My First Mother’s Day without My Mother Can one ever really lose a mother? by Slovie Jungreis-Wolff Nine months ago I lost my beloved mother. But as I write these words, I wonder: Can one ever really lose a mother? Of course not. But I lost the sound of my mother’s voice when I’d walk…
And how to make it right. Why do so many people struggle with feelings that they’ve made a poor choice in marriage? In his recent New York Times’ piece, Alain de Botton explains why so many people end up marrying the wrong person. We find it difficult to draw close to others. We mask our…
This is the time of year that we shower children with gifts. This year, let’s take a few moments to focus on the greatest gifts money cannot buy. 1. Time Children crave time together with loved ones. They’re hungry for positive attention. Kids seek some type of affirmation of love, of our pleasure when we…
We are hardly shocked when we hear about long term relationships breaking up. Whether celebrities or neighbors down the block, divorce has become way too common. At the start of a relationship, there is intense emotion. If you scan the brain of someone in this early passionate stage of love you will find that…
Social media has gone wild with the breakup of Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt. Headlines scream out “The Planet Is Shocked”; “Fans Mourn Brad and Angelina’s split”; “Cheer on Jennifer Aniston.” The divorce of Hollywood’s golden couple has caused a tsunami of gossipy speculation, catching more than the usual attention by Twitter and Facebook…
To the world she was a survivor and trailblazing visionary. To me and my siblings she was our mother who was always there for us. by Slovie JungreisWolff These are most difficult words for me to write. Today I got up from sitting shiva for my beloved mother, Rebbetzin Esther Jungreis. For seven days…
The three most important traits every family needs. As summer winds down we are given the opportunity to take stock of what matters most. Are there daily choices we can make that would make a difference in our homes this year? Can we implement behaviors and attitudes that help our family grow stronger? When a…
Last week Pope Francis visited Auschwitz, the barbarous extermination camp. He left his companions who had accompanied him and walked solo through the concentration camp’s entrance gate. Before his visit, Pope Francis said that he would “like to go to that place of horror without speeches, without crowds.” He intended to go “alone, enter and…
We have been scattered throughout the four corners of this earth, many have pronounced us as dead and yet here we are. I cannot watch, but I dare not turn away either. Orit Mark, a young girl cries out. Her father, Michael (Miki) was shot as he drove his wife and two of his 10…
How to make a pocket of peace for our families and ourselves. My daughter, Shaindy, traveled to America last week to visit with my mother. Upon returning to her home in Israel, Shaindy was greeted with a Welcome Home sign pasted onto her front door. Her six-year-old daughter had colored a picture of an El-Al…