Chana Margulies

Chana wasn’t drunk. But she taught me how to be sober.

G‑d does not want me to be a Penina to myself—to motivate myself from a place of pain and lack.

Giving unasked-for advice appears innocent, but it sends a harsh message to the person receiving it. It sounds like: “You can’t do this.” “This challenge is bigger than you.”

On the one hand, to only be a child forever is quite limiting. We want to be purposeful, to be productive. And yet, we want to keep the sincerity of the child: her excitement, love and wholehearted ability to move on.

I so badly wanted to say, on behalf of all the couples embracing infertility, “Perhaps you can save the bonding over being parents until after we leave?”

When I leave the ark of my morning prayers, it’s a beautiful world—one that I can work with and add light to.

Eventually, I grew tired of playing the martyr and blaming Him. I started to wonder if the pain I blamed on heaven was coming from within.

As I greeted our guests at the door, I froze. Her oversized sweater said it all.

The best way to get more help is to stop being so helpful.

I claimed that I wanted my husband to heal for his sake. But the truth was that I was terrified.