HOME & FAMILY

As I walk into the hotel lobby, I have the feeling of deja vu. Dozens of people mill about with small suitcases. Young Israeli families, singles, a handful of older people are all busy organizing themselves for a four-day odyssey into their collective past. Registration at the seminar. Expectations weigh thick in the air with a good sprinkling of tension. "Will they convince me of something that perhaps I'm not ready for?"

Little Lost Houses
by J. Belsky
Author, poet, teacher, psychiatrist

In my dream, a voice urges: Go back. Go back for the pachim ketanim. All day I puzzle over the message. I even look up the passage in Vayishlach describing the detour Yaakov Ovinu takes to retrieve the small jars.

Getting There
by Rosally Saltsman

My five-year-old and I walked down our street, through the hilly park, past the swings and sand box. My brown umbrella with tiny flowers covered both our heads as tiny droplets went pip-pip-pip. We were on our way to the pharmacy.

The Rebbe Visits Pa
by Sudy Rosengarten

You could see him searching his mind for the right words to say, for the most relevant request to make at such a moment. He needed so much.

Survival Guide for Hostesses
or -- How to Impress Even Though You're a Mess
by Malka Mashinsky

Summertime is guest time.

Some of us are born hostesses and can handle any number of visitors, all ages, with smiling aplomb. Others get all fluttery and nervous at the prospect of entertaining guests, especially if they're staying over. This guide will provide the good humor to help you stay calm, and help you enjoy your company. Yes, you really should enjoy them.

Occupational Therapy
by A. Ross M.Ed.

A child's first `therapist' is usually the mother, in the home, and she is generally an excellent therapist in the pre- school years...

PREPARING FOR THE FUTURE
The Upward/Downward Spiral
by R' Zvi Zobin

Children are working harder, from an earlier age, having more homework, being tested more intensively, playing less, going to bed later and getting less sleep than ever before.

Good Health & Weight Management
By Dr. Reuven Bruner, Ph.D.

The significance of obesity as a risk factor for poor health can be assessed from the alarming increase in the incidence and severity of this condition in America (and, of course, Israel). Roughly half of the population is overweight and almost 20 percent are obese.

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

Some newsworthy items from the world of medical research. We now feel that we must closely watch people who are "borderline" diabetics. They need to be screened quite often. People at high risk must be especially careful. High risk factors include having a family member with the disease, overweight, problems with high cholesterol and high blood pressure.

Poet's Corner

Bananas
by Varda Branfman

The whole story rests
In a fan of ripe bananas
There is nothing sweeter
Than this soft yellow smudge
In my mouth

They grow full and cook in their skins
In a buttery stew of the sun
They slowly get done
In green bunches in trucks
That bump down the road

The bumps make black bruises
And smushed banana inside
But we call it `honey'
When the children say `ick'
We call it `honey'
Then the children lick those spots
To get honey

I found bananas in a book
On a long list under `B'
With all its nutrition listed
I knew already before that
From my mother
"Eat a banana
It's a whole meal
But stop at two
Because `two is enough'"

I let the banana fan sit all day
On the table
It's a continuous dish I'm serving
And slowly, I see more banana stems
And less bananas
Until the whole thing gets picked

My table is tree in the garden
My table is spreading branch
From a tree in The Garden.