What’s In a Name? More Than You Can Imagine

Shakespeare famously said, "What's in a name? That which we call a rose/ By any other name would smell as sweet;" (Romeo and Juliet, Act II, Scene 2). But we know that names do in fact matter. I have always been fascinated by different naming customs, and the cycles...

What I’m Thinking About This Mother’s Day

As Mother's Day approaches, I'm thinking about my new book, Lily of the Valley—An American Jewish Journey, just published in March. It's about five generations of women pursuing the American Dream and what happens to their connection to observant Judaism as they...

On Losing Shoes and Finding Joy

There's an old Chinese saying that for every child you lose a tooth. Praise G-d, that has not been my experience! But I do have a saying of my own: that for every grandchild I lose a shoe. I do not mean that I become increasingly doddering and misplace my footwear,...