by Anita Diamant I’m not sure where my passion for quilts came from, but it probably had something to do with the fact that it was a uniquely American art form created by women who did not consider themselves “artists.” They would have told you that they were just using scraps and bits that might […]
Continue Readingby Carrie Bornstein As I type, I’m in the midst of participating in a conference on Transformative Jewish Education, hosted by the Mandel Center at Brandeis University. Much of the conversation so far has centered around best practices in long-term immersive experiences, with an exploration of the elements these programs have in common. I’ll be […]
Continue Readingby Allison Schnipper I recently had the opportunity to visit Mayyim Hayyim for the first time. My son’s 6th grade Hebrew School class from Temple Sinai of Sharon visited as part of their life cycle curriculum. Kids, parents, and teachers piled onto a school bus and traveled together to learn about the mikveh and see […]
Continue Readingby Elisha Gechter You see blood and it changes everything. You go from being unharmed to wounded, from ritually ready (tahor) to ritually unready (tameh), and sometimes from being pregnant to losing that pregnancy. And that’s what happened to me – at 10 weeks pregnant, responding to a middle of the night cry from my […]
Continue ReadingBy Cantor Rachel Stock Spilker, Scholar-in-Residence I imagine that most Mayyim Hayyim blog readers know that mayyim hayyim translates as “living waters.” But what does it mean for waters to be living? According to the physical requirements of a mikveh, mayyim hayyim refers to the living waters that come from a flowing source which has […]
Continue Readingby Ilana Snapstailer When I brought my 7th grade Rosh Hodesh group to Mayyim Hayyim, we learned about the aquatic lift meant to help someone with a disability use the mikveh. When our educator, Lisa Berman, asked the girls “Why might someone with a disability use the mikveh?” one girl promptly answered, “The same reason […]
Continue Readingby Roberta Gross-Torres In 2003 I was a member of the first cohort of Mikveh Guides trained by Mayyim Hayyim to facilitate immersions for all kinds of reasons in our new, spa-like mikveh. The first time I witnessed an immersion for a conversion I felt like a gentle pair of hands had come to massage […]
Continue ReadingBy Shari Zakim-Yacouby and Talya Sokoll Talya: One thing I’ve learned in my 30 years as a Jew is that there is no one right way to be Jewish. Although my experience of living a fulfilling Jewish life has been intrinsically intertwined with the communities I am part of, I feel so blessed to be […]
Continue Readingby Kythryne Aisling Before coming to Mayyim Hayyim, many people at Temple Beth Jacob had told me what an amazing place it was. As someone who lives with severe chronic pain, and who has a daughter with sensory processing issues, I wasn’t so sure how it would go. While the main reason for our visit was for my daughter and I to formally […]
Continue Readingby Kelly Banker, Intern The poet Mary Oliver says: “To live in this world, you must be able to do three things: to love what is mortal, to hold it against your bones knowing your own life depends on it; and, when the time comes to let it go, to let it go.” Although Mary Oliver […]
Continue ReadingI am a twin. From the point of my conception, I’ve always had company. That can be a good thing – constant companionship – or a bad thing – lack of my own space. This duality plays out in my personality. I’m a classic ambivert, delighting in time with others while needing restorative solitude in […]
Continue Readingby Carrie Bornstein, Executive Director If you’ll indulge me, I’d like you to take a minute and think about the different communities in which you participate. Consider your book group, your synagogue, your kid’s school. Think about your role as an organization’s board member, your work environment, or the class you take on Tuesday nights. […]
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