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Charlene (Shoshannah) was my sun and moon. I related to the physical world through her. I enjoyed life through her. When she was happy I was happy. When she was unhappy I was very unhappy. We were so attached to each other, one might say it was unhealthy, if we weren’t so clearly in love and thriving together. I thank our Father and King, the Creator, with every breath, for the gift of life that He gives me constantly…but it would be a lie to say that the world is as beautifu

It wasn’t always rosy in our Garden. But the beginning certainly was idyllic and storybook perfect. Looking back with hard earned wisdom and perspective I see the uniqueness of our immediate connection, how effortlessly and authentically perfect it was on all levels, like a key and lock made just for each other. Our connection was living proof there is a God Who loves His children and gives them souls and soulmates. I’ll never forget the first time I laid eyes on my magnif

As Charlene walked down the aisle towards me at our beautiful wedding, I got my first twinge of discomfort for what I was getting myself, and more so Charlene, into. I was standing at the “altar” in front of a non-sectarian, woman, justice of the peace, and it seemed comical. I grew up with a very clear vision of what a wedding ceremony looked like and it wasn’t this. It included a chuppah and rabbi and a lot of Hebrew. And family and friends and neighbors and more rabbis, wh

Charlene was all about moving forward. Never backward. If ever a human being epitomized the Israeli philosophy of “Kadima”, “Forward” it was her. Interestingly, this was one of the very few hebrew words she picked up here in Israel because often her trainer would say “kadima, kadima” when her horse was a little “behind the leg”. This wasn’t just a character trait of Charlene’s. It was a defining aspect of her personality. Because many of her attributes and qualities had to w

It seemed like seconds after our jewish wedding and Charlene was already pregnant with our oldest, Yael. Baby Yayi as the new Mommy called her precious baby. Charlene would always tell Yali over the years that Yali changed her, made her who she was. A Mommy first and foremost. Charlene never complained during her pregnancies of discomfort or morning sickness. She had it, but she was happy and grateful to be pregnant and wouldn’t complain about something so magical to her. Mot

My beautiful Charlene’s personality and character was like a giant, oval (her favorite), D-Flawless diamond; every single facet sparkling brightly. And all facets working together to create a magical and glorious multi-colored light. Charlene lived her life like a diamond, dancing, revolving in the light. And I had a front row seat, I had the only seat to the most dazzling light show on God’s earth. But if you wanted to pick one facet of Charlene’s sparkling personality to i

A few months after Baby Yayi was born the renovation work was done and we moved back into our West Orange house on Hooper Avenue. Actually it wasn’t done, but we felt it was good enough for us to move back in. And like a shoemaker that doesn’t fix his own shoes, I never totally finished it, even until we moved to Monsey, NY five years later. Charlene’s mother used to call it a “gilded shithole” because parts were finished in very traditional, formal fashion, with crown moldi

Comparing the sublime Charlene to Martha Stewart is, to paraphrase the Talmudic Sages, like comparing an angel to a mere human. But this is what Charlene’s friends called her. Because of the amazing parties, hosting, gardening, and the thousand other “domestic arts” that Charlene excelled at.