On Friday I watched Old Dawg and Actress arrive together. I didn’t see Buddah. There has been some ‘war’ between them. Not surprising, of course.
C.G. was alone, Ratty talking to another Molloch who wanted to run for office. Ratty asked me to witness the arrival of various nominations for Directorships on the Board.
The AGM is going to be war. If it goes the way it should, many of the old farts will be parked and new faces will take their place.
Of course, considering Beth Shalom was virtually dead, with no community nor chance of people who now hated each other, (as opposed to dislike) getting along, it was like electing bathroom monitors on the Titanic.
Having fully predicted this close to three years ago it was a shoulder shrug.
Service began with C.G. unable to light the candles. Ratty lost patience and told him to get on with it.
This is the crux of Beth Shalom.
Ratty doesn’t see the importance of candles actually being lit and staying lit. He sees that at 5:30 one makes the motion of lighting the candles. They are considered lit, even if they go out instantly and one moves the ‘program’ along.
C.G., having Aspergers, (I am the only one who seems to notice) has to have everything in order and it has to be the way it has to be, so would spend one hour insuring the candles are lit.
After a time when it seemed that Ratty was going to pop, C.G. moved the service along.
Ratty didn’t want Vic on the Tabah singing, as far as he was concerned, Vic wasn’t supposed to be there, although C.G. wanted him there. Since it was open war between the President; Ratty and the Rabbi, C.G. everything was an incident. So Vic was off the Tabah to sing from the aisle.
As the service dragged, C.G. got lost and Ratty had to jump up on the Bimah and take over.
Vic stopped singing and I wound up being the ‘choirmaster’ from my seat, not a position I had relished.
Tanya wasn’t there to scream and with Vic feeling ill and taking his seat, there was nothing for it, but Ratty to do what he had done before C.G. arrived.
Dov wasn’t present, so didn’t hear the ridiculous sermon C.G. gave.
I pretty much tuned out the rubbish assaulting my ears, as the rain poured down. Caleb wasn’t there, I sent him a message.
The service ended and we went into the Heritage Centre. I stayed in the back, comfortable. Then went out, jumped into Caleb’s car, and was gone.
Shabbat was, however the Epiphany.
Caleb and I entered and C.G. didn’t realise he had a minyan.
Insanely, Pharaoh was there, (in his role as ‘Heritage Master’ he was having a kind of tour so was seated in shul with his Tourist).
As I took my seat and C.G. went to jump to conclusion we shouted out that there was a Minyan. C.G. became totally disoriented. He didn’t know what he was to do.
For over two years he had been here, following the same pattern Shabbat to Shabbat, but the discordance of thinking he would not have a minyan, therefore move to the end prayer, and now being told he was to open the Ark sent him into pause mode.
Ratty leapt on the Bimah and took charge. It was blatant that C.G. was in a daze, as is usual with those who suffer Asperger’s.
Pharaoh, the so-called ‘Cohen’ was called and read a double portion, then the rest of us.
Tanya was there, insane, as usual, screaming in the guise of singing, being so loud as to drown everyone else out.
The sermon was even worse than the night before, and finally we were in the Heritage Centre.
C.G. was ignored by most people.
Caleb spoke with Ratty and Pharaoh walked around in command mode.
With Caleb leaving the country next week I should miss service for four months. The holidays and all the rest. Oh well.