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What's Wrong with Saying "Jewish Community?"
Because I have tweens in my house (today that means 7- and 9-year-olds), I have pop songs playing in the soundtrack of my brain all day. As I write the title for this blog, I am thinking of Demi Lovato's "What's Wrong with Being Confident?" My question is: What's wrong with saying "Jewish community?"
You'll hear some Jewish leaders talk about the Jewish community as if it's one enterprise that needs saving and fixing. Even here at InterfaithFamily, we want the people we work with to feel connected to the "Jewish community," to feel part of it and to know how to access it. We are open to the idea that "Jewish community" can be your dining room table with friends or a synagogue sanctuary or a soup kitchen with volunteers if it's sponsored by a Jewish organization. However, I have a problem with the language.
If we start with the word Jewish then some of the people at these events automatically may feel other or not included. Jewish modifies the word community. It is a community in this case because it's Jewish. I don't believe we can have an inclusive community—a community that respects, honors, sees and appreciates everyone—if we start with what some of the people are not.
Can we start with community and modify that with Judaism? A community is made up of the people coming together for a shared purpose. Maybe they are coming together for comradery around Shabbat or for social justice inspired by religion or for prayer or holidays. Judaism is a civilization that everybody can experience, learn about, try, be inspired by, commit to, carry on, speak about and support. Some of the people who take part in Judaism will be Jewish by upbringing and continue to make the choice to engage and affirm. Others will be Jewish through a conversion process, meaning that they made a decision to identify as Jewish. Others in the community cast their fate with the larger Jewish enterprise and are aligned with their Jewish family through marriage and partnership but do not call themselves personally Jewish.
I want people to engage with Judaism: a living, dynamic civilization with a land, language, history, texts, foods, cultures, music, rituals, traditions, customs and more. I want people to engage with community around these aspects of Judaism because Judaism is done with people. I hope people will call themselves Jewish with pride and raise children who see themselves as connected to Judaism and as the next link in the chain of tradition. But, if we keep saying "Jewish community," I feel we are putting the emphasis on the wrong thing. We become ethnic and exclusive more than open and diverse.
Maybe you say that people know that the phrase "Jewish community" means a community gathering for the pursuit of Jewish living and learning more than a community of Jews. I say language matters and by catering to inclusion, we will emphasize that each person who shows up to engage with Judaism is equal and good enough—and a blessing.
My Macaroni & Cheese Lightbulb Moment
As I have admitted before, I see the whole world through an interfaith family lens (see my past blog post HERE). I am so uber-saturated in this work that I am always thinking about the experience of the partner who isn't Jewish who is connected to someone Jewish and what it means to have interfaith families as full members of congregations. So, when I was on a four-hour flight to meet with the other seven rabbis who direct InterfaithFamily offices around the country, I saw an ad that stopped me in my tracks. It is the new Kraft Macaroni & Cheese ad (which might understandably be torture to watch mid-way through Passover!).
The tag line is, "It's changed, but it hasn't."
What does mac & cheese have to do with supporting interfaith families exploring Jewish life, our tag line at IFF? When interfaith families are truly part of a community doing Jewish (notice I don't say Jewish community—this will be the subject of my next blog post), will the community and the experience of Judaism change? Will there be anything recognizable about Judaism in the generations to come? Will the recipe have changed so much that it becomes a different thing altogether? To continue the food analogy, will interfaith families be a sweetener and add something healthier for the overall enterprise of Judaism?
I hope that when interfaith families are members and leaders of their communities, everything will change for the better. We will frame liturgy and worship in new ways, cognizant that we need to give meaning because many people there are still learning (yes—this should always be the approach, but interfaith families dictate this approach). We will continue to adapt and change liturgy as it feels outdated and offensive to our diverse communities.This has been the Reform tradition since the beginning. We say what we believe.
Much of prayer is poetry and isn't literal but is evocative. Our language will change and it should feel palpable. Those who visit a congregation's website should sense change and it should feel inspiring and positive. We can look to the experience and narratives of those who didn't grow up with Judaism to enrich the context and lens by which Judaism is now taught and lived.
What do you think? When interfaith families are truly part and parcel of a community, do you sense that their inclusion changes the community over time? Can you point to the changes? Is it so normative at this point that we have a diverse community that we take this fact for granted and have moved past it in some way? As always, more questions than answers and lots of right answers.
Who Am I to Yuck Your Yum?
We love Mo Willems books in our house! My little one just brought home one of his gazillions of titles called, I Really Like Slop. As I have written before, I now see the world through interfaith family lenses. When we read this story, all I could think about was interfaith couples at Passover! How in the world did I make that leap?
The book tells the story of Piggie presenting her friend Gerald, the elephant, with a pot of her slop. Gerald looks at the smelly concoction with trepidation. He asks some questions about the make-up of the slop. Piggie begs him to try some. She explains that it's part of Pig culture! Gerald touches his tongue to the slop and chokes and gags. Piggie asks Gerald if he likes it. Gerald explains that he does not like it, but he does like Piggie. And he is happy he tried it.
As are all of Mo Willems' books, this story is precious and even poignant. It made me think about someone who didn't grow up with, let's say, gefilte fish, being presented with it for the first time at a Passover seder. This person is no doubt sitting with a significant other at their parents' house, surrounded by family and trying to fit in and make a good impression. This person is trying to avoid any cultural faux pas. They may be worried that the haggadah (the book read during the Passover meal) will be read aloud going around the table and that there will be unfamiliar words and transliterated Hebrew to navigate (on four cups of wine, no less). And, now this person is presented with this foreign, kind of smelly food, with a gel-like substance wiggling around on top.
If you were brought up with this food and don't like it, it is easier to dismiss it. But, for a newcomer, how does one politely excuse themselves from trying it? (Especially if is homemade. This usually makes it a lot better than if it's cold from the jar—although some people love that. Who am I to yuck your yum, as my child's feeding therapist implores.)
