Posts by Leslie Rott
Conversion and Genetic Screening
Leslie Rott Because my fiancé is converting to Judaism, I was very relieved that we wouldn’t need to do any type of genetic screening for genetic diseases that are typical for those of Jewish ancestry. However, we were talking to the Rabbi about whether there were any Jewish laws against in-utero genetic screening and the…
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Book Chat – “A Spark of Light” by Jodi Picoult
In Jodi Picoult’s “A Spark of Light,” hostage negotiator Hugh McElroy is called in to diffuse a hostage situation at the only abortion clinic in Mississippi. He finds out, to his dismay, that his daughter is inside the clinic and is being held hostage. McElroy’s sister is also in the clinic and is injured; though…
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When Being Jewish Is a Choice (And What That Means in the World We Live In)
What It’s Like to Choose to Take on A History of Persecution Over a year ago, we went to a barbecue at one of my fiancé’s friend’s houses. I can’t remember exactly the context of the comment, but one of my fiancé’s friends said something to the effect of, “it’s not like I drew a…
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The Balancing Act Of Marriage And Family
Because of the onslaught of holidays in the fall, we haven’t had the opportunity to meet with our rabbi on a weekly basis. This time has given us the opportunity to navigate some very difficult aspects of relationships, including balancing our relationship with family issues and other responsibilities. As our schedule and lives have somewhat…
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Books I Keep Coming Back To
Sponsored by The Lash Lounge They say that life doesn’t give you more than you can handle. But sometimes, it seems like everything goes wrong all at once. And sometimes, when that happens, you can’t concentrate on reading or don’t have time to read. That’s where I’m at right now. I’ve started several books, but haven’t…
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Coping With Those You’ve Lost When Looking Forward To Marrying “The One”
As with everything in life, you have to take the good with the bad. Recently, in our conversion class, we’ve been focusing on lifecycle events; births, bar and bat mitzvahs, weddings and death. It was somewhat ironic for me to be talking about death as the fourth anniversary of my dad’s death approached. For those who…
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Women In Pain: “Sick” And “Ask Me About My Uterus”
This month, I am presenting you with a two-fer. I traveled a lot in the last two months and had the opportunity to catch up on, what is to me, pleasure reading. As someone with multiple chronic illnesses (lupus and rheumatoid arthritis), I devour illness memoirs. I know this may not be the genre of…
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Getting Married At Other Peoples’ Weddings
Well, not exactly. But, being at other peoples’ weddings certainly makes me think about my own wedding. And June, July and definitely August are shaping up to be very busy nuptial seasons. This August, my best friend and my sister are getting married within two weeks of each other, and I am in both weddings.…
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Book Chat – “Every Note Played”
Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) or Lou Gehrig’s Disease affects the motor neurons to the brain and spinal cord. It is progressive and ultimately leads to loss of speech, the ability to eat and move, and the ability to breathe. In “Every Note Played,” Lisa Genova chronicles the story of Richard, a world-class pianist, who has…
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We Were Asked To Draw G-d
Through the conversion process thus far, while I’ve enjoyed learning about Judaism, the parts that have been the most meaningful to my fiancé and me are the aspects that go into our personal views about faith, in general, and Judaism, in particular. In our last session, we were supposed to talk about the High Holidays,…
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