David Curwin, at The Blogs

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Jan 22, 2019, 4:07 PM

What is a shekel worth?

My father left coins at every bus stop he frequented; he was buying happiness

Sep 16, 2018, 6:23 PM

A ruptured reality

I feel like reality has been ruptured - into two different timelines. One world with a hero like Ari, my neighbor and friend. Where he sits right in front of me in shul, where we talk and joke about this...

Apr 8, 2018, 11:17 PM

From Pesach to Yom HaShoah: Dayenu

This year at the Seder, two questions came up among the participants. One is a perennial favorite -- what's the deal with the multiplication of the plagues by the rabbis? The second was much more emotional. Why should the...

Nov 17, 2016, 2:50 PM

The Torah isn’t talking to you

Protect the excluded ones, says the Bible; under Trump, think: immigrants, religious & ethnic minorities, and women

Jul 19, 2016, 1:01 PM

What I learned from the Rindenow family

Not long ago, I started thinking about why I became religious way back when I was 16. The story I usually tell is that I visited Israel for the first time, and I realized how my ancestors must have...

Jul 19, 2015, 4:56 PM

Jerusalem and Carthage: Why only one Tisha B’Av?

Read this chilling description of the destruction of an ancient city by Roman troops: "Then came new scenes of horror. As the fire spread and carried everything down, the soldiers did not wait to destroy the buildings little by little,...

Mar 16, 2015, 1:42 PM

Tomorrow, we’re all 18 years old

I love politics. Always have. When I was a little kid, I had my Fisher-Price figures be mayors and governors. As I got older I read everything I could about American politics - both in history and current affairs....

Aug 3, 2014, 11:57 AM

We cannot stay in the desert

Even if they didn’t read the book, everyone knows the story. The Jews were oppressed in Egypt for generations, and God rescued them from Egypt, delivering them to freedom. But if you only watched the movies, you’d be missing...

May 4, 2014, 2:44 PM

Now we have something to complain about!

I have a friend, who when asked how he is, answers, "No complaints". My reply to that is usually, "That doesn't sound very Jewish!". Jews like to complain, and I think that's more than just a stereotype. After the miraculous...

Dec 8, 2013, 2:59 PM

Mandela, where was the love?

Growing up in the 1980s, particularly in San Francisco, I strongly identified with the struggle against apartheid. (Helen Suzman, one of the main anti-apartheid activists, may have been a relative.) And while I was certainly happy to see Mandela freed...

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About Me

David Curwin is a lifelong lover of language (although not a professional linguist). He has been writing the blog Balashon, about the history of Hebrew words and phrases, and their connections with English, since 2006.