HOME & FAMILY

This is a true story. The names and details have been changed to preserve privacy...

Moving Day

introducing: Deena Neuman

It's a day I was eagerly anticipating . . . and dreading: the excitement of moving to a new apartment, and all the changes and adjustments that come along with it. In our case, we were buying an apartment in Eretz Yisroel for the first (and hopefully last) time, which made the whole experience all the more thrilling. But that doesn't mean that it was all smooth sailing.

ASK THE SHADCHAN
Single Parent, Older Single Children, and More
By Rebbetzin Nomi Travis

Question: "I'm very touched by the sensitive thorough manner in which you tackle the subject of shidduchim. I decided to write to you anonymously, with the hope that your wise words would help me. I've been divorced for many years and have been trying to raise my kids the best way I can. Nothing prepared me for the challenge of helping my children in shidduchim. I have a few older single children and not much contact with shadchonim . . . Anonymous

Studies Show . . .
by L. Raffles

What does it mean when we read that 'studies show . . . . X, Y and Z?' Are we given enough information in these reports to really understand what the study shows?

Life Journeys
The Lost Child
True stories about real people
by Sara Gutfreund

"And that's when I realized that a lot of mothers who have many children sometimes overlook the beauty of each of them"

Your Medical Questions Answered!
by Joseph B. Leibman, MD

This column is meant to be provocative. It is written from my perspective — but I am a physician and really want to hear the other side. Physicians in the USA are rarely overworked and are paid well. Religious doctors are interested in working with religious patients — they understand them. And many, many Americans are well-versed in medicine and are willing participants in their care.

Nuts for Health!
by Reuven Bruner, Ph.D.

Walnuts are an especially good choice because they provide vital Omega-3 fatty acids in addition to the vitamin E, trace minerals, and fiber that other nuts contain. (By the way, peanuts are legumes, not nuts, and have a less desirable fatty-acid profile.)

POET'S CORNER

A New Mother's Midnight Lament:
An Ode to Sleep
by S. N. Busch

It's another one of those seemingly endless nights
When the only sounds I hear
Are the whistling of the wind in trees
And the wailing of my beloved bundle of joy

I roll out of bed for the umpteenth time
To retrieve my precious darling
I question whether he (or I) will ever sleep again
And try to remind myself to see beyond my frenzied nerves
And that this frantic little being is really a blessing

So I cuddle him closely
Sing softly to the accompaniment of the wind in the trees
His cries become less hysterical
My blood pressure approaches what it once was
He begins to feed
Sucking furiously
I feel my jaw slowly unclench

I contemplate his soft new hair
My head begins to swim from fatigue
And I find myself staring out into the darkness
Where the storm wind has quieted
Remembering when night time was for sleep
And I wonder
If it will ever be that way again . . .

When he stops
Looks up at me
Locks my bleary eyes in his shiny ones
And his tiny little mouth breaks into
A (conspiratorial?) grin
That melts my heart
And I breathe deeply
Fully

And soon feel
Myself
No -
Both of us
Being overtaken
Together
By blessed
Sleep