Sarasota, FL – There are those times when the Sabbath must be celebrated not exactly on Friday or Saturday because of extenuating circumstances. When that happens, it calls for an alternate plan. This was that SABBATH. Merik Shechter and Jake Weinberger have been best friends since about 6th grade. They met as Merik was a student of mine. The boys are like ying and yang and have been inseparable. Merik is the guy you invite on family vacations because he is hilarious and will keep you entertained. Well, the time has come for his self-imposed walk-about which is generally the rite of passage for “indigenous male Australians” from ages 10-16, but in this case, Merik is 19 and turns 20 the end of July and is an “indigenous male Jewish Sarasotian.” Like males before him, he will live in “the wilderness” for about a year as he makes that leap into manhood while crossing the many countries and continents. His first is stop Iceland that will eventually catapult him to Australia.

So while Merik was busy being celebrated Friday night by his coworkers from Sarasota Memorial Hospital, Steve and I ushered the official Shabbat in at Turtle Beach with a “paddle board” meeting, Publix veggie and roast beef subs with extra jalapeños on mine, extra soaking in the Gulf of Mexico, and Sarah and Ed Weinstein. As an extra bonus, we ran into some of my clients and Orna Nissan. It was delightful.

This particular sunset Mother Nature featured “the green flash” – that perfect moment when the horizon is clear and the colors mesh together as the sun sinks in that perfect instant like Herman Woulk writes about in his book Don’t Stop the Carnival. 

Leap forward to Monday when we recreated Shabbat to send Merik off and celebrate Julie, his mom, as she ascends into empty nest syndrome. We reminisced, laughed, posed for pictures, teased and consumed a wonderfully prepared meal. The pictures tell the story. We love you Merik and are so happy for your adventures! Shabbat Shalom