Outside Looking In – Parashat Metzora

This week’s Torah portion, Metzora, is a challenging one, to say the least. It begins by describing steps that must be taken by the priests when they learn that someone has leprosy. The leper has [...]

Tiny Grains of Sand – Now I Am Here

The beach —- virtually any beach — has always been a quasi-spiritual experience for me. The open skies, crashing waves, warm air and soft sand beneath my feet trigger in me a sense of [...]

Holding My Father’s Machzor

My recollections of childhood High Holidays in Brooklyn are suffused with images of my parents’ cerebral palsy disability, and how that impacted our celebration of the New Year. Although I [...]