BEHAR

 Happy "log" baomer! 

PARSHA PUZZLE:

Six years we are allowed to sow the field,

Prune the vineyards and gather the crop.

But the seventh year, there is complete rest,

All the work in the field must stop.

That year the harvest you cannot reap,

It shall be a year of rest for the land.

Hashem is teaching us an important lesson,

To your neighbor you must lend a hand.

And you should not think “kochi veotzem Yadi”,

Because of me I have everything.

Because we know all comes from Hashem,

Not from any human being.

You shall count for yourselves seven cycles,

The fiftieth year is Yovel- Jubilee.

You shall return each man to his heritage,

Return each man to his family.

What date did Hashem tell us to do so?

When we sound a broken blast on the Shofar.

If you know the answer to this riddle,

You are this week’s Parsha star!

PLAYING WITH THE PARSHA:

This week’s Parsha talks about the Shemittah and Yovel years.  There are many laws pertaining to Shemittah which is every seven years.  These mitzvot only apply to Eretz Yisrael.

There are nice middot we learn from shmittah.  When we are forced to leave our crops for anyone to take, we learn to give without expecting in return.

Shmittah begins on Rosh Hashana of the seventh year.  Shmittah means to let go.  The farmers must let go of the land and show trust that Hashem will take care of their livelihoods. It also reminds everyone that Hashem, not the land, feeds their families and takes care of them.

Discuss different acts of chesed that you can do.  You can go visit a hospital, make food for someone who is sick, help a neighbor etc…  How is it related to shemittah?

Another good game to play is the Trust game.  One player lets himself fall backwards and is caught by another player. This game teacheshow we need to completely trust another person.

FOOD FOR THOUGHT:

This week’s parsha talks about shemittah.  Why not make a fruit cake and a tree with fruit candy.

Everyone will be amazed by the “fruit” of your labor!

What you will need:

Fruit cake recipe

Paper towel roll and green construction paper

Fruit candies

Icing (optional) 

Fruit Cake recipe:

3-4 apples peeled and sliced

Cinnamon/sugar

4 eggs

1 cup oil

2 cups sugar

3 cups flour

3 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

¼ cup apple or orange juice

3 teaspoons vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease and flour a bundt pan.

Slice the apples and sprinkle cinnamon in sugar (about a tablespoon or more of each).

Beat the eggs and oil.  Add the sugar and continue to beat.  Add flour, baking powder and salt.  Mix in the juice and vanilla.

Pour half of the batter into the tube pan.  Place the apples over the batter.  Pour the remaining batter over the apples.

Bake for 1 hour- 1 hour and 15 minutes, until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

While the cake is baking, make the tree.  Cut strips from the green construction paper ¾ of the way down.  Roll it up and place it into the paper towel roll.  Pull the strips down so it could resemble a tree.  If you have round stickers you could add them on to look like fruit.  Place in the hole of the cake and add fruit candies around.

Answer to parsha puzzle: on the tenth day of Tishrei- Yom Kippur.

Have a wonderful Shabbat!  Ruchie