During Hannukah, DT reader Marjorie became an aunt when her brother and his partner adopted a baby girl. [Namewatch Alert: Shirley, family name]. She wrote about the naming ceremony, known as Simchat Bat, that Shirley's dads and family crafted for her.
For a Jewish boy, at least one aspect of his welcome-to-life ceremony is set. Girls get off that particular hook, and in fact, it's only fairly recently that adherents to some flavors of Judaism have revived and elaborated welcoming ceremonies for girls.
Marjorie recounts the family-filled event in her column in The Forward, from the feetwashing, to the songs and prayers, to the friends reading Kahlil Gibran [“You may house their bodies but not their souls/For their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow, which you cannot visit, not even in your dreams.”] I gotta say, I'm a little verklempt.
My Niece Has Two Daddies [forward.com]
aw, thanks so much, greg. and thursday, the paper's apparently running some delightful hate mail.
aw, thanks, greg. very sweet. of course i'm obsessing over the hate mail/blogs about this column. i gotta learn to live in the mazel tovs more!