Judaism
Giving it to G-d
“Is everything okay?” I timidly ask in the examination room. I’m anxiously waiting as the doctor performs the very first…
The Life Waiting For Me: A Letter
This essay was workshopped in The Layers Writing Workshops. Dear Hashem, You know everything that I have been through. You…
Looking Toward the Heavens
Last night was surreal. I sat with some of my sisters, my mother, and my daughter in the darkness listening…
The Night I Was Redeemed
It was the night of the Exodus. There we were in our homes; waiting, terrified, and exhilarated. As per Moses’s…
Reckoning With Reality; Standing Up For Our Future
My sister and I were born in the wake of a historic triumph. My father, Natan Sharansky, was arrested by…
Mila’s Story: They Can Never Erase Them
In Honor of International Holocaust Day: Mila’s Story: Mila grew up in southern Poland, in a town called Chrzanow. Her…
Choosing Love
As much as I loved love and dished it out generously to others, I fed myself fear. This ingestion was…
My Last Trip To The Mikvah
I just went to the mikvah for the last time. I am 28 years old. I took my time getting…
Life in the Ghetto and Journey to Auschwitz- Excerpt from the Story of Leah Klein
“The Nazis invaded Czechoslovakia in March 1944. The first thing they did was to take away the Jewish work permits.…
My Conversion Journey
I’m standing in front of the Jewish ritual bath, the mikvah, wearing only a white cotton robe and clear plastic…
Shifting Perspectives
On March 3, 2020 I was sitting at a continuing education course with some colleagues. I remember getting texts on…
How Far I’ve Come
Twenty years ago today, I was in Israel in seminary for about twelve days when right before Rosh Hashana, my…