Daniel M. Jaffe
By Daniel M. Jaffe
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Culture Much Ado About Something
Judy Frankel rushes into the Hillel cafeteria, late to campus as usual after her weekly volunteer work at the AIDS hospice downtown. How good to engage in tikkun olam, repairing the world — keeping patients company during dinner, holding this hand and that, eliciting memories of healthier times. But afterward, she needs the comfort of…
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Culture Fathers and Sons
From across the kitchen table, Bobby asks, “You want your firstborn son to die on a battlefield?” “Don’t be ridiculous.” Phil Gutman shakes his head. “We’re talking registration with the Selective Service, that’s all. You’re 18. It’s the law.” “I’ll be drafted to Iraq. We already did the Babylonian exile thing a long time ago,…
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Culture Remembrance Day
Marla sits alone in the sanctuary, her long face dimly illuminated by electric candles set about the room. She has arrived early for the Holocaust Remembrance Day service so as to contemplate private memories of the lost. Not that Marla can remember any specific person slain in the Holocaust, so long before her time, nor…
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Culture Torah Couture
Walking around the classroom, Rabbi Katz returns the weekly homework assignments, stops at Shira’s desk. “Shira, you know our assignments are to summarize each Torah portion, but you copied every single word.” “Details are important,” she says, looking at her returned homework. “A ‘C’? You’re giving me a ‘C’?” Rabbi Katz reminds himself to be…
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Culture First Fruit
‘Heartburn — raisins I don’t eat. Take mine.” Jed offers his packet of raisins to the young man in the window seat beside him. “Thanks,” Ron says, “I’m not really hungry.” “Who knows when we’ll get lunch? It’s a long flight. I’m Jed, by the way.” “No, thanks, maybe later.” The two men shake hands….
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News Shira’s Bat Mitzvah
How proud Fran would have been right now, watching their daughter read the haftorah for… which Torah portion? Harry looks down at the open Hertz edition on his lap, reads “Shemini.” Fran would have known today’s Torah portion, he thinks. She knew them all. How she would have kvelled watching Shira up on the bima…
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News The Costume
Driving the family home from synagogue, Audrey looked into the rearview mirror, and posed the usual Shabbes question to Andrew in his car seat, “So, katshkela, did you get anything out of Ki Tissa, today’s Torah portion?” “I sure did!” “Mazel tov! Tell us.” “I got a great idea for a costume! For next Halloween.”…
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News Still Dreaming
Drunk from his bachelor party, still in jeans and flannel shirt, Jack plops onto his bed and falls asleep. He snores. Soon he’s dreaming of tomorrow’s chupah, his white-veiled Rachel being led down the aisle by her father, Wisconsin’s goat-cheese king. Stainless-steel vats of curds roll onto the bima, and speckled sheep leap oh-so-Chagallesque over…
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