RSS
Home
Be joyous on Shabbat by finding a reason to laugh
Print
Email
RSS
Subscribe
On Shabbat, it’s a great mitzvah to feel joyous. This commandment may not be written anywhere, but just read the teachings of Rebbe Nachman or go to a Chasidic service and you’ll see the truth of this statement. On Shabbat, we are not only supposed to feel Shabbat shalom, Sabbath peace and connection to God, but Shabbat simchah, Sabbath joy.
With the current recession, many people might find it hard to break out of their doldrums for 25 hours and feel either peaceful or joyful. Lack of jobs, financial insecurity and fear of losing homes can make it difficult to feel anything but depressed, fearful and unhappy. That’s all the more reason, however, to break free. These emotions just breed more of the same. Rebbe Nachman would say that they don’t allow you to clear your mind and think of solutions to your problems. And they don’t allow you to connect with God.
It’s a proven fact that smiling changes our internal chemistry. When we smile, we feel better. And laughter heals. Some claim that laughter actually changes our chemistry as well and actually serves as the best medicine. It may not heal all ills, but it’s a great way to make yourself feel better and change your energy. And I’m a great believer that by changing your energy you can change what you are manifesting in your life.
So, just in time for Shabbat, here’s a sure fire way to bring a smile to your face, make you laugh and bring some joy to your Shabbat. Check out director Sam Hoffman's Jewish humor Web site,OldJewsTellingJokes.com, which delivers just what its name says: old Jews telling jokes. While some of the jokes are as old as the Jews telling them, watching them tell them makes them funny all over again (even if they were never that funny in the first place)!
Hoffman began posting these videos from February through April. Each Tuesday and Thursday, a new video was posted of an over-60 Jew recounting his or her favorite jokes. The series' Facebook page lists nearly 2,000 followers, and the site has logged nearly 2 million video plays. A new season will premiere next month, and First Run Films recently optioned the Web series for a forthcoming release on home, according to producer Eric Spiegelman.
Every video starts off with a snippet of "Dave Tarras' B flat Bulgars," a klezmer piece from noted Yiddish musician Henry Sapoznik. Each joke gets a simple title -- "Chicken" or "Broccoli” -- and Hoffman writes a bit of backstory beneath each comedian or comedienne.
According to a JTA story, to cast the series in summer 2008, Hoffman's father, Barney, e-mailed 15 to 20 friends who fit three requirements: over 60, Jewish, capable of telling one hell of a joke. Those who answered the call -- mostly men, and two women -- met at a vacant storefront in Highland Park, N.J., where Hoffman was waiting with a professional film crew, sandwiches and the guarantee of a free DVD for each participant.
Anyone who remembers the Catskill Mountains’ hotel comedy shows will find this site a walk down memory lane. I grew up just down the mountain…
.jpg)
To read more about the birth and future of this website, read the JTA story here.
Diane Hoffman tells "Broccoli," a joke about a confused woman
in a grocery store. Hoffman is site creator Sam Hoffman's mother.
(Courtesy of GreeneStreetFilms )
Related Articles:
Add a Comment
Hebrew is called the Holy language, but it holds many mysteries. Supposedly, the letters of the Hebrew alphabet existed before creation of the world, …
I just returned from a trip home to New York. As I drove through the Catskill mountains -- the Borsht Belt, as it was known long ago for it's host …
