Tag: Questions
Meditation on the Deaths of Three Students
Three Boston University students died on Saturday. It was Saturday in New Zealand, anyway. It was still Friday here in Boston. They were going out into the countryside to hike one of the most sc... Read More
Racism in America as Noted by a Light-Skinned, Mexican-American
Ever been followed in TJ Maxx because you are not white? I have. Ever been told, “You aren’t Mexican, you are too light. You must be Spanish?” I have. Ever have your former in-laws complain abou... Read More
Crime & Punishment: Are There Evil People?
Why does our current prison system exist? Why do we continue to support a punitive approach that blames the individual rather than putting the bulk of our resources into rehabilitation and reform? Per... Read More
Culinary Pluralism; or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Olive
I was once what adults called a picky eater. There were only certain colors I would eat. The beige family is the most reliable, and it also encompasses most bread-based breakfast foods (rainbow-colore... Read More
Tu B’Shevat: Trees and the Conflict
While I am energized and inspired by the way the holiday of Tu B'Shevat has become catalyst for the Jewish environmental movement, since returning a few weeks ago from five months in Israel I am consc... Read More
Statehood, Selfhood, and the Importance of Boundaries
A few years ago I was going through a very hard time. I said to my father, “I just want my dignity back!” My father, a Navy survival instructor, replied, “Jenny, no one can take away your dignit... Read More
Praying at the Wishing Wall of Jerusalem
The first thing I noticed about the Western Wall is that everybody was crying. I had been lost in the Jewish Quarter of Jerusalem’s Old City, and when I rounded the gate above the Wall (the Kotel) t... Read More
Being the Change You Wish to See in the Middle East
Today is the first full day in Israel. Jet lag woke me up at 5:45am and I grew restless waiting out the dawn in my twin bed, so I pulled on running shoes and trotted out into the indigo chill. The Sea... Read More