Jewels of Elul – Life is Beautiful
SEPTEMBER 11, 2026 Dear Friends As I write this, the year is not quite over, and the gates are not quite open. There is sadness
SEPTEMBER 11, 2026 Dear Friends As I write this, the year is not quite over, and the gates are not quite open. There is sadness
BONUS ELUL · SEPTEMBER 10, 2026 Invisible ThreadsRabbi Sharon Brous Our trip to Vietnam was a long-planned family vacation, but after October 7th, and my
ELUL 29 · DAY 29 of 29 · SEPTEMBER 9, 2026 The Eleventh CommandmentMichael Dorf If you want the story that shaped me, I don’t
ELUL 28 · DAY 28 of 29 · SEPTEMBER 8, 2026 Family StoryBlu and Yitz Greenberg In 1906, Moshe Yehuda Genauer was a young father
ELUL 27 · DAY 27 of 29 · SEPTEMBER 7, 2026 Jewish WisdomAnnette shapiro Jewish wisdom is something I learned not only through words, but
ELUL 26 · DAY 26 of 29 · SEPTEMBER 6, 2026 INSPIRED TO HOPEHENRY MILLER I am a Jewish 12-year-old boy. My great grandparents fled
ELUL 25 · DAY 25 of 29 · SEPTEMBER 5, 2026 Revelation at Sixth and FlowerJoey Soloway I got high at Sixth and Flowerwhere the
ELUL 24 · DAY 24 of 29 · SEPTEMBER 4, 2026 The Fifth CommandmentMargrit Polak After translating my parents’ love letters from Westerbork and Bergen-Belsen,
ELUL 23 · DAY 23 of 29 · SEPTEMBER 3, 2026 MUSKRAT PETER HIMMELMAN Two months after my sister Susie’s funeral, I’m in my mother’s
ELUL 22 · DAY 22 of 29 · SEPTEMBER 2, 2026 THE ART OF CHANGEMichael Berenbaum I had the privilege of being friends with Lawrence
ELUL 21 · DAY 21 of 29 · SEPTEMBER 1, 2026 DAD IS BRUNOALISSA HIRSHFELD When I took my teenage daughter to see Encanto a
ELUL 20 · DAY 20 of 29 · AUGUST 31, 2026 TESHUVAJONAH PLATT One of the quirks of living with ADHD is that its defining
ELUL 19 · DAY 19 of 29 · AUGUST 30, 2026 THE REAL MEDAVID SUISSA I was intrigued by one question when I was asked
ELUL 18 · DAY 18 of 29 · AUGUST 29, 2026 THE RABBI OR THE CUSTODIAN?RICK JACOBS It was erev Yom Kippur, and there was
ELUL 17 · DAY 17 of 29 · AUGUST 28, 2026 THE IMPOSTERJOEL GEIDERMAN For most of the last 50+ years, I have suffered from
ELUL 16 · DAY 16 of 29 · AUGUST 27, 2026 DIVINE FRIENDSHIPRABBI AVIVA RICHMAN “I told my kids my tombstone shouldn’t only call me
ELUL 15 · DAY 15 of 29 · AUGUST 26, 2026 COURAGE FROM AWEYEHUDAH WEBSTER It was nearly midnight in early December, and I was
ELUL 14 · DAY 14 of 29 · AUGUST 25, 2026 IT’S COMPLICATEDRABBI SHMULY YANKLOWITZ Before you judge me, know a little about me. I
ELUL 13 · DAY 13 of 29 · AUGUST 24, 2026 EACH CHILDLISA KOLLINS When I began interviewing kids and teens impacted by illnesses, disabilities,
ELUL 12 · DAY 12 of 29 · AUGUST 23, 2026 UNIFYING TRADITIONS ZALMEN MLOTEK I grew up in a Bronx home where Yiddish culture
ELUL 11 · DAY 11 of 29 · AUGUST 22, 2026 EXCITABLE ELECTRONBASYA SCHECHTER When I started slipping from Orthodoxy, I was quite young. My
ELUL 10 · DAY 10 of 29 · AUGUST 21, 2026 LAYERSJON POLIN Yeder mentsh hot zikh zayn pekl. Yiddish for: Everyone carries their own burden.
ELUL 9 · DAY 9 of 29 · AUGUST 20, 2026 UNCONDITIONAL BELONGINGJULIA CAPLAN The commitment to unconditional belonging is part of my lineage. My
ELUL 8 · DAY 8 of 29 · AUGUST 19, 2026 BELONGINGDR. DAVID MCCARTY-CAPLAN When I was twelve, I started introducing myself in Jewish spaces
ELUL 7 · DAY 7 of 29 · AUGUST 18, 2026 TWELVE STEPSANONYMOUS People probably look at me and think it was a straight path
ELUL 6 · DAY 6 of 29 · AUGUST 17, 2026 THE UNSEENSARAH TUTTLE-SINGER A few weeks ago, a gas explosion tore through my home
ELUL 5 · DAY 5 of 29 · AUGUST 16, 2026 MY ABUELITA’S GODMIJAL BITTON Growing up, I was cast early and cast well: the
ELUL 4 · DAY 4 of 29 · AUGUST 15, 2026 MORE THAN PIXELS EITAN BERNATH After twelve years of putting myself out there on
ELUL 3 · DAY 3 of 29 · AUGUST 14, 2026 LISTENINGGUY RAZ People are surprised to learn that I’m an introvert. I host podcasts
ELUL 2 · DAY 2 of 29 · AUGUST 13, 2026 THE SECOND INTRODUCTIONASHLEY LAVERNE JACKSON I was introduced to the world before I could
ELUL 1 · DAY 1 of 29 · AUGUST 12, 2026 TAKE A HISTORYAFSHINE EMRANI In medicine, the deadliest diagnosis is the one made before
ELUL 0 · DAY 0 of 29 · AUGUST 11, 2026 WELCOME CRAIG TAUBMAN Twenty-four years ago, I knew nothing about Elul. I had gone