My parents raised my sisters and me not to judge people based on their outer appearance, and throughout my life, I’ve proudly spoken out against racism wherever I’ve seen it. But, in this time of international reckoning, set off by the horrific murder of George Floyd, it seems only right to go deeper. To not […]

July 8th was a brisk, sunny day in the wilderness near Vancouver, Canada. Our family celebrated my wife’s birthday with a mountain bike adventure through the gorgeous Stanley Park. As we careened down the bike paths, I captured the highlights with my Canon camera. Regretfully, I attempted the “stupid dad trick” of shooting video while […]

This entire article is a spoiler alert. If you haven’t watched this show and plan to, stop reading now! As a person who was pretty obsessed with my mortality for most of my childhood, NBC’s “The Good Place,” which just ended, was a fascinating and enjoyable show. As far as I know, there has never […]

What does it mean to leave everything behind? To reject the ideas a person grew up with, and commit instead to new ideals? Is it possible to maintain anything of the past when embarking on a new life? When we first meet Rivka, she seems basically perfect. Avraham has tasked his servant with finding the […]

The story of Yaakov’s surreptitious acquisition of the blessings his father intended for Esav is well known. This episode, coupled with the Torah’s declaration of Yitzchak’s love for Esav, leads many readers to misinterpret Yitzchak’s feelings for each of his sons. While some assume that Yitzchak loved Esav more than he loved Yaakov, the text […]