Team Koval
We have really exciting news to share: our daughter, Miriam, is moving back home!! This is exciting on a number of levels. First off, it vindicates our not-so-secret belief that New York is not better than Cleveland, and that Cleveland is the ultimate victor in the "where should I live" competition. In short, Cleveland rocks.
But on another level we feel our family is becoming whole. Miriam moved away one-and-a-half years ago to seek her fame and fortune in the Big City, and Yitty is off in the Holy Land. Every time I set the table for Shabbos, I mentally calculate, "well, we're 9, but Miriam is not here and Yitty is not here, so... 7." Or if one of the others are away for the weekend I have to further subtract. Now we are approaching wholeness again.
Over the summer following the Cavs stunning victory I began thinking of our family as a team, calling us "Team Koval." On a team, every member counts. Whether a particular member is physically present or not, whether on the field or off, each member matters. You never know which member will lead the team to victory. If someone gets injured, everyone else rises to the occasion.
This past summer, "Team Koval" traveled to Gatlinburg, TN for some rest and relaxation in the beautiful Smoky Mountains. In a stroke of awful luck, Miriam's flight from NY was delayed, then delayed again, then cancelled. We were so disappointed. This was supposed to be Team Koval! How could we be a team with one member missing?? So now we are going to make up for lost time. Miriam comes home on Sunday and Yitty at the end of May. Team Koval will be all together again - no subtractions.
The Jewish people are knows as "mishpacha." We are one family. Every member counts! Even if one is different from the other, or our (may I say it??) political views differ - we are simply not whole without one another. We love each other no matter what! Each one has something beautiful to teach the other.
That's what a family is.
Shabbat Shalom,
Ruchi Koval
