A Drop of Milk

So, today I visited one of the most famous (or infamous, depending on which mom you ask) institutions in Israel: Tipat Chalav.

Tipat Chalav literally means, a drop of milk, and it is the 'well-baby' clinics all over Israel. They are the ones who give your child their vaccinations, checkups, weight-gain, examinations, and so on. Each child has a folder at a Tipat Chalav from when they are born, until they enter into the school system, when the folder is transferred, and the school along with Tipat Chalav work together for the well-being of your child. I think it's a brilliant idea- saving physician labor for when the baby is actually sick, and providing a child with a solid health care plan so the schools and doctors can work together till age 18.

It's done by neighborhood, with a certain nurse working each street in the neighborhood (at least that's how it's done where I live). So, when I finally woke up to the fact that NBD is past a month old- yikes, time flies- I made an appointment nearby.

And then proceeded to ask everyone I know what their experiences were. Most were scary. As Super Raizy describes in her old post, the Tipat Chalav nurses have a reputation of being slightly, well, curmudgeonly. Most who I asked said that the nurses harassed them about their baby's weight incessantly, especially if they were nursing. Some said they expected them to know everything, even if they were a new mother. So, it was no surprise that when I went in, I was slightly nervous.

But, here comes the truth. Honestly- my visit was great! The nurse was a sweet and kind person, who treated me like I had a brain, even though my hebrew wasn't the best. She didn't harass me about anything, asked personal questions in a polite manner, and best of all- interacted with NBD very gently and warmly.
So, here comes one vote pro Tipat Chalav.

And, it got me thinking. Rumors can spread very quickly. One person says they had a bad experience there, then the next will be looking for the bad in her experience, to vilify the first person's statement. And, the vicious cycle continues.

Now, I'm not saying that all nurses might be like mine- and there are definitely obnoxious ones out there, from what I've heard.

But, instead of looking for the bad because the last person told you that there is bad- maybe try objectively? If so, maybe more unbiased opinons, and more honest opinons might result.

So honestly? It went great. And, I will be happy to go back.

Erev Shabbos #11- Conversationalism

Ever noticed what we converse about?
I once heard that old saying-
Small people talk about others
Medium people talk about things
Great people talk about ideas

I never was totally sure about it- as most conversations tend to generalize about all three, but it is true that the more a person talks about others, the worse the conversation tends to be. The Chofetz Chaim was once approached by someone who asked him how it was possible to have a conversation free of Loshon Hara (derogatory speech about others). "I mean, what is there to talk about?!" R' Yisrael Meir Kagan shook his head, and asked, "You mean that you can't find a single thing to talk about except about others? That's very sad."

I've found that conversation, unless you have decided to get into an intellectual debate with someone, usually focuses around what you've been doing lately. For those in school, it's their finals and tests. For those who are married, it's Shabbos preparations, or timing of graduate school classes. For those who are parents, it's their child's latest antics. And so it continues. (These are all examples. Please don't read into them.)

I happen to enjoy the intellectual debate type of conversations, but there are very few people in this world who are interested in conducting one with me. I mean, how many people are interested in debating Nosson Slifkin's view of the universe and the perspective of the Rabbanim involved, or the fact that entropy figures in an excellent Ramban in Bereshis....
And particle physics- well, I can't discuss that with most anyway. Oh well.

So my conversations tend to range along the lines of most of the other stuff. And, people are content by this.

On Shabbos- my table abounds with conversation. In my parents' home, it used to revolve around the parsha. My parents would make it a point to read the entire parsha in English straight from Artscroll on Friday night, whether or not everyone had learnt it already. And when I say read, I mean every word. People were encouraged to chime in with Divrei Torah at appropriate intervals. At my table, conversation can range from all sides of the spectrum. But, discussion of Torah does remain paramount.

I think that's an important idea in conversation. All the week, at the table, we discuss the commonplace things. But on Shabbos- conversation should have some measure of Kedusha, holiness, in it. It doesn't matter if you read straight from Rabbi Dr. Abraham Twerski's Parsha Points, or you interweave your own Devar Torah from the sources you've learnt. It doesn't even have to go with the parsha of the week. But there should be something there.

Something more than straight old conversation for conversations' sake.
Gut Shabbos Everyone!