Happy Tu B'Shvat!

Wishing you a very Happy Tu B'Shvat! The New Year of the trees. It starts tonight and is Monday, February 2nd this year. Also, traditionally, it is when the almond trees around Jerusalem burst into bloom, and is a very beautiful sight.

Also, today is my birthday! The first without Yaakov, so I am a bit sad, but very thankful for another year.

Here are two cartoons that I have always loved. You are welcome to share.  Enjoy!

and 

Happy Holiday of the Trees!

I pray that everyone will have health and happiness and prosperity.

Please consider donating to Dry Bones

Thank you so much to all of you who have donated! And thank you to all who have written me beautiful notes.

  I am so very thankful for so much!

Link for donating in IL shekels here:

https://www.paypal.com/donate?hosted_button_id=2BEWEZ3DGEJJ8

And link for donating in US Dollars below

Much love and joyful New Year of 2026. Blessings to you and your families and loved ones.

Please donate to Dry Bones in order to help me, the LSW, to keep up the expenses of the Blog and the postings, and pay the rent. 

You can donate with this link. It works with your credit card or with PayPal.

  Donate to Dry Bones denominated in US dollars here  

 https://tinyurl.com/3xmbc4mp 

ALSO PLEASE NOTE:

TO DONATE $50 or MORE BY CHECK (and is U.S. Tax DEDUCTIBLE)

1. Write a check to “REPORT, Inc.”

2. Write a cover note stating that these funds are to be directed to Dry Bones Project. Mail the Check and the accompanying cover letter to:

REPORT, Inc.

PO Box 1670

Southampton, PA 18966

U.S.A. *

"Trees, the GreenTestament" book

 

We, the LSW (Long Suffering Wife) and I have published a line of fabulous Dry Bones cartoon books.

Perhaps the most meaningful of these books is Trees, The Green Testament
It is a 208 page Dry Bones Graphic Novel that presents the story of Israel as told by the Trees. It unites Jews, Christians, environmentalists, historians, Zionists, millennial students, and angry senior citizens with its shared message of hope. The Wall Street Journal called it a book of prophecy. Perhaps they were right.

You can go to my Amazon author's page to see Trees, the Green Testament.
There you can "Look Inside" and if you like it (And why wouldn't you?) you can buy it and/or any of a book-shelf of other Dry Bones books at amazon.com/author/kirschen
In the UK it's www.bit.ly/drybonesbooks

Jewish Optimism and the Holiday of the Trees

Here is a Dry Bones cartoon about Tu B'Shvat, the holiday of the Trees, from 1997. It falls on February 2nd this year. 

 I am going to post the whole blog post that Yaakov made about it from January 2014, but I am updating the date of the holiday. There is alink at the bottom to Amazon, where you can look at the book, and his other books, and perhaps buy. It comes in both a kindle and a paperback edition.

 Also, many have been asking after my health. So here is a bit of an update about that and the situation in Israel.  I am thankful everyday that I didn't break anything when I fell, and for all of my blessings. It still hurts to move because of my rib injury, but it is much much better. The real aftereffect at the moment is that it feels like it knocked a lot of the "life force" and enthusiasm and energy out of me. But that also is getting much better. My doctor says it is normal with a hard hit at my age and that it just takes a long time.

Here in Israel the last hostage body was recovered and is being buried today. It feels very symbolically significant. We now take off and put away all of our yellow ribbon pins and dog-tag necklaces. We are waiting to see whatever the next stage will bring, and if we will again have missiles flying from Iran soon. The government has made lots of preparations, so hopefully we will be safe. I wish all the best for you. May you have happiness, health and prosperity.  And I am wishing us all a very happy holiday of the trees and a soon to be spring.

Tu B'Shvat is the Jewish "New Year" of the trees. On Tu B'Shvat we plant trees For future generations. Tu is the number 15 in the biblical numbering system (which uses the letters of the Hebrew Alphabet). B' is Hebrew for "in". Shvat is the current month in the Hebrew calendar. So Tu B'Shvat simply means the "15th of Shvat".
This year Tu B'Shvat falls on February 2, this coming Monday.
I chose this "golden oldie" because it illustrates what I believe is a basic Jewish attitude. The blending of short-term pessimism and long-term optimism . . . packaged with a Judaic compulsion to heal the planet.

