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It feels so good to be in Jerusalem!

Los Angeles was out of this world. Everything we set out to accomplish, happened. Absolute miracles, from appointments to business meetings. The best part was seeing friends and community, that is what we miss.

Passover was so magical, we were invited for every meal, we had time to sit and share our experience and feel the love, hear good wishes and blessings.

The best part of all was the week before Passover. My youngest son learned for a year and a half for his Bar Mitzvah Parsha Vayikra. Since we came a week early, he got to read from the Torah on Monday and Thursday before his Shabbat celebration. We had a very small Tefilin ceremony, and my friend surprised me with a professional video of his beautiful Leining, an ancient song of the Torah.

The miracles kept happening, and I feel so humbled to see it clearly before my eyes. On the first night of Passover, there were 80 people in our synagogue, Chabad Israel Center. Everyone was so happy that we were in town because my husband cooked, and I did the decor. The next day we had lunch with wonderful friends, and the following night we did do the second Seder with close friends of our family. In Israel, there is only one night of the Passover Seder, but I honestly feel the more celebrations the better! The next day we had lunch with our Rabbi and his family. I feel like I married the community when I married my husband. This August, Rosh Chodesh Elul, it will be 18 years.

Passover is eight days long and in between we got away to Las Vegas to visit friends and spread the word about our nonprofit organization, shaylechayal.org, we bring injured soldiers from Israel to diaspora communities for love, support and connection. We love road trips, and it was just my husband and I, staying with wonderful friends that moved from Los Angeles. The kids all had plans with friends.

The last days of Passover were non stop magic. First of all the day before was Friday, and I’m not exaggerating when I say that literally before Shabbat we did everything we needed to do, including connecting with specific people to bring us peace of mind and possibility.

There were two dinners and two lunches. We were so lucky to have two Friday night dinners, the week before was a Shabbat before Passover began, with Doda Mollie, if you know you know! Her wonderful husband was my first son’s teacher for reading, understanding and vocalizing the Parsha. His experience with my youngest son was extra special. Not only did they learn and read the whole Parsha Vayikra, he also realized that it was also his own son’s Bar Mitzvah Parsha. It was so delicious with homemade beet borscht, one of my comfort foods.

Once Shabbat started I felt free so on Saturday, which was Shabbat and Pesach, I told my family that I would be on my own. I love to listen to weekly lessons from the Torah, and was excited to learn with Yehudit Garmaise, who gives a morning shiur every Shabbat at Chabad SOLA. She made me realize that my father was a big part of my journey of breaking barriers. His name in Hebrew is Peretz, and it is from the Hebrew word לפרוץ, Liphrotz. When the Jewish people were in Egypt, they were so lost and disconnected. Many barriers had to be crossed in order to receive the Torah, and it started with the splitting of the sea. Once I got there I could not leave, the Rabbi gave amazing insights before and after her shiur. I had to stay for the Torah reading which was about the splitting of the sea and gave blessings for Parnasa, success in business. I was also excited to see so many friends, and tell them all about our Aliyah miracles. Afterwards my family had lunch with wonderful friends from the community, it was so delicious and special to spend quality time.

The second dinner was with our best friends, Rabbi of our shul and his family. He taught both my boys their Bar Mitzvah Leining. My youngest son was so committed, there was so much change in his life the past year and a half, he learned three times a week with WhatsApp video calls, the whole Parsha!

The next day was the last day of Passover, what a climax! We had lunch with my kids childhood school friends and their family. Right before the holiday of Passover ended, there is a Chabad tradition to have a Seudat Moshiach. There are big gatherings with men and women separately, where you sing and hear inspirational lessons of freedom and moving forward. People bring their leftover Shmura Matzah and four glasses of wine to go straight from the exodus to Moshiach! AMEN.

I was with a group of Israeli women, and told them to speak in Hebrew, since after my Ulpan Hebrew classes, I was so excited to understand every word. The most powerful lesson for me was about how God listens to our prayers and requests. So much so that he will change nature like play dough, plastelina in Hebrew. We just have to ask.

It is so powerful to be in Israel right now. Tonight is Yom Ha Shoah, where we remember those that perished and honor survivors of the Holocaust. All of Israel will stand still for two minutes when a special siren will sound at 10am tomorrow for Yom Ha Shoah. The evening of April 29 is Yom Hazikaron, a memorial day for the fallen soldiers of Israel and the next day is Yom Haatzmaut on the evening of April 30, celebrating the rebirth of Israel.

Wishing everyone a powerful, safe, peaceful year ahead full of abundance!