Holiday Freedom: The Rewards and the Challenges
Originally published at Medium on April 23, 2019 During this holiday season, many of us who have left harmful religions make hard choices. It is a very charged time and we know that it is important to look at all options and possibilities to ensure that we are doing the very best thing for ourselves. […]
This is mine too
Originally published at Medium on February 13, 2020 I loved going to our local Synagogue as a young girl. By the time I was eight, I would get dressed in my prettiest clothes and black patent leather shoes every Shabbat morning, and set off for the short walk, two suburban blocks, to Synagogue — Shul […]
Dogs and Empowerment
Originally published at Medium on February 19, 2020 The first emotion I remember having was fear. I knew the language of fear before I learned any spoken words. I can almost see myself hunched over, fearful in my mother’s womb. As a grandchild of Holocaust survivors and living in a community of survivors who were […]
New Glasses: New Perspectives on Covid-19
Originally published at Medium on March 21, 2020 I was eight years old when I got my first pair of glasses. I remember looking out the kitchen window and marveling at how the tree outside which had always looked like one big green mush, was suddenly so intricate and detailed. The glasses changed it from […]
Give Yourself a Break: A Survival Guide for Overachievers in Times of Crisis
Originally published at Medium on March 24 2020 Are you bored now? Do you have nothing to do and are you rewatching old movies? If so, this is not for you. You can move on and read something else. I am writing this for those of you who are recovering perfectionists and overachievers. I am […]
My Dowry and Hasidic Marriage
Originally published at Medium on July 27 2020 September 1990, I was 17, it was Rosh Hashanah and I was on display. Our Shul had a U-Shaped balcony, overlooking the Main Sanctuary on the ground floor where the men prayed. The perimeter of the balcony had four foot tall solid wooden panels that reached slightly […]