Every Yom Tov has its special mitzva that keeps us on our toes and costs us a lot of money to be Mikayem with all its Hidurim, like matzos on Pesach and esrog on Succos. I always wondered why for Chanuka all the Machmirim seem to be fast asleep at the wheel. Where are the $200 bottles of the finest olive oil? Then I realized that I am looking in the wrong place. Instead of keeping a sharp eye on the oil section at the local grocery, I should be looking instead at the bakery right across the street. There is where you will find all the good Jews lining up to sample the latest and greatest Sufganiyot in there new styles, colors, and tastes. Like chocolate creme and Baileys liquor, creme vanilla and lemon-lime milk, white chocolate and caramel. Lets not forget the glazing and the toppings. None of us necessarily like every donut, but boy do we enjoy the spectacle of a glorious display of colors and textures. We may not go for the the Brazilian donut with white chocolate, coconut milk and Kahlua filling topped with Belgian chocolate and coconut, but we are happy to have it in the collection as the harmony of scents give off its delicious fragrance that is unmistakably Chanuka. You may think it odd to have marzipan, halva, rock candy, and M&Ms inside but you certainly dont begrudge the bakery for making it. To prove this in Eretz Yisroel, Angels bakery alone bakes over a quarter of a million donuts a day on Chanuka so they must be doing something right. Maybe aside from over indulgence there is a message here. We are a nation of Sufganiyot. We come in all shapes and sizes. We are Asknenazim, Sefardim, and Chassidim. But that is just the basics like say jelly, custard, and chocolate. Each one of these major flavors has a myriad of choice within it. There are some we really like and some we like less. We can identify better with people with similar backgrounds and cultural upbringings. But Am Yisroel is a diverse group after being spread out through the Galus to all corners of the world. We each have our own mihagim and hashkafos. Just like with donuts some people may look good on the outside but when you bite into it you are disappointed to find out that it has less filling than you expected. Some are even old fashion donuts and in your perception their trademark donut hole is just a big ripoff while they view filled donuts as modern day imposters. Still we respect these donuts and even enjoy them because after all it is still a donut and that is the Mitzvas HaYom. So if you are a lemon meringue man and you bump into a pistachio donut walking down the street, be kind and be nice. Maybe even smile, since after all he is still a donut, even if he is not your particular flavor.
Posted on: Tue, 16 Dec 2014 18:42:21 +0000
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