What Piggie and Gerald teach us is that we don't have to like our partner's cultural things. They don't have to become ours. We don't have to feel comfortable eating the food or donning certain garb. We don't automatically have to feel comfortable with the language, traditions or dances. Maybe after experience and time, we will come to like things. We will make them our own. But, maybe we never will. And, that's OK. Showing respect, asking questions, learning about and even trying aspects important to our loved ones is what matters.
Happy prepping for Passover!
Learn more HERE about gefilte fish and other fun Passover foods. And for a complete cheat sheet on Jewish foods (that you can share with you friends!) click HERE.
My 6-Year-Old Changed Her Name
Naming things gives us a connection to them. Even little children name their lovies and their toys. We label and name to organize things in our minds and to recognize things. How surprising it has been for me as a mother to have a child who says she knows she is the gender not typically aligned with the anatomy she has. It made sense to me when she explained that she wants a name that goes with how she looks and feels. She started using her new name and slowly it has stuck.
When I officiate at a baby naming ceremony, I often explain how important names are within Jewish tradition. Our biblical ancestors' names told their stories—Avraham, Father of a People; Miriam (from sea water), when she was alive, the people had water. Within the narratives of our ancient scroll, names changed when roles change. Jacob becomes Israel, for instance. The rabbis during the rabbinic period in the first centuries of the Common Era, spoke about having a crown of a good name, meaning your total reputation.
They helped us understand what Jews can believe about heaven. When you have been a good person and touched people who want to carry on your name and your memory, that is eternal life. Passing on the name of a loved one to the next generation is a way we enable this person, of blessed memory, to continue to impact the world through deeds done in their name. Sometimes elderly family members will say to the younger generation that they are their Kaddish (the prayer said to remember loved ones who have died). This means that they are looking to the ones living to carry on their memory.
A friend from childhood who has become a lawyer ushered my family through our minor name change process on Thursday, March 3. It was a profound moment when she reminded me that I named her children within the Jewish tradition and now she was naming my child in this way.
After the high and emotions of leaving court that day with a new name for my child, I drove into the city to help another family bestow Hebrew names on their three children ranging in age from 7 to 13. The mom in this family is Jewish and the father is Catholic. They have raised their children with the hopes of literacy, knowledge and comfortability within both religious realms and traditions. They have celebrated Jewish and Catholic holy days. These kids feel close to both rabbis and priests and both sides of their family. They know that they will have to wrestle like Jacob and discern what they believe about Jesus. They also know that they can turn to both traditions in times of joy and in times of need. They are enriched for this way of living and learning. They are not confused but full of joy. Their parents have a depth of compromise and respect for each other that is inspiring.
So, I stood with a priest who has become a friend and mentor as he baptized the children with water and anointed them with oil. I blessed them. We spoke about the loved ones for whom they were named and what their names in Hebrew mean. This was a ceremony of symbolism, metaphor and meaning.
Last year InterfaithFamily launched a social media campaign called #ChooseLove. As InterfaithFamily/Your Community Directors, we discussed whether our rabbinic colleagues would think we were suggesting that couples should choose love over religion, which was not our intention. Thursday, March 3 was a day when I understood what it means to choose love. Love rises above expectations and assumptions. It envelopes fear and uncertainty. It sweetens disappointment and loss. We don't always have control over the circumstances of our lives, but we can choose to have compassion at all times.
Baruch atah Adonai, Eloheinu Melech haolam, shehechehyanu, v'kiy'manu, v'higianu laz'man hazeh. We praise You, Eternal our God, Sovereign of all: for giving us life, sustaining us, and enabling us to reach this joyful time.
Finding Prayer at Creating Change
I have a confession to make: For a while now, I've been pretty anti-Jewish prayer. I know that may sound startling coming from a rabbi. But I've kind of been dreading Friday night services lately. All that rote Hebrew that many people aren't following and don't understand what they're saying. Now that I've been working with interfaith families, I am especially aware of the barrier that Hebrew creates and have wondered about all different ways to get over that wall. Many in the Jewish world think that some of our prayers (especially ones that have the words "v'tzivanu," like the Shabbat candle blessings) can only be said by Jews and this poses other problems for those in our families who want to join in and are not sure where they fit.
Friday night services can have highs and music definitely helps get into the mood of the often universal and timeless themes in the liturgy. Sometimes it's nice to just be with others and feel a sense of camaraderie, joint mission and shared purpose. It's good to put my phone away for an hour and move at a different pace. Taking a deep breath, being in a beautiful space and hearing words from our tradition can be good for the soul. But, actual liturgy or communal prayer has been my nemesis for a while.
In fact, I was wondering if we could start a congregation with no prayer. There would be no Friday night or Saturday morning "services." We would come together when we were up for it and looking forward to it for experiences of meaning. A bar or bat mitzvah service could involve a few major words of our faith tradition like the Shema or our Kaddish because a couple of prayers are transcendent. Their sound and their words are wholly evocative and needed. But, the core of the life cycle event would be to read from the sacred Torah scroll, to interpret the ancient text, to share who this child is at this moment and to celebrate a coming of age. To say words that feel compelling, engaging, inspiring and relevant. This is what has been going on in my heart and mind lately.
And then I was invited by A Wider Bridge to help lead Friday night worship at the Creating Change Conference in Chicago. I was invited because InterfaithFamily/Chicago works for inclusion and our mission aligns with the mission of this massive conference. I was invited because I am a proud ally for LGBTQ people within the Jewish world and non-profits in this realm. I was honored to help plan a service with Rabbi Shoshana Conover from Temple Sholom and Judith Golden from Congregation Or Chadash. But all did not go smoothly, and you can read multiple news stories about the drama and trauma that happened that night at the conference. I am still not sure what to do when you find that you agree with a group on so many grounds but have a major schism of belief in an area that is fundamental to your world view. But, the political pieces aside, I have to report that something happened to me in that service.
