death Archives – Kveller

My kitchen was bedlam, resembling a “winter wonderland” scene, with flour on counters, cabinets, floor, and inside drawers. The delicious aroma of cookies filled the air. It was our annual… “Roth Purim bake-a-thon,” a family tradition in which the four of us — my three children and I — baked cookies to give to friends and family. We each had our own cookie assignment and, remarkably, much like dogs tend to resemble their owners, there seemed to be a poetic logic as to who chose… >> Read More

health

My Chronic Illness Made Me Want to Die. Here’s How My Family Saved Me.

Shoshana Forester Smith

In 2009, I fell ill with some serious gastrointestinal problems. I required several surgeries, which created a number of complications and disabilities. I struggled to remain at home with feeding… tubes, central lines, and other health challenges. I was spending up to 10 months a year in the hospital. By 2016, during Hanukkah, I decided to stop medical treatment and let nature take its course. I was 34 years old. If I withdrew treatment, it would be a matter of weeks or months before I… >> Read More

politics

Since Parkland, Valentine’s Day Has a Whole New Meaning

Jordana Horn

When I was a kid, I eagerly looked forward to Valentine’s Day. After all, it would obviously be the day my true classmate love — whomever that was, who clearly had been pining for me in absentia… — would finally step out of the shadows. Spoiler alert: That never happened (although one year I did receive a very nice stuffed animal anonymously placed in my car, which in retrospect is actually somewhat creepy). But the hope and anticipation of passion — would someone send me a red carnation, that apex of affection?— gave… >> Read More

Movies

Returning to Mary Poppins, This Time With Stage 4 Cancer

Jodi Eichler-Levine

After a Christmas day screening of Mary Poppins Returns, my husband, 7-year-old daughter and I stood in the lobby of the movie theater, discussing the meaning of the film. “Fiscal… responsibility,” said my practical spouse, impressed by how the magic of compound interest had saved 17 Cherry Tree Lane from the clutches of bank repossession. But our daughter had quite a different take. “Hold your loved ones tight,” she said. Her favorite moment in the film? “When the father realizes the kids are right,” as… >> Read More

death

Bernice Sandler, Jewish ‘Godmother of Title IX,’ Has Died

Arielle Kaplan

On Monday, Dr. Bernice Resnick Sandler, known as the “Godmother of Title IX" passed away. Affectionally called "Bunny" — a Yiddish nickname for Bernice — the 90-year-old died of cancer… complications. After hearing she was "too strong for a woman" when she applied for a teaching position in the 1960s at the University of Maryland, her alma mater, Sandler became incensed. Luckily for women everywhere, she channeled her feelings into action, paving the way for Title IX, a law that protects people from discrimination based… >> Read More

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