My older daughters take the city bus home from high school most afternoons. It is a 10-minute walk, one 15-20-minute bus ride through a safe neighbourhood, and then a 2-minute walk to our door. They do not complain – except when it’s pouring or freezing – and mostly...
Every morning Akiva students, Sarah and Chloe Elman, have a very special way to start their school day. Their grandparents, Margo and Harvey, who live down the street from Akiva School, meet their grandchildren outside the school and walk them to their classrooms -...
In this week’s parshah, Rebecca gives birth to twin boys. Esau is described as a skilled hunter and Jacob “a wholesome man who dwells in tents.” Returning one day from hunting, Esau is exhausted and very hungry, and Jacob is cooking a stew. Esau said to Jacob, “Pour...
“Who is rich? He who is happy with what he has.” – Pirkei Avot At the start of this week’s parasha, Sarah dies and Abraham purchases from the sons of Het the cave of Machpelah for a burial place. The text then tells us: Now Abraham was old, well on in years, and the...
Superman had x-ray vision – the ability to see through solid objects. I – and I’m sure many of you – have the power to see things our family members swear are nowhere in sight. We can describe the location of every object in the fridge and pantry as our children...
For the Jewish journey blog this week, my daughter asked me if she could write something related to the parasha. She did not discuss with me ahead of time what she wanted to write, and to be perfectly honest, I was skeptical about what she would come up with and what...
This week’s parashah is the story of Noah and the ark. God tells Noah he is going to destroy the earth because the people are corrupt and He gives Noah very specific instructions and measurements so he can build an ark for himself and his family and two of every...
This Wednesday evening we usher in the concluding celebrations of this High Holiday cycle. Although technically Shemini Atzeret is not part of the Sukkot holiday, it is considered the eighth day, followed by Simhat Torah, which in practical terms is the ninth, and...
“What are you making for Sukkot?” my daughter asks me. “We always have pumpkin soup in the sukkah,” she adds. “And stuffed zucchini?” You usually make that too.” “Are you going to make stuffed cabbage this year,” my husband asks. “It’s my favourite.” Everyone has...
There is a story told of Rabbi Akiva that the only time he ever said, “It is time to stop studying,” was on the eve of Passover and on the eve of Yom Kippur. He wanted to leave the house of study early on the eve of Passover “because of the children” – so they should...