Mazel tov to you, new bride! You may have been waiting for this day for a long time, and finally it has arrived. Get ready for your entire world to change because with the word “yes,” the whirlwind of happy, excited energy has just begun. There are a million and one things to think about,…
Dating is like traveling: it’s filled with excitement, beautiful places and possible pitfalls. You hope to be prepared for anyone, or anything, that might cross your path. But just like getting on a plane, train or any other form of public transit, you just never know who you might meet and what you will learn….
A few years ago at her confirmation hearings, Supreme Court Justice Elana Kagan was being grilled by Sen. Lindsey Graham about the Christmas Day bombing attempt on a Detroit-bound airliner. “Where were you on Christmas Day?” Graham asked, setting up his line of questioning. Kagan understood the direction he was going in and attempted to…
The floor rocked below my feet, but I felt steadfast in the knowledge that Shabbat was upon me. I stood by a table in the middle of the ocean while waving my hands over candles and reciting the blessing. Uncovering my eyes, I held my siddur and started saying Kiddush. The table was occupied by…
Dating is a lot like hiking; there are highs, lows, beauty and snakes to behold. The weather can change in an instant, you can get stuck in a downpour or get a sunburn. Basically, it’s unpredictable. Wouldn’t it be nice to know that if you put on a hat, sunscreen and brought a bottle of…
Hanukkah, my all-time favorite holiday, is coming up fast. It is filled with light, fun and happiness. I’m biased, of course, since I’m a Hanukkah baby. Literally, I was born during Hanukkah, and I share the same birthday with my grandmother. So yes, it’s always been double the fun! As my gift to you, I…
Sometimes we’re not meant to find out what’s behind door No. 1 — or door No. 2. My fingers were getting really cold as I tried to open the lockbox and get the key out so I could open the door, but it was to no avail. All those years of opening my high school…
One of the most famous buildings in Paris kept getting closer and closer. I couldn’t help but grin, as the Arc De Triomphe seemed to materialize right in front of me. To add to the excitement, I was in a cab that had a clear plastic roof, so I felt as if I was in…
It was all Chinese to me; well, with a touch of Hebrew, and that’s because I was standing in what was once a Jewish Ghetto in Shanghai, China. Shanghai today, a modern metropolis of more than 20 million people, is significantly different than when it was a refuge city for Jewish immigrants escaping World War…
The word for love in Hebrew is ahavah, which fits perfectly as a part of Rabbi Judi Ahavah Del Bourgo’s name, as she radiates a positive energy that is hard to describe but easy to feel. Del Bourgo is the new rabbi at Har Zion Congregation of Scottsdale. My first encounter with her was at…
