I have had tortuous abuse in my life, the silence being the factor which I’ve suffered from the most. The feeling of always having to quiet myself for fear of my secrets being out. It may sound like what a spy goes through after debrief and reintegration into civilian life, but it is the reality […]

I grew up in an authoritarian home in which self-expression in any form was restricted: socially, academically, psychologically, mentally and financially. Not surprisingly, I was taught to be as stringent as humanly possible when it came to being religious. And so I was as “frum” as physically and mentally possible as I made my way […]

The Orthodox Jewish community has been getting enormous negative press over the last several years, especially the segment known as the Haredi or the Hasidim. They have been vilified in every way imaginable way by the media, and negatively stereotyped. I cannot imagine the burden such a group has to bear due to the misunderstanding […]

I was about 11 years old when my mother mentioned puberty for the first time. I don’t remember the details, because she didn’t share much, but she let me know what a period was and told me that I should let her know when I get it, so she can help me. A few months […]

Nobody knows if they will get to come home each night. None of us knows if our kids will come home tonight. Lately, it’s been on my mind even more. The rise in anti-Semitic attacks, in my neighborhood synagogues, eateries that my teenagers often go get lunch from, or just randomly on the streets of […]

My fourth child was born 6 weeks early, but otherwise healthy. Or so we thought. In the moments after delivery, the OBGYN and neonatologist exclaimed over the baby’s umbilical cord. Part of it was a normal tube, but part of it looked like a thick, flat pancake. “Is that a problem?” I asked. “Doesn’t seem […]