Blue and White

A customer in the US, who found me through the Facebook group Israeli shops to purchase from, ordered my Shalom papercut. In the centre of the piece is the word "Shalom" in English and below that, in Hebrew. Shalom, like many Hebrew words, has more than one meaning. Shalom means peace and is also used to both greet people and to say goodbye. But it means much more than peace, hello or goodbye. Shalom is rooted in the word שלם (shaleim) which means wholeness, completion, wellness, perfection. When we are "at peace" we feel a sense of "wholeness."

My papercut is embellished with pomegranates and flowers. In the Jewish faith, pomegranates are traditionally eaten on Rosh Hashanah (Jewish New Year) because it has 613 seeds, which coincide with the 613 commandments of the Torah. Furthermore, the pomegranate represents fruitfulness. We use them in our Rosh Hashanah meals as a positive omen.

My papercut is drawn and cut entirely by hand. It can fit an American 10x8inch frame or an A4 frame (21x29.7cm) here in Israel or the UK. I backed the white papercut with a dark blue backing paper. The national colours of Israel are officially blue and white, as seen on the flag of Israel. An early Zionist poem explains that the colour white symbolises great faith; blue the appearance of the firmament.

The flag of the State of Israel was adopted on 28th October 1948, five months after the Israeli Declaration of Independence. It consists of a white background with a dark sky-blue Star of David, the widely acknowledged symbol of the Jewish people and of Judaism, in the centre. There are two horizontal blue stripes at the top and bottom. The blue stripes are intended to symbolize the stripes on a tallit, the traditional Jewish prayer shawl. The Book of Numbers, the fourth book of the Tanach, or Hebrew Bible, mentions in 15:38 that the Israelites were commanded to put fringes on the corners of their garments, and to put a cord of blue border upon these fringes.

My customer was very happy to receive the papercut. "It's gorgeous." she wrote. "Thank you."

On Sunday night we will mark Yom HaZikaron, Israel's Memorial Day, the day when we remember Israel's fallen soldiers and victims of terrorism. Since losing Gadi this day has become a personal day of remembrance for me and I no longer celebrate Yom Ha'atzmaut, Independence Day, which begins the the following evening, the minute Israel's Memorial Day ends. It seems so strange to have this heavy day of mourning followed by such a joyous holiday but the message of linking these two days is clear: Israelis owe their independence - the very existence of the state - to the soldiers who sacrificed their lives for it.
Since the start of the war between Israel and the terror group Hamas, 615 soldiers and police officers have been killed. Over 800 civilians have become victims of terrorism, and 132 Israeli hostages are still being held in Gaza. Yom HaZikaron feels more important than ever.

* This post has been shared on Little Things Thursday, Thinking Out Loud Thursday and Thursday Favorite Things.

Aderet's Album

I made a Bat Mitzvah album for Shirel back in 2021. This time it was her younger sister Aderet's turn to celebrate and mum asked me to make an album for her as well.

Aderet plays basketball and the piano. She likes sushi and Aroma ice coffee (Aroma is the largest coffee chain in Israel). In addition, she feels very connected to tefillah (prayer) and her siddur (Jewish prayer book containing a set order of daily prayers), so mum thought it would be nice to somehow include that. The colours scheme for the planned party was turquoise, dark purple and lilac. Finally, Aderet wanted to me to add some music notes to the design, just like her sister Shirel had.

I have shown Aderet holding her turquoise siddur in one hand and a basketball in the other. Behind her is a piano and some sushi and chopsticks. An Aroma iced coffee is to her right and I added some music notes too, all in the colours Aderet requested.
Aderet's name appears in Hebrew at the top in gold lettering and the words Bat Mitzvah and date of the celebration are at the bottom.

The album opens the Hebrew way, from right to left.

I decorated five pages inside the album too. The opening page shows a basketball and hoop, followed by a piano and then a siddur, to illustrate Aderet's connection to tefillah. Some tiny sushi on a lilac platter came next and then a page with Aderet's favourite Aroma iced coffee.

Mum was delighted with the album when she received it. "Just got the album. It's gorgeous!" she wrote to me. Of course Aderet's Bat Mitzvah plans were disrupted by the war, as many gatherings were, but mum said that they were still hoping to hold a small event to mark the occasion. I hope that they were able to do just that.

* This post has been shared on Busy Monday, The Good. The Random. The Fun.