There was no guitar. Judith sang with emotion and feeling and it was participatory. I. Was. Moved. I felt it. I think other people in the room felt it (and maybe that's why we, the prayer leaders, felt it). We sang for purpose. We sang for freedom. We prayed for help from the Source above. We were in the moment. We weren't thinking about what we need at the grocery store. We were there together. A new group. People from all over the world and from all different backgrounds. Pluralistic. Egalitarian. The beat was contagious. Clapping and moving, smiles and swaying. Maybe because each of the prayer leaders desperately, and with all of our hearts and souls, wanted every person in that room to feel supported and part of it and included and loved—the vibe went out and it reverberated back.
I got my prayer mojo back. Now, how to keep it?
I had a few takeaways from this experience, and here's what I suggest might make prayer more meaningful for me and possibly others:
Thank you Creating Change for reminding me that I love to pray with other people. I'm sorry there was so much tumult. I'm sorry there was so much pain. I pray we will all know peace.
Ask What Your Kid Really Thinks of Hanukkah & Christmas
We tend to ask our children the same questions over and over which are super hard to answer. Educators and parents ask, "What are you thankful for?" This questions is asked repeatedly around Thanksgiving time. Children say, "my parents, my home, food, friends and toys."
Ask your child now. What did he or she say? A parent volunteer told me that when the librarian asked the kids this question, my 6-year-old said, "the solar system." That was an unusual answer. I'm not sure where that one came from. Maybe there was a poster of outer-space or a book nearby that caught her eye?
There is nothing wrong with this question but it is very hard to tap into real feelings of gratitude, appreciation and thanks and then to be able to articulate those feelings. Sometimes I ask my kids what makes them happy and that seems easier for them to talk about. Gratitude has to be cultivated and modeled.
As we move into the Hanukkah and Christmas season, I asked my 6-year-old and 8-year-old what they know about these holidays. You would think that being children of two rabbis and living in a heavily Jewish suburb would sway or weight their answers some. Yet, they love their idea of Christmas even though they have had limited personal experience with it (much to their chagrin).
When I asked them what they think about when I say the word, "Christmas" they beamed with joy, lit up and said, "presents!" Now, my pastor friends and practicing Christians may be cringing. These are not the holy parts of this holiday. In addition, these are children who have lots of stuff. They are not lacking for presents. However, the idea of getting a gift is ever thrilling.
They don't have much first-hand experience with a religious and/or a cultural Christmas. (Hopefully their experiences will vary and multiply as they get older and they will come to value volunteering during the time of darkness and need for so many, and will be inclined to cherish the priceless and precious gifts of time and presence more than material things). Their ideas about Christmas fun come primarily from TV and I'm not sure where else.
Then I asked them to tell me about Hanukkah. They said lighting the menorah and presents are what come to mind. My children don't like latkes. Or matzah ball soup, lox or noodle kugel. I know, it's just wrong, but I'm being as honest as possible here. They do like Elf on the Shelf, Christmas cookies and the lights, beauty and magic of Christmas.
When I reminded them and gave hints, they were able to conjure up details about the miracle of the oil lasting and about the re-dedication of the Temple. They know the role of the shamash, or helper candle that lights the other ones. They know how to play dreidel and play it with zeal. They love games! They love getting together with friends and family over Hanukkah. They sing Hanukkah songs and enjoy going to synagogue where each family lights a menorah and it glows with warmth and love.
I don't think my children are more spoiled or more materialistic than others. They love life, and they love surprises and being playful. They love their friends, feel connected to their family and enjoy school and learning. They generally are into things.
Am I worried that my children—who I hope will look to Judaism to give them order, meaning, sacred purpose, connectedness, hope, values, inspiration, pride, and so much more—love aspects of Christmas? No, not one bit. I do want them to be literate in tenets of Christianity too. I want them to know more about Jesus. They will learn history as they mature and will have context and gain perspective and understanding. I don't want them to feel threatened by Christianity and Christmas. I want them to be able to ask their own questions and take Christian theology and beliefs seriously. I want them to understand that there is religion and there is culture and there is secularism, and how each of these aspects inform a person's expression. I don't ever want Hanukkah and Christmas to compete.
I think that making a child raised with Judaism feel badly about liking Christmas is not a great approach. It won't create closeness with Judaism. The main thing is to keep asking our children what they think and teaching our children as much as we can so that they can create well-rounded notions of these two holidays, central to our American psyche. Knowledge is good. Not being shamed for loving parts of another religion's holidays is good.
Let's stop asking rote questions and expecting rote answers. Your kids will tell you what they honestly know and think and it will open your eyes to their little developing souls.
Ari's Q&A with Her Brother: Choosing Love by Living in Israel
Rabbi Ari interviews her Israeli brother, Jason, and sister-in-law, Galit.
When did you make aliyah?
Why did you move to Israel?
Galit adds that she felt a little lost and confused in America and she was looking for a different life, and Israel was calling her back.
What's the most challenging part of living in Israel?
Do you think about politics all the time?
Do you know any interfaith couples? Is it common? And what's it like for these couples in Israel?
Tell me about your experience living in Israel
What about this little known (in America) holiday coming up called Tu B'Av which begins the night of Friday, July 31?
This is a mysterious day on the Jewish calendar. The Talmud tells us that many years ago the "daughters of Jerusalem would go dance in the vineyards" on the 15th of Av, and "whoever did not have a wife would go there" to find himself a bride. Thus, it has become a Jewish love day.
Rabbi Ari: My brother and Galit said that Tu B'Av reminds them of Valentine's Day in Israel. It has become commercialized. The stores sell heart-themed candy and gifts and people buy flowers for their loved ones. Couples dedicate songs to each other on the radio.
My brother and Galit #ChooseLove every day by living in Israel. They are far from most people in their family, and while in some ways living in America may be easier, their love for the vibe of the country and the life they have created sustains them.
Grandparents Get to Go to Camp in Chicago
We at InterfaithFamily/Chicago are spending more and more time with parents of adult children who are intermarrying and grandparents whose grandchildren are being raised in interfaith homes. The question I hear from them is often about how they can share their own love of Judaism and the family heritage and traditions with their grandchildren. We talk about the relationship with their adult children, honoring the decisions they have made and being in respectful dialogue about that. We speak about how grandchildren learn through osmosis the Jewish values grandparents live and breathe and will enjoy learning family recipes, participating in holiday celebrations and hearing the stories of their family.
