My musical mom was born on Shavuot

Shavuot is renewal and presence at the same time through growth, awareness and joy. All of this works if you have faith, emunah and trust, bitachon. My mother is the example of this state of being, and I calculated her Hebrew birthday yesterday on chabad.org, and realized that she was born on Shavuot, now it all makes sense. We renew our vows with our creator as we receive the Torah.

When a person is born, and when a person passes away is also a window into their soul. It is very special to be born and die on the same day, like Moshe Rabeinu. That is one of the miracles of Purim, the day that was chosen to annihilate the Jews was the death of Moses, and what Haman did not know, that is was also his birthday. I just learned that King David and the Baal Shem Tov died on Shavuot! I am in awe that every year we learn deeper and deeper. Keep learning and growing my friends, that is why we are here in this world.

All of this fascination with Torah, spirituality, and musicality is from my mother who is beautiful on the inside and on the outside. She is full of light and stories, and our family tradition for every holiday when I was growing up, was to be invited. Everybody loved my mom and still do. She graduated from Moscow Conservatory in Voice, Choir Conducting, and Piano. For her, music was her profession, so in our home it was quiet, but she was the instrument. I am fascinated by musicians and their process, and love to watch a band groove and communicate while on stage.

I find myself walking around Jerusalem seeing musicians gather and play as performance art, and I love it. People stop, watch and give some shekels. I will share a few short videos so you can feel the vibe. The first video is of a magical performance with Jodavi and musicians from Israel. His young wife recently passed away suddenly, and he brought his two little boys, and sang a few songs in her memory. @jodavimusic

My mother learned to Lein Torah, and I was also drawn to it when both of my sons were learning for their Bar Mitzva. I was so excited when I heard a note that sounded different from the rest one Shabbat, and my Rabbi told me that there were only two times in the Torah with that note. I was so excited that I had a musical ear! I love to dance and feel beats, and adore choreography. Her musical gene went to all three of my children. The musical language is so powerful, and we all connect to it and understand in different ways.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MAMACHKA! She was telling me that her name IRINA could be split into two Hebrew words, the first part means city and the second part means song, joy, or joyful singing. The name itself means peace in Russian, so she chose Shulamit in Hebrew which also means peace or peaceful.

All of these details are our characteristics and self expression, but we are beyond names and character traits. They give glimpses into our essence, our soul and that is what connects us to our creator and our purpose in this world. My mother’s light was brought into this world on Shavuot. What a blessing to be guided by her light, love and creativity.

We can all connect to this light from above, it is always there, we just have to open our eyes, hearts and minds. We can all be the instrument, the vessel that brings this holy light down to inspire, spread kindness and bring joy to everyone you come across.

Chag Shavuot Sameach!