Hi again!
It seems that time passes so quickly and it has been awhile since I've "spoken" to you. So many eating opportunities - Chanukah celebrations, snow and more snow, shalach manot preparations, birthdays, lots of out-of-town company, and the usual life stresses and fun. Wow!As I look back it's been a busy few months. But you and I certainly dont need "occasions" to overeat - any excuse will do. As one of our members says "I can gain weight on a Tuesday"...Looking back I have had (and I am sure you have had too) all the "eating emotions" - I call them anger, boredom, celebration, depression, stress, frustration, fatigue and overwhelm - and they all feel like hunger.
So now as we turn our attention to Purim,I have a few comments. First, and this is just a personal observation, Shalach Manot have totally gotten out of hand - whose is the biggest,the trendiest, the most original, the most expensive, who sends out the most - and this is only the beginning of a tough time of year (Pesach cleaning follows just after this. I wish we could remember the true meaning of those "gifts" to each other, and it would be simpler if it were....simpler. One of my dear friends makes a donation in my name - I just appreciate it so (and then I get a small, small gift of food. Another friend is a nervous wreck - she hasn't yet thought of a good "theme" - the "theme" that follows through all 6 kids' costumes, the shalach manot, the decorations in her house for the seuda,and the meal itself. This is quite an undertaking. No wonder she's bingeing in cookies...again.
Anyway, I hope whatever you do for Purim it gives you much pleasure and no stress. I hope it "unmasks" a lot of joy and fun for you and "masks" the stresses that we could create.
I also hope that your cars are dug out, your homes are heated (BH mine is), you have good boots,and that you have lots of simchas to look forward to.
Please let me know and I'll be back soon....
Marcia B