Today is the anniversary of when my childhood friend, Donna, died. It’s been 22 years and I still think of her and her family every January 20th and every August 18th, which was her birthday. It’s amazing how certain events in our lives make such an impact and stick with us forever. Probably for the… Read More January 20th, Every Year

The other night, Azriel and I were lying in bed together before he fell asleep. He was looking directly into my eyes, and I into his, and the world stopped for a brief moment. At that moment, I saw the entire world in his eyes. He spoke his life to me, his hopes, his dreams,… Read More In His Eyes

I haven’t written since the war started because I don’t know exactly what to say. I haven’t written because I don’t want to sit in front of the computer screen crying. I haven’t written because I don’t want to scare those of you reading this from far away. I haven’t written because I don’t really… Read More Why I Haven’t Written

Only in this country can a visit to the aquarium become a Zionist experience. We’ve been here for over four years now, and I still marvel at the way things are done here and the magic of this place. We went to Eilat this week for Hanukah. Eilat is the “place to be” over Hanukah… Read More The Aquarium – a Zionist Experience

Chanukah is just around the corner and the kids are starting to pour in with Chanukah items, as always. I have to say that the dreidel – that little item that you spin and play a game with – is one of the greatest examples of our Aliyah and of the Zionist dream realized. Come… Read More A Great Miracle Happened HERE!

We had a fun time today at Amichai’s 4th bday party at school. As I’ve mentioned about a number of things, Israel is simply overflowing with routines. Everyone at a wedding knows the same dances, little kids all seem to know the same songs, and everyone knows what happens at a nursery school birthday party.… Read More Amichai’s 4th Bday

This morning Josh called me at 6:30 am from synagogue to say that a lovely man in the community had died. Even Kotel was a bubbly, sweet 51 year old who had two jobs that spoke worlds about him. He was in charge of guarding the nursery school classes, and was always chipper and sweet… Read More An Agonizing Goodbye – Done Beautifully

The Shmita year just came to a close, and I’m marvelling at how much life in Israel is connected to the land, the cycles, the weather and more. Shmita is the biblical prohibition against harvesting your land. Every seven years, we are to leave the land alone. This includes everything from the farmers and their… Read More Weeding – a Holy Act

There are many ways that living in Israel creates a feeling of unity for its people – whether some of these things are done on purpose or not. September 1st is one of those ways. The entire country starts school on the same day. Now, in most places in the States, school starts after Labor… Read More September 1 – School Starts!

I have found an incredible culture here of people who nurture a new mom. I don’t remember this mentality in the States as much, and it’s such a beautiful way to see birth and to wish the mother well. A few days after we came home from the hospital, our neighbor showed up at the… Read More Nurturing the New Mom