HOME & FAMILY

Post-partum depression compounded by the difficulty of moving to a new neighborhood and ever-present money problems threatens Beila's mental stability.

"Only her bed was comforting to her and always greeted her with welcoming arms. There she lay, sunk in her own thoughts, in a state of complete apathy. The pillow would absorb her tears, and the blanket warmed and comforted her without any questions or demands."

UREI BETUV
A Lesson in Judging Favorably

The last time she came to the clothing gemach was about three weeks before she passed away, a woman replete with full days of mitzvos throughout her seventy years.

Four for a Shekel
by M. Steinberg

"You absolutely must switch over your weekly shopping trip to the new Cheap-O-Super that's recently opened. You won't believe the bargains. Why, I must have saved one hundred shekels already this month." So says Leah to her dear friend Sara. Sara lowers her eyes and says, "We'll see."

Helping Children Cope with Disappointment
by Masha Wolf, M.A.

Part II

In Part I we were given a vivid true example of disappointment following high expectations, and the rewards of being prepared for disappointments and completely lowering our level of expectations.

Guard Your Life, Very, Very Much
by Tzvia Ehrlich-Klein

We are so very lucky to have the Torah, and to be able to live by its many laws. Their perfection is truly, well, perfect.

BOOK REVIEW
Walking Together
by Yehudit Schreiber
Reviewed by Yonina Hall

Sometimes a world of unspoken emotion separates us from the ones we love. And sometimes the heart opens and the feelings flow unchecked, reaffirming our relationship and our ability to connect.

Poet's Corner

Bless My (Inner) Sole

by S. W.

Putting your best foot forward...

Closer to Thee...

Light as a feather
Like balmy spring weather
Green, cushiony and soft
I held them aloft
A pair of inner soles
(Dr. Scholl's?)
Well, bless my soul!
For a shekel a pair
Waiting for me there
For my physical welfare
(A `gift' from my local gemach
Heaven-sent for Sheindel Weinbach)

*

My shoes had gotten too wide
Much too roomy inside
So in they went
A shekel well spent!

*

How to describe the spiritual pleasure,
Borne aloft -- blissfully light as a feather,
With a spring in my stride,
A joy hard to describe,
Hashem by my side.
Only a single centimeter nearer,
But with awareness much clearer
With each step I take
Gratitude in its wake
I'm walking on air
And I feel Hashem there.
Supporting and buoying,
I take so much joy in
Being alive, going toward
Each goal, looking forward.

*

Is this all it takes
To banish footaches
To walk with Hashem
With each step, again?
This awareness I feel
Spiritual and physical, so real!
Is this how our Sages walk?
How they think, feel and talk?
Fully conscious, adept
At feeling Hashem with each step,
Always aware
Of Hashem being there.

*

Let this, then, be my prayer
That these soles never tear,
Or -- that their message always talk
As with Hashem I continue to walk.

Lost Property

by A. Reader

I've lost it I've lost it, I muttered, where can it have gone once again?
I've searched and I've searched all the places, even in Baby's playpen.
I'll have a new key cut this morning, the fifth one in less than a year,
It's all quite disturbing and queer.

The baby is yelling and shrieking, I run for his dummy, of course,
Where is it, where is it, I'm frantic. The dummy's my only resource.
I take out a new one and `plug' him. He sucks in delight and is calm,
The crying has done him no harm.

They're all home, they're all home and it's bedlam.
The kids are all home for the day,
The doorbell is ringing and ringing. Six friends have come over to play.
They're jumping and jumping and thumping. I can't take the noise any more,
The thumping has turned into war.

A crash, an explosion, then silence. My heart's in my mouth as I run,
Twelve pairs of eyes, their expressions! We thought we were just having fun.
The room's full of wreckage, a bomb site. I take it all in with dismay.
The armchair's a fallen souffle.

No cushions, no stuffing, the back's off. The children stand silently, still,
Where are the legs? Does it matter? I sit on the low windowsill.
The silence is broken by Moishie, already forgetting his scare, I found Baby's shoe in the chair!

I look and they looked: what treasures! We put all the things in a pile,
A hairbrush, a bottle, some pretzels. A book which we'd missed for a while.
Four keys, a cassette and some toothpaste. A dolly without any hair.
All spilling out of the chair.

Some marbles and pencils, two rubbers. Some pieces of Lego, of course,
All the lost dummies, so many. A lion, a sheep and a horse.
A key ring, a paintbrush, my necklace. It doesn't do to despair,
'Twas there in the broken armchair.

Some teaspoons, an egg cup, lost scissors. A purse with some money, as well.
Sweet wrappers, a tape and some photos. A diaper (so that was the smell!)
A needle and thread and some clothes pegs. A cardigan needing repair,
Found in the broken armchair.

They dragged the thing out to the garbage, we mourned it for many a day,
I don't think we'll ever replace it, this armchair long past its heyday,
And yet, things get lost in our household. Where is the sock to this pair?
Gone is our hungry armchair.