Life After the Mikvah

“What we really need is a place to talk about what happens next,” a reader recently suggested at my book signing table.

“Next?” I asked.

“Yes. What happens after you convert. Because, I have to tell you, things got very interesting for me after I converted.”

It was something I had considered myself. While I identify myself as many things, and not any one thing – mother, Californian, New Yorker, Midwesterner, Jew, friend, single, green builder, student – there are many times when my identity as a convert comes up.

Like when I bid farewell to Harrison and Olivia when they go to their two-week Jewish sleep-away camp every year. I’ve adjusted rather slowly to their absence – sending kids to camp was simply not part of my upbringing. I was a Catholic girl from Wisconsin. My camp was my back yard, surround by neighbor kids playing kick-the-can and red rover. I’ve noticed that Jewish mothers who had themselves attended camp as a child, on the other hand, seemed to have no worries about missing their kids. They knew their children were going to have a fantastic time. 

I knew it could have been worse. Had I still lived in New York, where  kids go to camp for up to two months, I would have had quite the dilemma. The idea of sending kids away for the summer, rather than playing at home, was so upsetting to me that moments after giving birth to Harrison, I turned to Michael and declared, “There will be. No. Sleep-away camp.”

I know Harrison and Olivia thrive at camp. Yet I’ve tended to dread the two weeks as a void for myself (okay, a vast, gaping, abyss!). My only coping skill was to befriend the postmaster, who sent off my daily letters and packages to the kids.

This year was different. I sent a only a handful of letters, just a few packages, and that was about it. I enjoyed the time alone and evenings socializing, and even went to Wisconsin for book signing events and to visit my family. Could it be I am acclimating to Jewish sleep-away camp? Perhaps assimilating is the word.

So started the idea for The New Jew Blog, a place to explore the uniqueness of what life is like after the mikvah. Check it out and leave comments. Send me your own posts and you may find yourself on the pages. I hope you enjoy it.

Tags: conversion, convert, Jewish camp, mikvah

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