Celebrating Tu B'Shevat in the Freezing Cold

In preparation for the Tu B'Shevat holiday, children from "Shatil" youth club in Astana, Kazakhstan learned about the New Year for Trees and. were encouraged to start gathering date, orange and lemon pits to plant, along with other Jews around the world.

The education continued to a greenhouse in a nearby village where 12 children learned about the functions of the greenhouse and the plants that grow there. They also saw lemon and orange trees growing. The summer weather in the small "glass houses" made an impression the children, since it was below 30° C outside.

On February 8, only 6 children from "Shatil" participated in the Tu B'Shevat festivities at the Jewish Community Center due to the cold weather (27 degrees below zero). Nonetheless, they enjoyed Ora Shir's Jewish fairy-tale about the Queen of Sheba's secrets.

After the story, the children were asked to answer the question: "What do I know about the holidays?" Everyone had the opportunity to demonstrate his or her knowledge. Then the children began learning a poem about Tu B'Shevat and drawing the festive fruits - dates, pomegranates, grapes etc.

The head of an art studio, Ludmila, supported the children's keenness on drawing and suggested to devote their first lesson to Tu B'shevat.