A Peruvian Fast Day (17th of Tammuz=Tuesday July 19, 2011)

9:30pm Tuesday July 19, 2011

Today was the Fast of the 17th of Tammuz. Not too difficult of a fast because I could wake up at 5am, eat an avocado and some bread, and manage until the breaking of the fast at 6:30pm.

It was the first time that the bar mitzvah boy “fasted.”  He fasted all the way until the afternoon and then decided that he would eat two oranges because the hunger was getting to him. I explained to him how my youngest sister who is not yet Bat Mitzvah fasts by eating no sweets during the day, and only eating enough to sustain her. Rolo liked this method of fasting.  He tell me that after his Bar Mitzvah, he'll try to fast for the for the whole day.

Today I put on tefillin with Rolo for the first time, and I soon realized how difficult it is to explain how one should wrap the arm tefillin.  I clearly was able to do my own, but then when I tried with Rolo’s, I kept on messing up. Soon I confused myself to the point of not being able to wrap my own on my arm. Nonetheless, the idea of tefillin really spoke to them, especially the explanation of tefillin as a marriage contract with Hashem.

 Rolo and I with our tefillin