Page 25 - Jewish News_04-2021

JEWISH INTEREST April 2021 25A

Aging Jewishly – What our traditions teach us about growing old

Judge Judy’s advice to seniors

By Rabbi Barbara Aiello
tend a warm welcome to someone. he timer on the kitchen stove U.S. Centers for Disease Control and mation that Larry gleaned from his I was walking… and switching to
(Psalm 4:7; Num. 6:25) And we shall began its ding-ding-ding, re- Prevention reports that “falls are the anecdotal survey that opened his eyes my sunglasses.
add the rabbinic saying: p’tach pi- Tminding Iris to switch on the number one cause of injuries in se- and swayed his opinion about seniors I was walking… and scratching an
khah ve-ya-i-ru d’va-re-khah, literally television and call to her husband. niors, often resulting in hip fractures, and falling. itch.
open your mouth and let your words “Come on, Larry. It’s five minutes to cuts and even serious head and brain “I live in senior housing,” Larry I was walking… and blowing my
shine, which means speak up and Judge Judy!” injuries that can be fatal.” Many se- explained. “On our campus we have nose.
explain yourself boldly. (Yerushalmi That was enough for Larry to niors who have tripped or tumbled what they call the continuum of care. In Proverbs we read, “A righteous
B’rkhot 6:3) stop his clean- have seen their independence evapo- That means that we can live inde- person falls seven times and rises up
As a noun, OR is also at the center ing binge, and rate and their longevity compromised pendently or in assisted living or even again.” Rabbi Andrea Steinberger
of many phrases. For example, OR To- in minutes both as the result of a fall. So Judge Judy, on the nursing floor. Whatever you (Wisconsin Jewish Chronicle) expands
rah and Torah orah mean the Torah, the Iris and Larry television’s Queen of Blunt, doesn’t need. So I talked to my friends whose on those words when she writes, “Sev-
law is a light. Leor ha-d’va-rim means had tuned into mince words: “To live a long life, falls had caused them to move out of en is life giving. It is a number full of
in light of the situation. And, based on their favorite pro- don’t fall!” independent living and this is what I strength and health and hope for the
Micah 7:9, we should mention motzi gram. Watched For seniors who are 65 years and found.” future.”
la-or, literally brings to light, which by more than 10 older, one person in three will have had Larry explained that for many se- Larry’s Seven Steps to a Fall re-
refers to a publisher. We will end with million viewers a fall, so it is no wonder that a quick niors, a fall happened when they were mind us that there are things we can do
the astronomical concept Sh’nat OR, daily, Judge Ju- Google search of “fall prevention for doing two things at once – what Larry – simple, powerful, life-affirming tools
namely a light year, and with the theo- Rabbi Barbara Aiello dith Susan Blum seniors” nets more than a half million calls the Seven Steps to a Fall or the “I – that offer hope for us as we age. Like
logical concept B’nay OR, literally the Sheindlin has dispensed advice for articles, websites and long lists of do’s was walking and…” syndrome. the Judge says, “To live a long life,
sons of light, those mentioned in the nearly 25 years, but for Iris and Lar- and don’ts – information that prompt- I was walking… and fishing for don’t fall!”
Dead Sea Scrolls as the true Tribes of ry one admonishment really hit home. ed Larry to do some research of his my keys. Rabbi Barbara Aiello served Avi-
Israel. Larry recalls, “I heard her say it on a own. I was walking… and answering va Senior Living as resident rab-
In short, the name for the month of documentary about her life. Judge Judy A statistician by trade, Larry stud- my cell phone. bi for 10 years. She now lives and
Iyar represents a loaded concept rooted was talking about becoming a senior ied a number of fall-prevention rec- I was walking… and putting on my works in Italy where she is rabbi
in OR. It reminds one that as the sun citizen. And she said something that ommendations that included common coat. of Italy’s first Reconstructionist syna-
shines brightly, it fills the air with the struck me. ‘To live a long life, don’t sense items such as installing bath- I was walking… and checking my gogue. Contact her at Rabbi@Rabbi
positive energy of light and brilliance. fall!’” tub handrails, eliminating throw rugs, watch. Barbara.com.
Indeed, the prophet Isaiah was right At 78 years old, Judge Judy cleaning up clutter and adding night
in his observation that OR shiv-at ha- knows what she’s talking about. The lights in the hall. But it was the infor-
ya-mim, namely the light of the seven YOU BELONG
days of creation, is a bountiful light of Rabbi Barbara Aiello’s most popular
healing, comfort and enlightenment. WHERE
(Isa 30:26) columns are now published in her new
Dr. Rachel Zohar Dulin is a professor book, Aging Jewishly, available on
of biblical literature at Spertus Col-
lege in Chicago, and a retired adjunct Amazon. It makes a great gift!
professor of Hebrew and Bible at New
College in Sarasota.
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