Happy birthday, Israel! You are now 74 years young and have accomplished so much in so few years. You have always been part of my life. Remember Jewish National Fund tzedakah (charity) boxes? My pennies, nickels and dimes were collected religiously so that you could plant trees and turn a desert […]
Jewish Life
29 posts
Image: This photo is from my hometown, Tarnów, during the second deportation. “Always follow your logic,” was Salomon’s proud “leitmotiv.” Going against logic showed weakness, made no sense. Logic dictated his personal and business life. To this day, quips such as: “Always follow your logic,” “Don’t follow others,” “Follow your […]
I came home after a meeting,where my husband had this greeting: “My mom passed away sometime tonight.”I hugged him tight saying, “It’s alright.” Though Mom didn’t remember, she still knewwe were her family and loved her too. We would visit her at her homewhich was so close to our own. […]
By El Portnoy There were many little issues that appeared during the year that my parents died. Little things that you do not realize will cause distress. But for my sister and me, one of these issues was my Mom’s recipes. They were gone. We searched the house and could […]
This is reprinted from the 5 Towns Jewish Times. By Malkie Gordon Hirsch If you ever want serious insights on life, visit a shivah house. Now, not all shivah houses are equal. There are different energies in each house. A lot of the overall vibe of the house and how it’s dealing with the […]
Making a Seder in a pinch happened about seven years ago. Here’s my story. Background My niece, Mary and her 10-year-old daughter, Kathy, were coming to town for Passover. They asked if they could stay with me since Mary’s father had no room at his house. Mary’s sister, Teresa, and […]
In his Baltimore accent, my dad used to say, “If you don’t like the weather in Balmer, wait five minutes, and it’ll change.” I didn’t know then that this is something Baltimorians say all the time. I thought he made it up! In any case, it’s the truth. In fact, […]
A map of Jerusalem from 1581 shows the city at the center of the world. Although we now know that geographically this is incorrect, the city is still today the center of the Jewish world. Jerusalem is ancient and modern. Archeological digs dating thousands of years stand near modern skyscrapers. […]
A woman of valor who can find? For her price is far above rubies. The heart of her husband safely trusts in her, And he has no lack of gain. She does him good and not evil all the days of her life. Proverbs 31:10–31 How many of us have […]