The goal isn't to make grandchildren Jewish unless that's a shared goal with their parents. The goal is to love, accept, learn from, honor and celebrate this child for who they are and to show pride in who you are and how you became who you are. Will this lead to Jewish continuity? That's in the stars. You've got your relationship with your children and grandchildren now. If there is bonding and togetherness and warm memories and sharing of values, not only will these young souls flourish but those who come into their circles will be enriched. If there is positivity and connectedness associated with Judaism, it's all good.
My question to you, Chicago area grandparents: What are you doing June 19-21? Are your grandchildren done with school and not yet in camp? Take the plunge and try a special weekend away with them at the JCC's Grandparents Weekend. The weekend is filled with programming that will engage children 4-12 years old in fun and meaningful activities. There is plenty of time for running around, enjoying the beautiful retreat center, playing games within the structure of the weekend, and also free time downtown when the magic of even more grandparent-grandchildren bonding happens.
Here are words from grandparents Barb and Denny Kessler who have participated in this JCC retreat for many years and have found it to be deeply worthwhile:
In a few months we will be returning to the L'Dor Va-Dor Grandparents & Grandkids program at Camp Chi for our 8th year!!! The opportunity to be with our grandkids for a weekend—without their parents—in a Jewish/camping setting has been our great pleasure. We take two of our seven grandkids each year for a truly fun and meaningful weekend together. The kids hear about it from their older sibs and cousins and can't wait to be old enough to go. We have found this to be a unique way to deepen our relationship with our grandkids. Several of our grandkids are from an interfaith home and spending a weekend at Camp Chi has been a wonderful way to have them be part of a Jewish community, celebrate Shabbat and Jewish traditions as a family and interact with other Jewish kids. We usually take two cousins, rather than siblings, because our grandkids are from different cities and they love being together. At the end of the weekend we make a photo album for each of the kids, write about the weekend and give it to them so they remember our special weekend together. They all treasure their albums and even many years later talk about our weekends together at grandparent's camp.
Where is Your 3rd Space?
I spend a lot of time at Starbucks. All different Starbucks locations. Lately, I have been seeing signs about it being a "Third Place in our daily lives." We have our work places, our homes and we have the coffee shop. I think for lot of people, walking into Starbucks is comforting and familiar. The smells, the furniture, the vibe, the culture there, the drinks—we know what to expect and it feels good.
At our recent InterfaithFamily/Chicago event, Barbara Mahany read from her new book, Slowing Time. She talked about how children raised with both Judaism and Catholicism in their lives often understand the in-between spaces of life. They relate to the grays, to nuance, to ambiguity and discrepancy and can hold multiple identities and ideas in one intact soul and psyche. They don't practice a new religion or a Jewish-Catholic blend. Rather, they hold both traditions in their hearts and minds. They keep them separate and draw from each at different times. They experience both. They understand about both of their parent's backgrounds. In a way, this is a third place for Judaism and Christianity.
I have heard some people refer to the interfaith schools that exist around the country where families with one Christian parent and one Jewish parent come to learn and worship with the intent to raise their children as "both" as being Third Spaces. These communities aren't synagogues or churches but have elements of both and clergy from both.
At a recent teaching session at one of Chicago's interfaith programs, the parents asked me whether any liberal synagogues could open their doors to families raising their children "both." Could synagogues have a track for these families where they have a certain membership level knowing that the children wouldn't use the religious school? These families could send their children to mid-week Hebrew school and of course become part of the community on Shabbat and holidays, during social justice pursuits and on retreats. These children would have a sacred space to mark the first time they read from the Torah scroll, which is often very important to their families.
In order for this to happen, congregations would have to accept and appreciate families who want Judaism in their lives in this way. They would have to accept that everyone's Jewish expression looks different and that every family configuration is different. These families who want both religions in their lives are often very thoughtful about faith and traditions and eager learners and worship regulars.
I think if synagogues could find their way toward working with and hearing families who want Judaism in their lives in authentic ways but who also need to have the children learn about and experience the other parent's faith, it will enhance the community. Struggling to understand and define the boundaries of "in" and "out" will help us all clarify our path, our fears and hopes and our vulnerabilities. Having a community of diverse practices under a shared tent of united desire to see Judaism continue and flourish is good for all of us.
For some, the synagogue or being with their community is a third space in importance next to their home and their office. For others, it falls farther down their line of places they frequent (perhaps after Starbucks). Do you think the Jewish world can or should find space for families who see religion in a third way? Not as just Jewish or just Catholic but as something more fluid?
Embracing Our Differences
The following is a sermon I gave at Saint Elisabeth's Church in Glencoe, Illinois, on February 22.
Thank you for welcoming me so warmly into your community. What a blessing it has been to become involved with St. Elisabeth's. I have spent my rabbinate these past eight years working with interfaith couples and families and those who grew up in interfaith homes. I spend time with grandparents who have grandchildren growing up in interfaith homes and with Jewish clergy and professionals who want to welcome those from interfaith homes to what we call "organized" Jewish life. What I mean by an interfaith family is a situation in which one parent grew up with Judaism and one didn't. Sometimes these partners are raising Jewish children and have a Jewish home—don't ask me what a Jewish home is—many Jews describe what having a Jewish home is differently. Sometimes these families have a parent who is Jew-ish…not a practicing anything else but hasn't converted to Judaism. Sometimes these families have a parent who is a practicing and believing Christian or Hindu. In some of these families they want their children to be exposed to both faiths.
In the past 10 years, excluding Orthodox marriages, 72 percent of Jewish marriages have been interfaith. The majority of American Jews are partnered with someone not Jewish. There are more children growing up now with one Jewish parent than two. So, what does this all mean for the future of liberal Judaism? (Orthodox Judaism will remain, it seems—the question is non-Orthodox Judaism.) For the kind of Judaism I subscribe to?
A recent headline read "More Bad News, but a Glimmer of Hope: Last year's survey of American Jews brought dire news—rising intermarriage, falling birthrates, dwindling congregations."
