Mekonen - Journey of an African Jew

Ctrl + Z

One of my favorite keyboard shortcuts is Ctrl + Z. It instantly deletes the last action you took. Put a wrong word in, hit Ctrl + Z, it’s gone…just like it never happened.

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Except for That

Since I was a child I was always seemed to be the sickest child out of my siblings. I got sick on many occasions and have been found to have several chronic illnesses and foolishness, you know the…

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A Zionist Muslim

It's rare to find a Zionist Muslim, rarer yet to see one speak publicly about his support of Israel.

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The Mitzvah

It was one of those mornings when the multitude of chores was overwhelming. There were several things that I had to do, and one of them was folding clothes; I needed help. I asked my oldest daughter…

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A Soldier's Gift: An Amazing True Story

Our acts of kindness create ripple effects that impact the world in ways that we could never imagine.

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Quiet Desperation

The writer and great thinker Thoreau wrote “most people lead lives of quiet desperation and go to the grave with the song still in them.” It all depends on what song you carry to the grave. In my…

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T'shuvah

T'shuvah is the Hebrew word, for lack of a better term, meaning return. The Jewish writer Erich Fromm, who was also a practicing psychoanalyst, uses the word t'shuvah in his book, "The Heart of man,…

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Ben Blatt was a driver for a large company. He worked hard, delivered his packages on time, was friendly with the customers, and met all the job requirements. Yet the company refused to permit him to…

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Tanya

Tanya grew up in an Orthodox Jewish home in the Soviet Union. Her family's tea business was beginning to flourish when Stalin began his purges. When Tanya was 17, her father was taken by the secret…

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Noah's Bubbe

Kathleen Moore is an RN, a mental health counselor, specializing in the field of grief and loss, and a person with impeccable taste in music. If you were to address her more formally you'd refer to…

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Clifford Goldstein

Clifford Goldstein will tell you that his family tree is full of typewriters, pens, and books. His blood is 50% hemoglobin and 50% ink. In the late 1970's Cliff was traveling the world writing his…

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Samuel Jacobson

Samuel Srolovic Jacobson was born in Lithuania in a loving Orthodox Jewish home. He received religious instruction throughout his childhood and was observant in all the biblical commandments and…

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Havdalah

I’ve written in a previous article about Reuben Caplin (Ruby), my voice teacher and choral conductor at the reform temple that I sang at many years ago; well here’s another Ruby story.

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Dorchester

On February 3, 1943 a torpedo struck the S.S. Dorchester. Chaos reigned on board as the boat filled with water. Men rushed aroundin a panic. Many had run up from the hold without life jackets.…

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Butchered Trees and Slaughtered Lives

In front of our house are three trees. One was on the left side, one on the right, and one in the middle. I'm not sure what type they all are as they simply came with the house; but every Spring if…

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