*      *      * 

This would be a good time to check out my book: Trees ...the Green Testament, the front page story it made.

You can go to my Amazon author's page to see Trees, the Green Testament.
There you can "Look Inside" and if you like it (And why wouldn't you?) you can buy it and/or any of a book-shelf of other Dry Bones books at amazon.com/author/kirschen
In the UK it's www.bit.ly/drybonesbooks

*     *     *For a complete rundown on Tu B'Shvat (sometimes written in English as Tu BeShvat or Tu Bishvat or...) check out Jacob Richman's awesome Tu B'Shvat site.

The Holiday of Scuddot Cartoon

 Dry Bones Golden Oldie cartoon poster of Scuddot.

I am finally starting to feel a bit better after my fall. Thank you to everyone who sent good wishes.

I have been thinking lately about the similarities between now and this time, (January, February) of 1991. Yaakov created this cartoon after the Iraq war in 1991 He made up the holiday of Scuddot to commemorate the occasion.

It feels bit like the lead up to the current war with Iran. We thought at the time, that the missiles that Saddam Hussein was firing at Israel were going to have chemical warheads and we went through a long buildup and were instructed to protect ourselves. We are now seeing a buildup of defences against Iranian and Hezbollah and Houthi missiles. Iran is threatening to send 2000 missiles at Israel at a time. We are told that they can really only send about 700 at a time. But 700 ballistic missiles is a lot! We are getting prepared again. Hoping that the future will bring peace and that the future will be bright, I am posting this cartoon of Scuddot. If you click on the cartoon, it will become bigger and easier to read. It was a full page in the magazine, "The Report"and it was later made into a large poster. I hope you enjoy seeing it.

I pray that everyone will have health and happiness and prosperity.

Please consider donating to Dry Bones

Thank you so much to all of you who have donated! And thank you to all who have written me beautiful notes.

  I am so very thankful for so much!

Link for donating in IL shekels here:

https://www.paypal.com/donate?hosted_button_id=2BEWEZ3DGEJJ8

And link for donating in US Dollars below

Much love and joyful New Year of 2026. Blessings to you and your families and loved ones.

Please donate to Dry Bones in order to help me, the LSW, to keep up the expenses of the Blog and the postings, and pay the rent. 

You can donate with this link. It works with your credit card or with PayPal.

  Donate to Dry Bones denominated in US dollars here  

 https://tinyurl.com/3xmbc4mp 

ALSO PLEASE NOTE:

TO DONATE $50 or MORE BY CHECK (and is U.S. Tax DEDUCTIBLE)

1. Write a check to “REPORT, Inc.”

2. Write a cover note stating that these funds are to be directed to Dry Bones Project. Mail the Check and the accompanying cover letter to:

REPORT, Inc.

PO Box 1670

Southampton, PA 18966

U.S.A. *

The Past and the Future

 Dry Bones Golden Oldie, from 2003 posted by Sali. Enjoy.

The News gets crazier every day. It will be interesting to see what the future brings. It seems like a confrontation with Iran is not so far in the future. The world leaders are meeting in Davos, and now Trump is heading there. This all would have been great cartoon material for Yaakov. I miss him, but it gives me pleasure to look through his old cartoons and find something that seems to fit the day. My energy is still low following my fall, but I am getting much better and I am so thankful for everyday of life, and health, and friends and all you fans and followers.

I pray that everyone will have health and happiness and prosperity.

Please consider donating to Dry Bones

Thank you so much to all of you who have donated! And thank you to all who have written me beautiful notes.

  I am so very thankful for so much!

Link for donating in IL shekels here:

https://www.paypal.com/donate?hosted_button_id=2BEWEZ3DGEJJ8

And link for donating in US Dollars below

Much love and joyful New Year of 2026. Blessings to you and your families and loved ones.

Please donate to Dry Bones in order to help me, the LSW, to keep up the expenses of the Blog and the postings, and pay the rent. 

You can donate with this link. It works with your credit card or with PayPal.

  Donate to Dry Bones denominated in US dollars here  

 https://tinyurl.com/3xmbc4mp 

ALSO PLEASE NOTE:

TO DONATE $50 or MORE BY CHECK (and is U.S. Tax DEDUCTIBLE)

1. Write a check to “REPORT, Inc.”

2. Write a cover note stating that these funds are to be directed to Dry Bones Project. Mail the Check and the accompanying cover letter to:

REPORT, Inc.

