My friend was trying to borrow a succah for the upcoming Y”T (as her plans changed due to COVID) and finally declared, “I’m going to stop asking around and just buy myself a succah. I need some stability.” I couldn’t resist. “If it’s stability you’re after, you should definitely buy a succah. Now there’s a real symbol of permanence.” …
On Monday, I sat down to write a post about Yom Kippur. I opened up my blog. Clicked on “add new.” Looked at the screen. Didn’t write. On Tuesday, I sat down to write a post about Yom Kippur. Nothing. On Wednesday, I clicked open a bunch of other tabs until I had to go to bed. …
Last year I wrote about how I plan to celebrate Tu B’Av once I’m married. Well, this year I decided to celebrate it single! As mentioned last year, Tu B’Av is mesugal for connection. If Tisha B’Av is a day we can mourn the ambiguous loss of singlehood, why can’t Tu B’Av be a day we celebrate the hope and …
Hello, everyone. I hope you’re all doing well and drinking lots of water, especially before the fast. Last week I wrote about boundaries and people-pleasing, and I plan to post some more expanding on that topic later this week or next. So check back for that. This week I wrote a paper for one of my classes and …
Ever since I read the Rebbetzin Machlis book, I wanted to get more involved in making Shabbos. It was more of a wish/dream instead of an actual goal because I kept running into this resistance in my head that told me that making Shabbos before I was married would just be “pretend.” One of the positive developments for me …
Happy Tu B’Shvat! Today we are celebrating the new year for the trees — but they don’t seem to be changing. And outwardly, they’re not. As you may have learned in school, what we’re really celebrating is the sap’s rising, which will eventually nurture the trees into all their spring glory. But we’ve a while yet… For the human …
Two weeks ago, my Partner in Torah and I completed Sefer Bereishis with Rashi. I thought how appropriate it was to be making a siyum during the Yomim Noraim, as we approach Simchas Torah. Throughout our learning, I was always surprised by how many new insights I could find in the text, and by how many questions I had …
This time last year, I did not feel ready for Yom Kippur. I just couldn’t get into it. I didn’t think I had done any semblance of a proper teshuva. And I just wanted to stay home from shul. I called up one of my role model/friends and asked her to give me whatever chizuk came to mind. These …
I get a bit startled when the calendar hits Tu B’Av and I’m not married. I guess it’s one of those markers of time. I decided a few years ago that when I get married, I will commemorate Tu B’Av each year as a special day (why not 🙂 ). There is a source for this that I read in …
When I was growing up, my best friend from down the block and I were Tisha B’Av partners. We teamed up to watch Rabbi Wallerstein’s kinnos at night and in the morning, the Chofetz Chaim Heritage Foundation video (both Programs A and B) in the afternoon, and something from Aish or Project Inspire in the evening until I went home …
