Facing Vouchers

By Yaakov Arnold
Published on October 26, 2000

Along with choosing the next leader of the free world, come Nov. 7, when Californians enter the polling booth, they will be asked to decide what many believe will be the fate of public education in this state.

Touching Base

By Yaakov Arnold
Published on October 19, 2000

With the escalation of violence in the Middle East, many within Los Angeles' Jewish community are turning to the local chapters of organizations that raise money or garner support for Israel to gather information, lend their support or as a way of voicing their opinions.

A Place of Their Own

By Yaakov Arnold
Published on October 12, 2000

Reuben Dahan lives just down the block from his nearest synagogue. Yet every Shabbat, for the past seven years, Dahan, an Israeli immigrant who grew up in Petach Tikvah, has gone the extra mile, literally, to worship at a place he calls his spiritual home.

My Father’s Blessing

By Yaakov Arnold
Published on October 5, 2000

On Sunday, as is the custom in my family, I will receive a Yom Kippur blessing from my father. The image of my father gathering me in his tallis, placing his hands on my head and asking God to grant me a good year is one of my fondest childhood memories. My father concludes his blessing with the words a gut yor meyn kind (a good year, my child).

Having grown taller than my father, I now bend my knees so he can place his hands on my head. When I left home to attend yeshiva, I would call home on Erev Yom Kippur to receive his blessing.Even now, when I hear my father's voice, the wool of his tallis brushing against my face, I am transformed from an independent adult to meyn tate's yingel (my father's little boy).