by Shekhiynah Larks | Oct 24, 2019 | Identity
Growing up in Silicon Valley in the San Francisco Bay area, I always felt as if I were different than everyone else. My mother is Armenian and Russian-Jewish and was born in New York, and my father is Mexican and moved to California at the age of fifteen. The majority...
by Shekhiynah Larks | Oct 10, 2019 | Holidays, Identity
During Sukkot we open our temporary homes symbolically and recall our ancestors: Abraham, who left his home for the land God promised to show him; Isaac, who struggled to find his own way; Jacob, who fled from his brother; Joseph, who was enslaved and taken to Egypt...
by Shekhiynah Larks | Oct 7, 2019 | Holidays, Identity
Sukkot is a holiday of joy and welcome. The custom of inviting spiritual ushpizin, which means “guests” in Aramaic, into the sukkah is a way of extending that welcome and joy to those who cannot physically be with us but whose spirit and values represent that which we...
by Shekhiynah Larks | Sep 25, 2019 | Holidays, Identity, Recipes
Anyone who knows me will tell you that I have a passion for food and feeding people. This passion comes from my Ashkenazi Israeli mother and my Japanese Canadian father, both of whom are fabulous cooks. Mom always had a snack ready when I came home from school. As...
by Webmaster | Sep 23, 2019 | Identity, Jewish Ritual
It’s Friday night and I’m standing in the glass vestibule at Congregation Shaare Emeth. A locked set of doors is in front of me, another set of doors leading to the lobby are behind me. I hold a walkie talkie. I am the first line of defense, but more importantly, the...
by Webmaster | Sep 17, 2019 | Holidays, Identity, Recipes
As Rosh Hashanah approaches I look back on this year with immense gratitude. Last August I converted to Judaism, and 5779 was my first year as a Jew. And a momentous one it was. I celebrated my first High Holidays. I graduated from college. I went on Birthright. I...
