Prayer shawl for a math major

2005

COMMISSIONED FOR RABBI PAUL • POUGHKEEPSIE NEW YORK

Dear Debbie,

It is a great pleasure to deliver Paul’s tallit, and thank you for your patience during the process.  It has also been a wonderful part of this project to have enjoyed some visits and got to know you better.

The main fabric, as you will recall from our shopping trip, is pure wool men’s suiting sold to us by an East Indian Muslim merchant whose mother is Jewish.  To this I added fabrics and ribbons from my own collection, many of which have personal significance and family history.  The colour palette was inspired by Paul Klee’s painting “Feu le Soir”, giving your Paul his “expansive notion of blue”.

Thanks to my Paul I have been able to incorporate several “puzzles” into the corners of the tallit:

• The standard numerological equivalent of “Pinchas” is 208.
• In the atbash system (one letter behind) this is 123, or in Roman numerals “CXXIII”, which is also one day behind Paul’s birthday on 1/22, and a prime number.
• 208 is also the same numerological value as “cistern”, “the well, “laughter“ and “locust”.
• Cisterns and wells are of particular significance to an Aquarius. The well drawing is from a seventeenth century German manuscript of Sefer Evonot, in the Hebrew Union College Library in Cincinnati.  The timber cistern is a typical Mediterranean style, still in use today.
• Laughter and the wing section of the rather beautiful yellow-winged locust relate to Pesach, which Paul told me was his favourite holiday because of the family being together and children taking the lead.
• These four symbols all appear within a soft [-sided] ball.
• University of Wisconsin’s mascot playing a tuba probably does not need further explanation, nor do the four key words from Paul’s favourite parasha.

He is the math major, but you alone hold the answer key.  It is a private matter how you decide to confirm or fill in the answers.

Please make sure he hangs the tallit flat between wearings, preferably with a cedar block on the hanger; and that it is dry-cleaned occasionally.  Remove Bucky before cleaning.

Most of all, may you both enjoy your gift in good health and for many happy occasions.