A major milestone for our Israeli family In Israel, the education system consists of three tiers: primary (grades 1–6), middle school (grades 7–9) and high school (grades 10–12). The major decisions about schooling have to be made for 1st grade and 7th grade. Last December, I wrote about applying to elementary (grade) schools for our daughter who… Continue reading Great(!) news: a very special school
A palinode to: 'Shabbat, or: The Sabbath' Fuck that noise; Sabbath law annoys girls and boys who want toys; They're denied their simple joys; Onus ~ faith destroys d'Verse prompt: Write a palinode A palinode or palinody is an ode or song that retracts or recants a view or sentiment to what the poet wrote in… Continue reading The Sabbath, or: Shabbat
Jewish tradition: mourning in community Papa died in July of 2018. I started blogging about my journey of mourning (i.e. kaddish) that August. That year was very intensive for me; I produced a great deal of content based upon numerous readings; research; reflections; recollections; conversations; and, yes, prayer. The kaddish, after all, is a prayer.… Continue reading Kaddish for an individual
Exploring poetic forms Since creating this blog and embarking upon this chapter of my life journey nearly one year ago, I have taken to experimenting with various forms of poetry. From the first, I had no intention of becoming a poetry blogger. I only wanted to create a personal website on which to host my… Continue reading Forms of poetry; forms of life
On Jewish holidays I must draft poetry in my head For lack of laptop, I dare trust my memory instead This Passover, I did not just hanker for leavened bread Still, all last night, I long discussed the Exodus instead... And now I type, ere neurons rust, and soon I'm off to bed!
I would like to share an important aspect of my Jewish life with you, which is primarily (but not exclusively) representative of traditionally religious N. American Ashkenazi Jewish communities. This slice of my Jewish culture is known as the Shabbat morning kiddush. Essentially, the Shabbat morning kiddush is a social phenomenon, which takes place at… Continue reading Mourning my morning minyan
I had an unexpected flash of insight the other day regarding the following themes: My Jewish identityLiving in IsraelBlogging on WordPress My Jewish identity While I only encountered Orthodox Judaism and gradually began to adopt a religious lifestyle in college, I have always strongly identified as a Jew. If I were to sort the many… Continue reading Jewish and normal
The rhyme that stuck Judaism is a religion of deed - not creed. When I first heard this said to me some 2½ decades ago, I had no idea what my Hebrew high school teacher Rabbi Witty meant by it, but the rhyme stuck with me. Hebrew high school? I attended public school throughout my… Continue reading Deed, not Creed?
The Skeptic's Kaddish 🇮🇱 
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