"If you're happy and you know it, clap your hands." Every kid knows that insipid song.  It scrolls through a palette of feelings, "If you're sad...If you're angry..." always pointing to the refrain "but if you're happy and you know it, shout hooray!" as if that's the... Read more...

The horror at Miramonte Elementary School in Los Angeles has my blood boiling, to say nothing of my stomach turning in disgust. The story is still unfolding, layers added every day.  (A 30 year veteran third grade teacher, uncovered by a photo lab technician who alerted police... Read more...

The thought of getting a driver’s license is thrilling to teens. To most parents, it’s terrifying. Attached to the little paper that brings wheels and freedom to your child is an expanded list of worries for you.  Not only are all the other drivers on the road... Read more...

I don’t like New Year’s resolutions. They scream failure. It doesn’t start that way. But inevitably the best laid plans… Two weeks into that new diet, that exercise routine, that tidy bedroom, and it’s back to square one and self-flagellation. Oh well, maybe next year. That doesn’t mean... Read more...

Let’s face it, Christmas is everywhere. Even in cities heavily populated by Chanukah celebrants, Christmas rules, as the streets are dressed in sparkles and twinkle lights and red and green and fa la la.   It’s no wonder that cries of “I want to have a Christmas tree!”... Read more...

There isn't a school around that doesn't step up the giving spirit as Thanksgiving and the winter holidays approach. Mini vans are jammed with cans of corn and candied yams to replenish the city's depleted food pantry shelves. Bags upon bags of gently used clothing are distributed... Read more...

(Posted for the second time...that;s how important this one is!) “You will not believe this story,” began the email from a client who had just returned from family services for the Jewish New Year.  She described the mother and three children sitting next to her own family. “She... Read more...

Young children notice difference. As they try to make sense of their world, they pay attention to regularity and irregularity, what is familiar and what is not.  And there is no judgment involved, just recognition of difference. Truth be told, most people notice difference.  It’s no big... Read more...

First it was red jello. Then it was sugary juice. Now summer is the enemy!  And it’s getting a bad rap. Summer Slide. Brain Drain. Whatever you call it, what was once the most carefree and welcome season of the year is being vilified as a threat... Read more...

The window at my kitchen sink gives me a bird’s eye view of the happenings on my street. Recently, I witnessed a scene fit for a Norman Rockwell painting.  Five year old Owen was side by side with the gardener, mowing the front lawn. Two guys pushing... Read more...