Talmudology on Tisha B'Av ~ Giving Up

Last year, on the Fast of the 17th of Tammuz, I had the privilege of hearing Irit, the wife of Chaim ben Aryeh, at Kehilat Pardes in Rockville MD. See the end of this essay for some exciting news… לעילוי נשמת חיים בן אריה, הי׳ד Chaim ben Aryeh , a bus driver from the Otef Gaza region was somewhat of a local legend; the father of eight, he had been a bus driver in Gush Katif, where he had been…