Home.
I looked up when, among the mumbling, I heard the word ‘מעליב.’ Standing in a long, slow-moving line at a Staten Island department store, I suddenly felt at home. And yet, it wasn’t because I was in...
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Yom Haaztmaut 5774: Three reasons why
‘Why did you move to Israel?’ We get asked that a lot, don’t we? Here’s my #1 reason 9 years ago, and my #1 reason now: Children who know no differently… The list of reasons for living in Israel grows...
View ArticleExpat life: Eleven years.
As of today I have spent a third of my life living as an expat, having made the choice to leave what I knew and start over somewhere else, with specific goals and ideology fueling the decision. And 11...
View ArticleWe cast our lot.
When people ask me why I came here, my answer is that no matter what I believe religiously I'll always accept the fact that by being born into what I was born I have no choice but to cast my lot with...
View ArticleThe things that change and don’t change in fifteen years.
15 years ago, I landed at Ben Gurion airport and a Russian-accented משרד הפנים rep told me I’ve been spelling my last name wrong my entire life as he prepped my paperwork. Last night, I was helping my...
View ArticleThe hard way.
At the ‘חוג בת מצווה’ I’m doing with my daughter, tonight’s session was focused on Jewish Israeli women heroes of the last century; this follows six weeks focused on even earlier historical Jewish...
View ArticleAliyah is a million cuts.
When you’re 22 and pick up and move to another country with a minimum 9-hour flight time, you’re really not thinking about 18 years later when the other shoe drops. The first shoe dropped when you had...
View ArticleThe privilege to choose where you’re murdered for being a Jew
A reaction from a lot of Americans (including the State Department, apparently): “You can always come here.” I do feel guilt and appreciation around this, rooted in the well-meaningness and love of my...
View ArticleWell I just had a fucked up weekend abroad
I don’t want to talk about it right now though. What I will say is… the returning home is always something. Every time, it’s a weird breath of relief. As uncomfortable (on a technical level) as I may...
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