An Israeli tradition On Friday, our daughter's first grade class had their siddur (prayer book) party, which is considered a milestone for Orthodox Jewish children in Israel. Our daughter's school is unusual in Israel in that half the student body identifies as religious (Orthodox) and the other half identify as non-religious (i.e., secular), unlike the… Continue reading Prayer book party ’22
Indistinct chatter as I made my way through the door, past the principal's office, down the hall; School aides, most of whom I knew from my high school years , stared at me, as if I were covered in glitter or stardust; The head aide smiled all nervous-like and said, "It's nice to see you… Continue reading Nice Jewish boy, or: The evil inclination
Three American sentences in 10 words I. #clamor The loud afternoon #clamor around her school makes discussions futile. https://twitter.com/kaddish_s/status/1488556529745895434 II. #stark When one partner dies, #stark differences between them become starker. https://twitter.com/kaddish_s/status/1491348818683916292 III. #magic Goldfish stare long enough to appreciate full, lengthy #magic shows. https://twitter.com/kaddish_s/status/1496110454199967744 What's an 'American Sentence'? Allen Ginsberg, inventor of the American… Continue reading Clamor, Stark, or: Magic
A haibun I always aspire to punctuality, but rarely achieve it. The "real world" (i.e. the one outside of my head) feels utterly replete to me with stringent rules and regulations that continually challenge my unhurried nature. Every morning, as my wife and I race to get our daughter ready for school, I hear echoes… Continue reading Late summer, or: Early winter
A haibun I still remember her name: Jacqueline. At the time, I was in first grade and feeling very unsure of what life might have in store. My family would be moving from Iowa to New Jersey shortly; and I'd never see any of my little classmates again. On what I believe was my final… Continue reading Seven-years-old, or: Forever
The last month or so I haven't been keeping exact track, but our first-grader has been in quarantine four (or five?) times in the past month or so. Each time, a teacher or fellow student tested positive with COVID-19, and we had to take her to get her tested - once at the beginning of… Continue reading Israel exempts schoolchildren from quarantine
My 1st blank verse Iowa City, Iowa; I still remember snippets of those childhood days; the tree in our front yard that I would climb getting sawed down to a stump for no good reason; living across the street from my school: Ernest Horn Elementary School, where my mother took me to learn to ride… Continue reading ‘b’, or: ‘d’
My 1st Lai She has a playdate with her new classmate today. Her excitement's great; the skip in her gait conveys her overjoyed state. Adventures await - Hooray! Their teacher is wise and good sense applies in class. Seating plan devised, sixty anxious eyes, en masse, up to hers did rise, but her poise defies… Continue reading Roots, or: Wings
The Skeptic's Kaddish 🇮🇱 
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