In Gratitude…

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by Leah Hart Tennen, Mikveh Center Director Last week marked the end of my first year as a full-time employee at Mayyim Hayyim.  Many have heard me joke, “If you harass people enough, they’ll hire you,” but the truth is, I am incredibly lucky to be able to pass under the sign reading “boachem l’shalom” […]

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Mikveh Thoughts

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Becoming a Mikveh Guide is a thoughtful and intentional process.  Seth Stadfeld is a member of Cohort 8, our newest and first-ever men’s only training, and offers his thoughtful and intentional reflections about immersing in the mikveh by Seth Stadfeld, Mikveh Guide Trainee I have been wrestling with how to understand all I am learning […]

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L'Dor V'Dor V'Dor: From Generation to Generation to Generation

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by Diane Black, Rebecca Friedman, and Jessica Friedman A few weeks ago, Diane Black, one of our board members and a Mikveh Guide, brought her daughter Rebecca and her granddaughter Jessica to Mayyim Hayyim to celebrate Jessica becoming a Bat Mitzvah. Diane guided Jessica, and Rebecca witnessed. A note from the editor: Diane, Rebecca, and Jessica […]

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Making Music at the Mikveh

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by Jim Ball, Mikveh Guide Music and Mayyim Hayyim are no strangers to one another. As a mikveh guide, I have heard how musical accompaniment is part of the immersion experience, whether it’s the singing and clapping of “Siman tov u’ Mazel tov” following a conversion, or a quiet recording setting the mood for a […]

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My First Witnessed Immersion

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by Sidney Davis, Mikveh Guide My first witnessed immersion experience at Mayyim Hayyim was a remarkably extraordinary event. Personally, it was an affirmation of my role as a mikveh guide. I volunteered to become a mikveh guide because I wanted to take a more active role within my Jewish community that reflected not only my […]

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The Fluidity of Mikveh

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by Jordan Braunig, Hebrew College Intern In an education class that I was taking a couple of years ago at Hebrew College’s Rabbinical School, an instructor assigned us the seemingly benign task of watching a few child-development videos on YouTube.  I’m as busy as the next guy and appreciated having an assignment that I could […]

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Making the Mikveh Mine

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by Jim Ball, Mikveh Guide, Cohort 6a I’ve been a mikveh guide for about a year. Because I work from my house and can make my own hours, I’ve been called on often for the many men who have used Mayyim Hayyim for a variety of reasons: upcoming weddings, conversions, bar mitzvahs, and marking special […]

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A Change in Perspective

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by Cantor Nancy Sargon Sometimes it takes only a few words, a glance or a change in posture to profoundly alter one’s perspective on what is happening.  Yesterday I had such an experience while I was at Mayyim Hayyim, participating in the conversion of a three month old baby in the dual roles of Beit […]

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What Saved My Life

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By Rabbi Margaret Frisch-Klein Mayyim Hayyim saved my life. That is not hyperbole. Mikveh was not unknown to me. I love the water and it is a medium that spoke to me. Before Mayyim Hayyim was even thought of, based on Anita Diamant’s New Jewish Wedding Book, I planned to immerse for my wedding at […]

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Reflections on Eight Years as a Mikveh Guide

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By Gail Elson, Mayyim Hayyim Cohort 1 Mikveh Guide About nine years ago, I saw a notice announcing an information meeting for women interested in volunteering at a community mikveh then under construction in Newton. I had retired and was looking for a hands-on volunteer opportunity within the Jewish community (I don’t do fundraising and […]

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Searching for Balance

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By Julie Wolkoff, Mikveh Guide The day I bought my first computer I also bought a fountain pen. What can I say? I like balance. There’s a lot to be said for equilibrium in life. I don’t remember a lot of talk about self-care or keeping oneself balanced when I was in school. Those discussions […]

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