PO Box 1670

Southampton, PA 18966

U.S.A. *

Iran again

It looks like our confrontation with Iran has been postponed. In the meantime, here is a Dry Bones Cartoon from 2018. Not a lot changes in the world of Middle Eastern politics.

And this is why we are so uncomfortable with Iran, from 2019

I pray that everyone will have a wonderful year, filled with health and happiness and prosperity.

Please consider donating to Dry Bones

Thank you so much to all of you who have donated! And thank you to all who have written me beautiful notes.

  I am so very thankful for so much!

Link for donating in IL shekels here:

https://www.paypal.com/donate?hosted_button_id=2BEWEZ3DGEJJ8

And link for donating in US Dollars below

Much love and joyful New Year of 2026. Blessings to you and your families and loved ones.

Please donate to Dry Bones in order to help me, the LSW, to keep up the expenses of the Blog and the postings, and pay the rent. 

You can donate with this link. It works with your credit card or with PayPal.

  Donate to Dry Bones denominated in US dollars here  

 https://tinyurl.com/3xmbc4mp 

ALSO PLEASE NOTE:

TO DONATE $50 or MORE BY CHECK (and is U.S. Tax DEDUCTIBLE)

1. Write a check to “REPORT, Inc.”

2. Write a cover note stating that these funds are to be directed to Dry Bones Project. Mail the Check and the accompanying cover letter to:

REPORT, Inc.

PO Box 1670

Southampton, PA 18966

U.S.A. *

Solidarity with our brave Iranian sisters and brothers

 A Dry Bones Golden Oldie, standing with the brave people of Iran from 2018. Just as the world ignored them then, most of the world is ignoring them now. Yaakov was one of the first to stand with the brave people of Iran, and especially with the women who are throwing off their headscarves and risking their lives. Back in 2018, the Me Too movement was silent, and most of the world is still silent. We are hearing nothing from all of those who demonstrated for Gaza. We are getting reports of between 2000 and 20,000 Iranian people killed so far. I will be posting some of Yaakov's older solidarity with the Iranian people cartoons as much as I am able.

Here is an update on our situation here in Israel... The reserve units have been called up. Many of the foreign airlines have stopped flying in or out. Many of the public bomb shelters have been reopened. Iron Dome batteries have been deployed around the country. It looks like the Iranian regime has backed down from hanging all of it's prisoners. The heavy rains have temporarily stopped and we are having a sunny day, but there was a small earthquake at the Dead Sea this morning. It looks like we will soon face another round of fighting.

And here is a bit of an update on me. I thought that I would recover much more quickly, but it is still very painful to move and I feel like all of the normal energy has been knocked out. I spoke to my doctor yesterday who said that I might have a bit of a concussion, but that there is nothing to do about it but rest, and that these things often take a long time to recover. I have had lots of plans that are still on hold.

I want to thank all of you who sent me kind words of encouragement and those who donated.

Thank you, I am very blessed!

I pray that everyone will have a wonderful year, filled with health and happiness and prosperity.

Please consider donating to Dry Bones

Thank you so much to all of you who have donated! And thank you to all who have written me beautiful notes.

  I am so very thankful for so much!

Link for donating in IL shekels here:

https://www.paypal.com/donate?hosted_button_id=2BEWEZ3DGEJJ8

And link for donating in US Dollars below

Much love and joyful New Year of 2026. Blessings to you and your families and loved ones.

Please donate to Dry Bones in order to help me, the LSW, to keep up the expenses of the Blog and the postings, and pay the rent. 

You can donate with this link. It works with your credit card or with PayPal.

  Donate to Dry Bones denominated in US dollars here  

 https://tinyurl.com/3xmbc4mp 

ALSO PLEASE NOTE:

TO DONATE $50 or MORE BY CHECK (and is U.S. Tax DEDUCTIBLE)

1. Write a check to “REPORT, Inc.”

2. Write a cover note stating that these funds are to be directed to Dry Bones Project. Mail the Check and the accompanying cover letter to:

REPORT, Inc.

PO Box 1670

Southampton, PA 18966

U.S.A. *