Two Mondays ago: I am riding the subway in New York, enjoying the loud peace of the E train to…
Year: 2012
Mothers in the Amidah
Should we name our ancestral mothers, the matriarchs or Imahot in formal prayer? Specifically, in the Amidah, the standing silent…
Mom's Closet
Friday afternoon in Queens, New York. Dave and I agreed we wouldn’t go to Mom’s empty house alone. You can’t…
Beinoni
When my brother and I were young, our mother of blessed memory read the parenting book Between Parent and Child…
Kol Nidre's Spell
“All vows and oaths we take, all promises and obligations we make between this Yom Kippur and the next are…
Kind Speech, Step One
Shmirat Halashon: Observing your speech. Guarding it. Holding it precious. A beautiful practice for the month of Elul. A month…
Shadow Side
Nothing in life is perfect. Nothing good is all good. Every positive choice, every wonderful character trait, casts its small…
Forgiveness: Five Stages
Rosh Hashanah is followed by the aseret yemei teshuvah, ten days of repentance and return. Our sages recommend that we…