning, during which traditional Jewish custom forbids haircuts, shaving and parties with dancing. So whether we were in Sheloshim or not, it is still a time of mourning. Tonight will be the 23rd day of counting the Omer, and we add the seven days prior from Dad’s funeral to get thirty for Sheloshim. 

Wendy: The name of this week’s portion, Emor, means speak, and we are here this evening to speak about, mourn, and celebrate our dad.

Wendy: In brief, Dad was born in 1933 on the south side of Chicago. He was confirmed at South Shore Temple, went to the University of Illinois for a BA in Psychology, received his Doctor of Veterinary Medicine, and most importantly met and married our mom, Marian Lee. He then bought a veterinary practice in Crystal Lake, a small town of 5,000 people in Northern Illinois, when they moved there  in 1959.  But these are just the milestones you can see from the outside. 

Vanessa: He was a wonderful father and husband, worked round the clock at his veterinary practice where he began with visiting farms as well as pets. Fox Valley Animal Hospital  is where he worked and mentored generations of Doctors and staff.  Dad also loved reading and learning. He had a great sense of humor, well, most of his jokes were funny. He definitely would be tickled that this week’s Torah portion also covers the laws of profanity. And probably have more than a few questions about that for the Rabbi. 

Wendy: We were lucky to have so much time with Dad. In the last three weeks of his life, the three of us, Mom, Vanessa and I, took care of Jerry. It was a gift of time. We were back together in the house where we grew up, and where Mom and Dad lived for over 55 years.

Vanessa: During Sheloshim as we continue to incorporate grief into our daily lives, there are still memories and sadness for all of us. It is very difficult to do the last load of laundry with Dad’s clothes, to see his swim bag which he used daily until the very end, to view his messy desk filled with files and his notes on Shakespeare, and to wonder what to do with all of his many books and belongings. Dad went swimming every day, and I have just resumed my daily swim at our local JCC. At the pool, I am reminded of Dad.

Wendy: Dad was an avid stock trader and investor. I now have his all-important little black book of stock picks. Interestingly, when I looked at the first page of the book, it said, “Managing Atopica” 10-10-14.  I thought  this must be about some special investment portfolio. But as I read more closely, I realized they were pages of notes from a veterinary seminar he had attended. It was actually about managing different types of canine dermatitis. A perfect example of how we never questioned his very different interests that were a natural part of him.  

Wendy: I’m amazed at how he stayed on top of everything. Just the week before he died, he was watching his treasured Jim Cramer stock market show and putting handwritten entries into his half-filled black book, researching his upcoming Great books session on Hamlet, and busy thinking about his grandkids and great-granddaughter’s legacies. I hope to complete many of the empty pages in his book with my own calculations, stock analysis, and thoughts on the world. 

Vanessa: There is something oddly comforting to doing things by the numbers. Our sadness is not mathematical, it comes in waves and we know it will ebb and flow as time goes by. But we are comforted by the ways Jewish mourning grounds us in time, and allows us to stay tethered to our lives even in death. We are also comforted and grateful for everyone who is with us here tonight. 

Wendy:  Thank you for coming here, especially those who took a plane flight here or

drove down Highway 55.  We also thank our zoomers too. We know today is Mother’s Day and we appreciate you sharing your time with all of us. We welcome all of you to stay and eat after our service and to share more memories about Jerry.  And I really mean eat, we ordered enough to make Jerry proud, he would have wanted to treat all of you to dinner.  Ok Maybe at Steak and Shake.  (Sorry Zoomers, we will treat you when we see you in person.) Thank you everyone for all your love and support over the last few months.