When it was time for me to go to minyan to say Kaddish for my mother’s seventh yahrzeit, I decided to bring my foster daughter, Adira, and my partner, Jesse, too. For most of service, I was leading and Jesse had Adira in the sling. But when Jesse had an aliyah to the Torah, I sat with Adira on my lap, and she and I looked over the Torah portion together. She also enjoyed trying to grab my tefillin, and sucking on my tallit.
It’s difficult for us to make it to minyan on weekday mornings, but having Adira with me at minyan while I said Kaddish for my mother was so meaningful.