I found a little dreidel on the pavement of the parking lot at Whole Foods. It was no bigger than two inches long, made of bright orange plastic. I guess it had been dropped by a child on a family shopping moment. Since it was abandoned and orange, I collected it. The dreidel, for those readers who don't know much about Jewish ethnic traditions, is a spinning top toy which can be used either as an educational mnemonic, a gambling game, or both. The dreidel has four sides and lands on one when it stops. Each side has a Hebrew letter which stands for a word in the sentence "A miracle happened there." This refers to the miracle of the long-lasting lamp oil in the Temple, celebrated at Hanukkah, which is usually in December. You can read about the dreidel significance and game here. It was odd to find a dreidel in the middle of the summer but you could consider it one of those "Winter In Summer" paradoxical events.
This drawing is really small, just about life-size for the dreidel. Above is an enlarged view of it. Ink and markers on sketchbook page, August 6, 2014.
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