Many in the Jewish world are scared. They are scared that young people won't seek out congregations for their families. That they will privatize religion. That people don't value Jewish community anymore. That adults who grew up with Judaism now affirm a universal ethics or morality and want their children to "be good people" and not specifically or distinguishably Jewish. Jews have been said to be the ever-dying people. Are we going to disappear into a generalized feel-good, do-good thing?
What about the mitzvot? The commandments? The specific way we live? Worship in Hebrew? Allegiance to Israel? A sense of Peoplehood? Of being part of the Tribe? Yiddish-isms? Judaism has been a religion of boundaries and distinctions and that has kept us a unique people, in some ways, for so many generations and generations. Now, in an open, global world, can Judaism be inclusive enough to allow participation by people who aren't Jewish and still remain true to Jewish traditions?
I think that we need to promote both radical inclusion and diversity. Ironically, in order to perpetuate a culture that is unique, we need to remove almost all boundaries that define who is permitted to participate.
This is the tension of my work and of this sermon: perpetuating a unique culture that is still authentically Jewish and yet allowing for diversity and inclusion. And, this brings us to the biblical reading for today. Did God choose each people to fulfill their own unique destiny, their own unique way? Does each people have its own covenant with God?
What happens when we blur the lines that define religion and think about theology as metaphor and as nuance? When we compartmentalize different aspects of different faiths so that we can accommodate many traditions and ways in one intact psyche? Isn't life more fluid nowadays with many things? Are we so separate and distinct? Each group with its own destiny?
When we see a rainbow in the sky is it a shared symbol of our partnership with God who promises never to destroy the world again? (God might not do it, but people seem to be doing a good job in this regard.)
We share these basic Noahide commandments of civil society. We share more than not. But, this holy time in both of our calendars, this time leading up to Passover and Easter sometimes highlights our theological differences.
In an article written on InterfaithFamily, writer Charlotte Honigman-Smith explains what Easter means to her: "Easter is the holiday that evokes in me the most ambivalence about my identity as a Jewish women with a Catholic father and extended family. Easter is harder (than Christmas) Edgier. More conflicted…I think that much of my reaction can be traced to the fact that Easter, for the Eastern European Jewish communities my mother's grandparents came from, was a potentially deadly time…local violence broke out at Easter. Easter, for me, seems to represent the final break between Judaism and Christianity, the point at which the two belief systems parted ways forever. I find that I resent that a little. Perhaps, deep down, I think it would be easier if we all believed the same things.
But growing up in an interfaith family and a multicultural neighborhood taught me something about dealing with differences and cultural contradictions. It's good to be able to share, and to find common ground; for me it has been a blessing to have two cultures to draw on. But I've learned to use this holiday as a reminder that we are not all alike, that some things have no common ground to be found, and that still, this does not mean that there can't be love, respect, and mutual humanity. It's important, though harder, to know that there are some differences, both in families and in the wider world, that have to be accepted and embraced without understanding…as matters of faith."
We share the Noahide Covenant; we share the symbol of the rainbow. But there are other covenants made at other times that are meant for different peoples and different traditions. Later in the scroll, we read about the covenant given at Mt. Sinai. In his final appeal to the people of Israel, Moses reminds them that the covenant they are establishing with God will be valid for eternity. "I make this covenant with its sanctions, not with you alone, but both with those who are standing here with us this day before the Eternal our God and with those who are not with us here this day" (Deuteronomy 29:13-14).
There is a lot of commentary about who is not there that day. From an interfaith standpoint, I view this covenant as a covenant with anybody who would find themselves in a family with Jews. For any fellow-travelers. This can be an inclusive covenant because it included the then diverse people of Israel and it surely now encompasses a diverse group who (thank God) still think about it and struggle with it, and for whom these ancient laws and ways still have enduring truths so many thousands of years later.
The rabbis said that we should say 100 blessings a day and then spelled out specific blessings for various occasions that arose daily. When we see a rainbow, there is a special blessing that is said.
Barukh Ata Adonai, Eloheynu Melekh ha'Olam
Holy One of blessing, Your presence fills creation,
May each of us rise to perpetuate the unique traditions and religiosity we have inherited or hold true today. As well, may we know that there are some differences, both in families and in the wider world, that have to be accepted and embraced, and that is good too.
Kayn Yihi Ratzon, May this be God's Will


text:
If There is to be "Change" in the American Constitution...
I vote that a new amendment be added making clear that the privilege of American Citizenship pertains only to humans and, therefore, no mindless lab rats are allowed to vote in presidential elections.
... or run for president.
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'These are exciting times for cancer treatment but there's still a long way to go'
Most of the news about cancer is actually very good. Let's get the bad stuff out of the way first. Cancer is getting more common in Ireland and most western countries, but most of this increase is down to the fact that people are living longer, long enough to get cancer, a disease which disproportionately affects the middle-aged and elderly.
Specific lifestyle factors are important causes of some cancers. The sheer danger of smoking puts all other avoidable risk factors in the shade. The frequency of lung cancer in men began dropping when large numbers of men stopped smoking. Smoking in women continued to rise, and so did lung cancer, soon overtaking breast cancer as a cause of death. Smoking is also a major contributor to cancers of the mouth, tongue, throat, pancreas and bladder.
No cancer treatment yet discovered or likely to be discovered soon, would have remotely as big an impact on cancer death rates as would complete smoking cessation.
We need food to live, but dietary excess rivals and may exceed smoking as a cause of ill-health.
Societies where people have higher food and calorie intakes, and increased levels of obesity, also tend to get more cancer. The same good 'diet and exercise' advice that we should follow to prevent heart disease and stroke also reduces cancer risk.
Excess alcohol increases the risk of several cancers.
We are also seeing an alarming increase in malignant melanoma, a usually curable, but all-too-often fatal type of skin cancer. This disease is strongly related to sun exposure, and in particular to sunburn. The increase in melanoma is particularly striking in Ireland, where our pale skin and tendency to get short highly intense bursts of exposure might pose particular risk.
