Sukkot Chol Hamoed Numbers 29:23-31 Ezekiel 38:18-39:16 Ten months after the Loma Prieta earthquake in 1989, I moved to Palo Alto. When our first Sukkot arrived, members of the Jewish community were talking about their memories of the earthquake that had occurred during Sukkot the previous year. Everyone had their own unique memories of fear…
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Holidays
Sukkot
Sukkahforce! Sukkot underway at Salesforce Park
For the first time, software giant Salesforce is celebrating Sukkot by erecting a sukkah at Salesforce Park, the tree-lined public green space stretching…
Jew in the Pew
A very Berkeley lulav and etrog
The lulav and the etrog. One week a year, we shake this magic rainstick and its citrus companion in the air. During the harvest festival of Sukkot, we…
Books
Reporter who broke Harvey Weinstein story on her new book
When New York Times journalists Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey broke the Harvey Weinstein story in October 2017, it started a #MeToo revolution: Women began…
Sukkot
The etrog is Judaism’s best-kept wellness secret
For most Jews, the etrog is relegated to a fleeting, supporting role. Held beside the lulav (palm frond) once a year during the festival of Sukkot (Oct.…
Bay Area
With power out, North Bay shuls improvise on Yom Kippur
This week’s power outages have wreaked havoc in much of the Bay Area, particularly in Sonoma and Napa counties, where lights started to go out around…
Parenting
My kids do well in public. But at home? That’s another story
We had a good 20 minutes in Yom Kippur services this year. My 3-year-old, Harvey, napped on my husband, then woke up and gazed around with a tired,…
U.S.
Who by fire: 38,000 pounds of bagels burnt in truck days before Yom Kippur
Midwest Jews may need to find something else to eat when Yom Kippur ends — tons of their bagels are now toast. Some 38,000 pounds of frozen bagels met an…
Kids & Family
A working parent’s Yom Kippur apology
Like so many of you, I’m a working mom trying to juggle it all — my kid, my job and, you know, my life. For the High Holidays, I was inspired to write a…