In honor of the nine days of mourning leading up to the commemoration of the destruction of the Temple on 9 Av, which we observe this Sunday, I share this email from a reader. A very close friend of ours died about a month ago and last week our rabbi's adult son died.there has been talk of funerals and shiva and sadness and crying in our house. My six year old son has heard some of these conversations. He has also helped to prepare meals for the shiva for both families and went with me to deliver the meal to our close friend(where he just sat on her lap and cuddled with her--which was what she really needed then) he has started asking a lot of questions about heaven, G-d etc. Things … [Read more...]
Thoughts from the Shiva
April 7, 2011 by 35 Comments
Update: I added one tip at the end. When someone dies people are often unsure what to do and how to help. I just got up from shiva, the week-long mourning period for my father, and I thought it might be useful to record some of my experiences. I appreciated every call, message, visit and offer of help. My father died in New York on Tuesday, and my sister and brothers arrived midday Thursday for the burial here in Israel. I called one local friend, ET, who notified the rest of the English-speaking Emunah chapter. When these women spring into action there's no stopping them. I very much appreciated the phone calls and offers of help before the funeral. I had a feeling of numbness and … [Read more...]
Birth, Death, Illness, and Breastfeeding
April 18, 2007 by 11 Comments
The other night I attended an evening of prayer and song for the recovery of Penina bat Shimona and her premature baby, Odeya Chana bat Penina. Please keep them in your prayers. At the evening I met a woman from my synagogue, who asked me what I do. When I said that I counsel breastfeeding mothers, she said, "Oh," and changed the subject. I walked home with a different woman that I knew equally well (that is, not so well). She not only remembered what I did, but told me all about the challenges she experienced nursing her numerous children. One had a heart problem and she pumped exclusively for several months, one was hospitalized as a newborn and didn't nurse for a few days, and she … [Read more...]
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