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From Illness to Faith Living with My Son's Crohn's Disease
by Seena ElbaumAt the outset, he had an extremely positive outlook and oftentimes said, "However uncomfortable I am right now, it could always be much worse." These self-soothing words were a source of comfort, motivation and positive perspective, all of which served as a real anchor... 2 Comments |  |
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Surviving the Holocaust My Grandmother's Story
by Katherine AgranovichBehind every Jewish family there is a story, and when I look at my sons, I think of all of them: the six million killed in the Holocaust, as they live in my every word, my every tear and in every moment I tell their story... 11 Comments |  |
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Irena Sendler Rescuer of the Children of Warsaw
By Chana KrollAlmost as soon as the Nazi occupation began, Irena began making forged documents for Jewish friends. She also offered food and shelter to the increasingly persecuted Jewish population. Then, in 1940, she witnessed the imprisonment of nearly 500,000 Jews in the Warsaw Ghetto... 23 Comments |  |
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My Weekend with a Recovering Drug Addict
By Ariella Sunny LeviMy appreciation deepened as I continued to think about benefits of my so called “curses.” All those difficult issues of my youth suddenly seemed more like anchors than problems: Tough like iron yet grounding and stabilizing... 25 Comments |  |
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Lessons from My Car Accident
by Racheli RosenzweigI don't know how justified I am to talk about life threatening events as I don't remember the accident. I don't remember how it feels to be unsure of whether you will live or die. I don't remember the worry, the fright, the pain; in some ways I don't understand what happened to me... 12 Comments |  |
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Don't Let The Light Go Out Recovering From a Tragic Car Crash
by Yafa Plaut-CapponIt has been nearly two years since that fateful night. My family is still suffering the aftermath. I have not been able to work because of the pain. Every day has moments of deep sorrow, but there is also tremendous joy... 4 Comments |  |
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The Solo Journey Life After the Loss of a Spouse
By Shirley ColesHow does one reach out to others, to give and to receive, if the very act of waking in the morning causes the pain of realizing one has loved and lost? 7 Comments |  |
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The African Violet An Investment in Eternity
By Jill PincusAfter school, I would journey alone from a world defined by the future to a world that had no future. What would I say to Grandma? How could I tell her that I was making plans for later, for what I would be doing once she was no longer here? 10 Comments |  |
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Peering From Behind the Lattice A Personal Story of Joy and Mourning
By Valerie FarberI surf between CNN, Fox, and the Jerusalem Post scanning photos of our soldiers: rough beards, weary postures. Some raise their fingers in a "V" while supporting wounded comrades. I squint, searching for Akiva's face among them... 8 Comments |  |
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Sailing Lessons Finding Faith Through Sorrow
By Jessica Klein LevenbrownWe were close enough to talk. To scream. To hear each other’s cries. Close enough for me to hear him say, “I’m going to die.” And close enough for him to hear me say, “I love you.” 9 Comments |  |
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Another Kind of Baby
By Robyn CuspinSix months ago I had a late-stage miscarriage, and gave birth to a baby that had passed away in the fifth month. I got out of the hospital, and began to write... 6 Comments |  |
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The Snake Process Overcoming Our Fears
By Sarah ZadokWith the exception of semi-frequent snake nightmares, I've lived with this fear fairly uneventfully. That is until last week... |  |
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Entering the Shabbat
By Sherri MandellI don't know how I will put aside my pain for the coming Shabbat. The pain is too raw, too overwhelming, yet in a strange way, I need it. I want it. It is my connection with my dead son... 3 Comments |  |
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In the Mourning Light Coping With the Loss of My Father
By Tzippora PriceI don't have patience for the rivers of apple juice flowing across the dining room table, and when the lock on the front door finally breaks, locking me out of my apartment at dinnertime with three starving children, I feel like sitting down on the floor and crying with them. I don't, of course, because I'm the mom... 13 Comments |  |
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Goodbye, Yosef Chai
By Chana (Jenny) WeisbergShe said, "You are the only person I am telling. When you light candles this Friday night, know that it's all on you." I assumed she was joking, but she repeated this phrase, "Only you." 12 Comments |  |
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An Internal Journey Moving to Pender Island
By Ruthy ShalomI know that there is a purpose for every human being. For me, that purpose had to be to leave all that I knew and what was familiar to me, and to start over... 3 Comments |  |
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The Lump
By Sara Esther CrispeWhen I first noticed it, I told myself it had probably always been there and I had just never paid attention. But as convincing as I can be, even I didn't buy that... 41 Comments |  |
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Life After Loss My Husband's First Yahrtzeit
By Shirley ColesOne year ago, my two sons, one daughter and I stood at his bedside to say goodbye to the man who had been the mainstay of our family... 9 Comments |  |
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What is Spirituality?
By Jackie HafterAs a teenager I used to think if I could just see into my crystal ball and know who I am going to marry and what my life would be like, I could understand today better. But would knowing my future have truly gotten me through the day or the experience of that moment? 4 Comments |  |
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What is a Miracle?
By Melody Masha PiersonOne month ago, I was literally running out of breath. The breath of life. My lungs were dying. And while my hope and belief in life were alive and well, the idea was to get my body to catch up with my faith. This required some work... 37 Comments |  |
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