Shira Lankin Sheps, at The Blogs

Apr 14, 2024, 3:55 PM

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Waiting for the end of the world

The Dome of the Rock atop the Temple Mount in Jerusalem's Old City, with the lights of missile interceptions visible in the night sky, early on April 14, 2024, after Iran fired ballistic missiles at Israel. (via Facebook)

Messages of love and connection steadied me while Israel and its allies shot down 99% of Iran's projectiles

Nov 10, 2023, 2:23 PM

Featured Post

From November 9 to October 7: My inheritance

A woman's hand holding a Star of David. (Shutterstock)

Will my future grandchildren remember the day of terror the way I remember Kristallnacht?

Oct 10, 2023, 11:49 AM

Featured Post

This time, it’s different

Israeli soldiers deployed near the border with Lebanon, northern Israel, October 8, 2023. (Ayal Margolin/Flash90)

Jewish history can feel repetitive: The same devastating story of violence for generations, in a world with no home for the Jews. Israel changed that

Apr 28, 2022, 12:58 PM

Featured Post

Name after name

Me and my dad, Rabbi Dr. Eric Lankin, in front of Yad Vashem. (courtesy)

The time my father and I went to Yad Vashem to research our extraordinary family, heirs to 400 years in Prague - until they were murdered in Auschwitz

Sep 13, 2021, 4:01 PM

Featured Post

A change of heart

It took an unwanted cardiac exam to make me realize that I needed to be kind to myself, to forgive myself, and to reach out to God with this new repentance

May 10, 2016, 4:19 PM

When Your Brother Becomes a Soldier

Every year during Yom Hazikaron/Yom Haatzmaut I attempt to reflect on the meanings of the day. Coming out of Yom Hashoah, the pain and enormity of our losses both personal and national linger with me. I usually spend the...

Dec 1, 2015, 8:07 PM

Do the Jews of the World Care?

In corners of the internet, some people have expressed the feeling, that the world Jewry is ignoring the plight of the Jews of Israel. That we are not engaging with the strife of terrorism and the fear that is...

May 21, 2014, 3:10 AM

Swastikas on the Soles of our Shoes

In elementary school we had a ritual To write the name “HITLER” on the soles of our shoes. So that all day long, we could rub him out of history, For we knew he lingered. We repeated the exercise every day Because we were...

Mar 24, 2014, 7:20 PM

When beauty is pain

At one of the costumed celebrations of the last few weeks I was watching a young girl try to do an art project dressed up like a princess. She wore a cumbersome dress with very long sleeves and a...

Mar 12, 2014, 4:32 PM

Binging and excess in the megillah; a recipe for loss and regret

The world we step into when we open our Megillah scroll is a world of excess. Expensively dyed hangings are draped on the walls, marbled pillars line the halls, and the glint of silver and gold shines on every wine...

About Me

Shira Lankin Sheps is a writer, photographer, and clinically trained therapist. She is the executive director and founder of The SHVILLI Center, which provides resources for building emotional resilience and promotes mental, physical, and spiritual well-being. She is the founder, former publisher, and editor-in-chief of The Layers Project Magazine and the author of 'Layers: Personal Narratives of Struggle, Resilience, and Growth from Jewish Women.' Shira lives in Jerusalem with her husband and children.