Things which have NOT been shown to increase cancer include power pylons, Sellafield, insecticides and fluoridated water.
Research has made unbelievable strides in recent years. The five-year survival rate for cancer patients in the USA has nearly doubled since the 1960s, due to a combination of earlier diagnosis and improved treatment.
'Screening' (ie testing apparently healthy people who have no worrying symptoms) has a proven role in only a limited number of cancer types, prominently cervix cancer where 'Pap' smears have resulted in huge declines in mortality. The impact of screening X-rays for breast cancer ('mammography') is not as big as was hoped, but it does reduce the number of deaths from cancer in screened populations.
The best chance to cure most cancers is still provided by early diagnosis and expert surgery, or in some cases localised ray treatment (radiotherapy). For other patients where the disease has spread and can no longer be cut out, radiotherapy and chemotherapy have had important impacts in improving cancer survival rates. For some uncommon cancers, like lymphoma and testicular cancer, chemotherapy routinely cures. Gratifyingly, childhood cancers are particularly sensitive to chemotherapy, and are frequently cured.
There have also been substantial improvements in the chemotherapy of the more common cancers, but sadly, no new members have joined the list of 'cancers curable by chemotherapy' in recent decades. There is a sense that chemotherapy might have probably 'maxed out' in terms of future improvements.
Most research in cancer treatment now focuses on identifying specific 'targets' for new cancer treatments. We have moved as it were from blunderbusses or scatterguns (chemotherapy) to smart bombs. Such targeted therapies are now making important contributions to the treatment of several cancers.
As a young cancer specialist in training, the disease I hated more than any was CML-chronic myeloid leukaemia. Patients seemed fairly healthy, but ticking away in their bone marrow was an inevitably fatal leukaemia time bomb, a virtually 100pc chance of dying within three years. Unbelievable research unravelled the molecular booby-trap in the cancer cells, and within a few years a simple tablet treatment transformed this condition into one where survival for decades became the norm.
Similarly a drug called Herceptin has transformed the treatment of some breast cancers.
Newer immune treatments are also producing spectacular results in some patients with melanoma.
These are exciting times and I am very confident that there will be steady progress in cancer research in coming years. The Irish Cooperative Oncology Research Group (ICORG) will continue to provide a vehicle to bring new cancer treatments to patients throughout Ireland.
In terms of understanding cancer and laying a groundwork for new cancer treatments, science has reached a height that we thought might never be achieved. A cautionary note – the view from the top has included panoramas of other mountains.
We've come a long way, but have a long way to go.
Indo Review


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48 reviews from the community
Review of "Theperfumeemporium.co.uk"
"PAthetic and Threatening"
My partner ordered some aftershave at the begining of Feb as a valantines gift. Valantines day came and went and numerous emails to the Perfume Emporium got the same response as others who have left feedback here. Firstly, they have 15 working days before they will acknowledge non reciept of goods despite their advertising stating 3-5 days delivery! They then claim to have up to 30 days when you re-contact them after the initial 15 days. In our case we contacted the credit card cimpany and held up payment.The good eventually arrived at the end of March. Immediately we got threatening emails saying payment MUST be made otherwise we would be hearing from solicitors. My 9 month pregnant partner then had the worry and called the credit card company to allow payment to be made. Day's later, we then get more emials demanding money and despite having notified the the perfume emporium more than once that the credit card company had been authorised to make payment we have yet again got a threating email stating solicitors intervention.
We have of course kept a record of everything and in in my view I wish they would take us to court as I would like the courts to recognise this company for the inadequate service and bully tactics they choose to adopt.My advise - Avoid at all costs.
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KateHurst published 03/06/2009A wise move by you to stop the credit card payment and a good warning to avoid this site, too.
TheIncredibleCheeseSandwich published 30/03/2009one to avoid then for sure
bella6789 published 30/03/2009Informative review. I will avoid them now.
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Product Information : Theperfumeemporium.co.uk
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Type: Health & Beauty
Domain Extension: .co.uk
Listed on Ciao since: 07/05/2008


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Class is in session! The Playmobil Take Along School House has all accessories required for a fun-filled day of teaching and learning. This portable school house is revealed by opening the two sides and folding down the floor plates. It features a teacher, 3 students, chalkboard, desks, books, ruler, writing utensils, a bike, and more! Recommended for children ages 4 and older.
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Where Did All My Thinness Go?!
I'm a professional geek who weights 239.6 pounds. I sit on my butt pretty much all day and think think think. I go deep into flow, fingers typing with maestro flare, but to the motion-detector in my office my physical body resembles the onset of rigor mortis.


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Get ready for a backyard dash-through-the-dark in this game of firefly-powered flashlight freeze tag! First, catch fireflies to power up your flashlight. Then shine it on other players before they sneak back to home base. All along, watch out for bats, raccoons, and other nighttime critters that are out to trip up your tracks. Be the first to reach home and you've outshined the competition!
Ages 6+
Players 2 - 5
Playing time 15 minutes
36 woods tiles. 20 firefly tokens
6 player pawns with stands
6 player tiles
6 flashlight cards
1 game board
1 wooden die
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Necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) is a multifactorial disorder that primarily affects premature infants. Human milk as compared to formula reduces the incidence of NEC. Feeding practices such as minimal enteral nutrition (versus complete fasting) before progressive advancement of feeds, early introduction of feeds (before day 4 of life as compared to later), and a more rapid advancement of feeds (30–35 ml/kg/day as compared to 15–20 ml/kg/day) do not increase the incidence of NEC in preterm infants. There is no evidence supporting continuous over intermittent tube feedings in preterm infants. In a feed-intolerant preterm infant without any other clinical and radiological evidence of NEC, minimal enteral nutrition rather than complete suspension of enteral feeding may be an alternative. Human milk-based fortifier as compared to bovine-based fortifier may reduce the incidence of NEC but additional studies are required.
Necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) is an acute ischemic necrotizing disease of the gastrointestinal (GI) tract that primarily affects premature infants. The incidence of NEC varies between 6 to 10% on average in Very Low Birth Weight (VLBW; birth weight <1500g) preterm infants admitted to Neonatal Intensive Care Units (NICUs) in the United States.1–3 Despite remarkable advances in the care of extremely premature infants, the morbidity and mortality (10–30%) caused by NEC has not declined significantly, 2,3 and the total cost of care is estimated to be as much as 1 billion dollars annually in US alone.3 NEC is a multifactorial disease in which the integrity and function of the immature GI tract are compromised as a result of prematurity, inflammation, ischemia, or abnormal gut microbiota as described in other chapters of this issue. Various feeding practices such as the nature of feeds (human milk vs. formula feeding), time of initiation of enteral feeds, and the rate at which at feeds are advanced may also affect the immature GI tract and lead to the development of NEC.
Currently there is no consensus among healthcare professionals on feeding practices in preterm infants and there are wide variations in such practices across NICUs in the US. A recent survey of NICU directors, fellowship directors, neonatologists, NNPs, and dieticians across NICUs in the US indicated that most of responders would start parenteral nutrition on day 1 and the first enteral feed as soon as possible after birth (day 1: non- ventilated; day 3: ventilated), either as human milk (56%) or commercially available formula.4 Responders indicated they would consider indomethacin use (83%), history of PDA (72%), and dopamine administration (63%) as contraindications for enteral feeding but not the placement of UAC (75%) or UVC (93%) or concurrent administration of hydrocortisone (70%).4 Some of these feeding practices are not evidence-based but based on personal experience or unit culture. The objective of this article is to review the current data on various feeding practices and their impact on risk of NEC, mortality, and other morbidities in preterm infant. This article identifies and examines several feeding practices that are proven to be safe or unsafe or remain unproven in the prevention of NEC. We review recent randomized control trials, case control studies, observational studies, and expert opinions on feeding practices and NEC in preterm infants. For each subsection, we have indicated the quality of evidence (based on the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force "hierarchy of research design" available at: http://www.uspreventiveservicestaskforce.org/uspstf08/methods/procmanual4.htm) and a recommendation (based on the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force Definitions available at: http://www.uspreventiveservicestaskforce.org/uspstf/grades.htm).
Preterm formulas that are available today have been designed to match the composition of human milk with respect to calories and nutrients that are needed for the growth and development of preterm infants. However, these synthesized formulas do not provide the non-nutrient components of human milk such as secretory IgA, lysozyme, oligosaccharides, polyunsaturated fatty acids, and platelet-activating factor (PAF)-acetylhydrolase. These non-nutrient components of human milk contribute to GI mucosal integrity, function, and boost immunity against various GI infections. The AAP policy statement in 2012 on breast feeding and the use of human milk recommends human milk for term, preterm and other high risk infants either by direct breastfeeding and or by expressed breast milk.5 The AAP statement also indicated that donor human milk might be a suitable alternative for infants whose mothers are unable or unwilling to provide their own milk.5
There is much data to suggest that human milk provides long-term benefits in term infants by lowering the incidence of sudden infant death syndrome, childhood infectious diseases (respiratory tract infections, otitis media, GI infection), allergic diseases, celiac disease, inflammatory bowel disease, obesity, etc.5 In addition to these long-term benefits, preterm infants may also benefit in the short-term from the non-nutritive components of human milk by reduced susceptibility to sepsis or to NEC. However, there are currently no randomized controlled studies comparing the effect of mother's own milk (not donor milk) with formula on the incidence of NEC and mortality.6
Several randomized controlled trials have been done to study the effect of donor human milk versus formula on the incidence of NEC and mortality in preterm infants. Meta-analysis of five of those randomized controlled trials comparing donor milk versus formula feeds in preterm infants showed that preterm infants fed with formula had more than twice the incidence of NEC (relative risk of 2.5 [95 % CI:1.2 to 5.1], number needed to harm was 33 [95% CI:17 to 100]) compared to the preterm infants fed with human milk.7 The results of this meta-analysis underscore the importance of human milk intake in preterm infants.
Even though human milk intake reduces the risk of NEC, such reductions can only be achieved if preterm infants receive a certain minimal volume or proportion of their enteral feed as human milk. This dose-related benefit of human milk intake was evaluated in a secondary analysis of 1272 extremely low birth weight (ELBW) infants enrolled in the NICHD Glutamine Trial.8 In this study population, approximately 13 percent of ELBW infants died or developed NEC 14 days after birth. For each 10% increase in the proportion of total intake as human milk, there was a reduction in NEC or death after 14 days by a factor of 0.83 [95 % CI: 0.72 to 0.96].8
Similar results were also shown in a prospective cohort study by Sisk et al, in which 10 percent of VLBW infants who received less than 50 percent of their total enteral intake as human milk developed NEC whereas only 3 percent of infants who received more than 50 percent as human milk developed NEC.9 The odds of NEC decreased by 38% for every 25% increase in proportion of human milk in the first 14 days9. Overall, after adjustment for gestational age, higher human milk intake was associated with a lower risk of NEC (OR 0.17 [95% CI: 0.04 to 0.68], P<0.01).9
Quality of Evidence (I)
Recommendation Grade (A):
The evidence is very strong in favor of human milk (donor) compared to artificial formula in reducing the incidence of NEC in preterm infants. Even though such benefit is yet to be proven for mother's own milk by randomized controlled trials, we can strongly recommend based on existing evidence from donor human milk that the mother should be encouraged and persuaded to feed her preterm infant with preferably her own milk, or with donor human milk if she is unable or unwilling to feed with her own milk.
In utero, a fetus constantly swallows amniotic fluid, which contributes to the formation of meconium. In addition to the formation of meconium, amniotic fluid may also play an important role in growth and development of GI tract.10 Postnatally, enteral feedings also stimulate the motility of the GI tract and various hormonal secretions. 11–13
Fasting or delayed introduction of feeding may possibly impair these GI functions. To minimize feeding intolerance and the risk of developing NEC in preterm infants, the practice of "minimal enteral nutrition" is considered as an alternative to complete fasting in many units.
