By Masada Siegel, Special to JTNews
Hanukkah, my all-time favorite holiday, is here! It’s filled with light, fun and happiness. I’m biased, of course, since I’m a Hanukkah babe! Literally, I was born during Hanukkah and I share my birthday day with my Grandmother Leah. So yes, it’s always been double the fun!
As my gift to you, I decided that it was time for a new spin on how to celebrate Hanukkah without breaking the bank, and, maybe, to add some entertaining photos to your albums. Here are a few funtastic ideas, based on Hanukkah symbols you already know, on how to spend quality time with your family and bring the holiday to light!
The Dreidel
Spinning the dreidel is all about chance and seeing where your luck lands. What better way to feel the movement then by taking a family trip to the ice rink and going skating? Granted, it might take more than a lesson or two to get your spins really going, but most ice rinks have reasonable rates for public sessions. Individual coaches can get pricey, but rinks do offer classes, usually once a week. Give it a whirl for Hanukkah. It’s a fun and beautiful sport, not to mention amazing exercise, which you might need if you follow my next suggestion.
Jelly Donuts
It’s all about the oil. The Jewish people found one little flask of holy oil, which lasted for eight days. Now it is our obligation at this time of year to completely ignore our nutritionists and march down to the local donut shop to load up on sugar and carbohydrates. The key here is to eat in moderation — we don’t want to have to spend 18 hours at the ice rink. We just want to eat enough donuts to commemorate our victory.
According to my unscientific calculations, no more than 2.2 donuts per person (with a small hot chocolate) should be sufficient for this purpose without incurring any stomach aches. (This is per visit, of couse, which can number up to 8 times during the days of Hanukkah). And don’t forget the whipped cream on top.
Winning the battle
Hanukkah is about fighting the odds and winning. In this vein, an exciting family activity might be to go play paintball. I speak from experience. Take your family and some friends and divide them up into teams, maybe adults vs. kids or men vs. women, and go run around in the woods and reenact a battle. It’s a bonding experience and super fun. One word of advice: wear warm clothing, and if you have any extra padding — and I don’t mean from overeating the donuts — bring it along. When it comes to battle, it’s always good to be prepared.
The Oil
Now that you’re horrified with my idea of sending your family off to shoot paint at each other, I have an idea for our more sedate readers. In honor of celebrating the oil, go get a manicure. It’s a great way to bond and have some quality family time. Just don’t forget to have the manicurist rub the oil on your fingertips. If you want to go oil out, schedule a massage. It’s a sure way to relax, and, let’s be honest, when was the last time you took time out with a family member and treated yourself?
Maccabees
The Maccabi Games are named for our fearless warriors. Why not get going and have your own big sporting event? Get your family together, find some willing neighbors, and arrange a touch football game. This way every family member can be part of the activity. Simply running around and getting fresh air is addicting and it might inspire you to continue exercising. Who knows? You might find you get excited about playing and turning into a warrior athlete yourself.
Latkes
If exercise is a ridiculous concept, no worries, let’s be realistic… What is Hanukkah without latkes? There is something so magical about smelling my Mom’s latkes — she always goes all out. There’s nothing healthy about her batches of potato pancakes. So even if you aren’t a cook, it’s a fun project to find a good recipe, or even research your family traditions of what kinds of latkes have been eaten in your ancestor’s homes. Also, it’s a bonding experience, being in the kitchen, grating potatoes by hand and mixing the batch up. The family that fries together, laughs together.
The Menorah
Creating your own menorah is a memorable experience, and there are so many ways to make one. While there are a few religious rules to follow, you can use a million different materials, from clay to bottle caps to glass. Just make sure the material is not flammable (or has shown up on some product recall list). So while you can find all sorts of ideas at your local craft store, if creativity is not in your genetic makeup, take this as an opportunity to find an art class through your synagogue or the JCC and spend some quality time jump-starting your imagination.
Light
Hanukkah is known as the Festival of Lights. I saw a quote in a museum in Jerusalem years ago that I love: “It’s better to light a candle than to curse the darkness.”
Take a few minutes to look at all the light you have in your life, whether it’s good friends, good family, or even a fun newspaper article that makes you laugh. There is light everywhere, so make sure to capture some of it and let it glow. I know that I will be lighting my Hanukkah candles this year and then, soon after, my birthday ones. What can I say? Let it glow, let it glow, let it glow!! Happy Hanukkah!