Tuesday, March 27, 2007

LA Jewish Journal: Magen David forms in oatmeal

It isn't too late to post about chametz:
"Quick, come here," Gary Marcus yelled to his wife. "Bring a camera."

Marsha Marcus came running into the kitchen of their Northridge home. She saw her husband staring into the pot of oatmeal he was cooking on the stove. As she peered inside, she saw why her husband had summoned her.

There it was, in the pot of simmering oatmeal, rising out of the foam, a perfectly formed Star of David.

"It's because of the rabbi's blessing," she immediately said, snapping three photos with her cell phone camera while the image retained its symbolic shape for several minutes.

The rabbi's blessing had arrived via e-mail three days earlier, stating "May God grant you his abundant blessings that you merit to find gainful employment to your heart's content -- very soon."

It came from Chabad of the Valley's Rabbi Joshua Gordon, whom Marsha Marcus had contacted regarding her husband's job status and who routinely extends e-mail blessings to people needing assistance.

To Marsha Marcus, the Star of David was confirmation. She believed her husband, a global purchasing and sourcing manager who had worked for the same company for 24 years, would soon be gainfully re-employed.

A friend of hers from the sisterhood at Temple Ramat Zion, where the Marcus family, including daughter, Alison, 22, and son, David, 20, are members, agreed.

"This means something," the friend said.

To Marsha Marcus, a Star of David has always held special meaning. Literally representing the shield of King David and a universal symbol of Judaism, it signifies protection to her.

In fact, soon after she and Gary were married, 34 years ago, she commissioned a jeweler to make a gold Star of David for her husband. He stopped wearing it after a while and it sat in a drawer for decades. But several weeks ago, feeling the need for its protective powers, Marsha Marcus started wearing it herself.

"I'm very spiritual," Marsha Marcus explained.

Gary Marcus, however, takes a more rational approach.

"I figure things happen because they happen, not because of someone or something," he said. [...]
Click on the title link to visit the original article and see a picture of the oatmeal.

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