Dear Parent, 

As we head back to school for another year – with both excitement and worry – I would like to share the excitement and suggest some tips to alleviate the worries for both you and your child. Whether your child is entering school for the first time or you are an experienced parent in the school system, it’s always good to jumpstart a new year into a positive learning experience. 

If you are a newbie, I wish you a mazal tov! This is a very special milestone for your child to learn Hashem’s Torah and about His world. For you as a parent, V’shinantam l’vanecha – you shall teach them to your children – is a concept that comes alive, an awesome opportunity. It should not be taken for granted that we can learn Torah freely in today’s day and age! If you are already inducted into the school system, I wish you a fresh start to another year of growth and self-development, especially if it hasn’t been that way in the past.

Although summer will be over by the time you read this, I can’t help but reflect on our amazing vacation experience this summer as well as express my gratitude for past vacations grand or simple. I do love summer. It is a great time to explore Hashem’s world and to spend time with family – and even with oneself in self-discovery and introspection. Summer is a break from the mundane stresses that abound in day-to-day living. It is a season that can herald adventures and experiences and can help us refocus on what’s truly important. I have seen many beautiful mountains, bodies of water, sunrises and sunsets, and the occasional bear. I have enjoyed delicious barbecues and night kumzitzes with my children. I have observed their awe of His world at Niagara Falls. Most importantly, I have seen them relaxed and happy to just “be.”

I recently had the privilege of sharing a ride with Mrs. Zahava List, the founder and director of Chazkeinu. Started in Baltimore, Chazkeinu is a mental health peer support network for Jewish woman who are struggling with mental illness, including providing help for the female family members.

I knew a little bit about Chazkeinu as I had attended an event during the winter and was somewhat surprised to see the lightness of the evening and the fun involved! Turning our impressions upside down on the stigma of mental health is one of the missions of Chazkeinu. Its primary mission is to offer support and encouragement and to provide the safe space that is so crucial when one is dealing with mental illness. The group’s most recent initiative, Chill House, is what piqued my curiosity about this far-reaching organization, and when Zahava told me the list of services they provide, I was in awe.

The trip was surreal. I had traveled to Budapest before, but this trip was different. I had visited my grandmother (as well as the rest of my mother’s family who still lived there) many times during her lifetime. I had also been back several years ago to “invite” my father, z”l, to the chasana of his grandson (his namesake). With my father and maternal grandmother, as well as many other relatives buried in Hungary, I was going this time for kever avos. The trip turned out to be more meaningful than ever. In truth, every trip to Budapest – walking the land of my Avos – is its own incredible experience. What made this one even more so was not the what-once-was factor but the what-there-is-now! In order to appreciate this fact, permit me to share some family history with you.

Welcome to Rhodes – the Island of Rhodes, that is, not Rhode Island! Rhodes is a small island near the coast of Turkey. Rhode Island is one of the New England states. Interestingly, there is a connection between the two. An Italian explorer in the 16^th century thought an island off the east coast of America looked similar to Rhodes, for the coastline and beautiful beaches that make up both of these lands. And after seeing pictures of the beaches and castles in Rhodes, I am ready to take a trip there myself! In the meantime, however, I may have to make do with Newport on this side of the world.

Congratulations! You have a child going to school for the first time! What a milestone! Welcome to the exciting world of preschool, where your child will, be”H, continue on his path of growing and learning in his new “home away from home.”

For some children (and parents), this is very thrilling. I overheard a little girl ask her mother in almost every aisle of Seven Mile Market, “Right, Mommy, I’m going to Bais Yaakov? Right, Mommy, that’s what they do? Right, Mommy, I’m going to need snacks?” etc., etc. It was precious (at least for me) to hear her enthusiasm. And that’s what we want to keep in mind and hold onto – that enthusiasm.