Minimal enteral nutrition, otherwise called as "trophic feeds" or "gut priming" is usually started within 1–3 days after birth with 15–20 ml/kg/day of enteral milk, given every 2–3 hours and continued for 5–7 days after birth without any advancement. A recent Cochrane systematic review evaluated the effect of minimal enteral nutrition on feeding intolerance, growth, incidence of NEC, and mortality in 754 VLBW infants.14 "Early trophic feeding" was defined as enteral feeding with milk volume of up to 24 ml/kg/day began within 96 hrs after birth and continued for at least one week while "enteral fasting" was defined as nothing per mouth for at least one week after birth. It was observed that there were no differences in the risk of developing NEC (RR 1.07 [95% CI: 0.67 to 1.7]; RD 0.01 [95% CI: 0.03 to 0.05]), time to achieve full feeds (weighted mean difference −0.97 [95% CI: −2.47 to −0.53]), mortality (RR 0.77 [95% CI: 0.46 to 1.30], RD −0.03 [95% CI: 0.09 to 0.03]) and duration of hospital stay (weighted mean difference −3.8 days [95% CI: −12.2 to 4.5]) between VLBW infants who received minimal enteral feeding within 1–4 days after birth as compared to complete enteral fasting for seven days after birth.14 Despite biologic plausibility that minimal enteral nutrition may prime the gut and improve feeding intolerance and may thereby reduce the incidence of NEC, the data from available trials do not confirm that minimal enteral nutrition in preterm infants improves feeding tolerance and reduces NEC.
Quality of Evidence: (I)
Recommendation: (B)
The clinical importance of minimal enteral nutrition is still uncertain, although it is commonly practiced. Based on the existing evidence that minimal enteral nutrition (trophic feeds) do not increase the risk of NEC or feeding intolerance, minimal enteral nutrition may be considered as a safe alternative to complete fasting before the initiation of progressive feeding increments.
NEC in preterm infants usually occurs a few weeks after birth.2,3,15 At that time of diagnosis of NEC, most preterm infants have received enteral feeding, either with human milk or formula. Due to initial concerns that NEC may be associated with rapid advancement of enteral feeding,16 many clinicians in the past have delayed initiating and slowed the rate of advancement of enteral feeding.
A Cochrane systematic review analyzed five randomized controlled trials involving 600 VLBW infants for the effect of delayed versus early progressive feeding on the incidence of NEC, mortality and morbidities of the preterm infant (growth, neurodevelopmental outcome, feeding intolerance, time to achieve full feeds and length of hospital study).17 "Delayed introduction of progressive feeds" was defined as intention to advance feed volumes in excess of trophic feeds (up to 24 ml/kg/day) later than 5–7 days after birth, as compared to advancing feeds at less than 4 days after birth. Two of the five randomized controlled trials (n=488) recruited only growth-restricted infants with abnormal fetal circulatory distribution or flow in middle cerebral artery, umbilical arteries or uterine arteries. It was noted that delayed advancement of enteral feedings in preterm infants did not have a significant effect on the risk of NEC (RR 0.89 [95% CI: 0.58 to 1.37) or all-cause mortality (RR 0.93 [95% CI: 0.53 to 1.63]).17 In addition, preterm infants who received delayed advancement of feeds took longer to achieve full feeds (mean difference of 3 days) compared to those who have received feeds from earlier than four days after birth. 17 Data from these trials do not provide evidence that delayed introduction of progressive enteral feeds reduces the risk of NEC in VLBW infants and moreover results in several days delay in establishing full feeds. Rather than the exact rate of feed advancement, it is possible that the use of a standardized feeding regimen is more important. A systematic review of six observational studies by Patole et al.18 showed a reduction in the incidence of NEC by 87 % (RR 0.13[CI: 0.03 to 0.05]) with the use of a standardized feeding protocol.
Quality of Evidence: (I)
Recommendation: (B)
Based on the existing evidence, early advancements of feeding is safe and may be considered as an alternative to minimal enteral nutrition soon after birth in a clinically stable VLBW infant.
Enteral feeding is often advanced after 3–7 days of tolerance to minimal enteral nutrition. The volume and the rate used to advance from minimal enteral nutrition to full feeds vary between units and it usually depends on the birth weight and the extent of cardiorespiratory support. A daily increment between 15–30 ml/kg/day of feeds is used in most units. A meta-analysis of four randomized controlled trials (n=496; less than 1500g or less than 32 w GA) evaluated the effect of "slow" (15–20 ml/kg/day) versus "fast" (30–35 ml/kg/day) rates of enteral feed advancements on the incidence of NEC, mortality and other morbidities in preterm infants.19 No significant difference in the risk of NEC (RR 0.91[95% CI: 0.47 to 1.75], RD −0.01[95% CI: −0.05 to 0.04) and mortality (RR 1.43[95% CI: 0.78 to 2.61], RD 0.04 [95% CI: −0.02 to 0.09]) were noted between the slow and fast advancement groups.19 Infants who were fed slowly took longer to regain birth weight (mean difference 2–6 days) and establish full feeds (2–5 days) compared to those who received more aggressive advancement of feeds. Data from this analysis do not provide evidence that slow advancement of feeds reduces NEC. In addition, slower advancement of feeds slows weight gain and establishment of full feeds. There may therefore be indirect effects on neonatal morbidity due to slow weight gain, delay in establishment of full feeds, prolongation of TPN and risk of central line infection. However, these studies did not include many severely growth restricted infants or those with birth weight <750g, and many clinicians increase feeds very cautiously in this subgroup of infants.
Quality of Evidence: (I)
Recommendation: (B)
Evidence indicates that both slow (15–20 ml/kg/day) and fast (30–35 ml/kg/day) advancement practices are safe and can be used in the preterm infants (especially larger VLBW infants) while advancing minimal enteral nutrition to full feeds. Randomized controlled trials are needed to determine the effect of slow versus fast feeding advancement on longer-term clinical outcomes of preterm infants and on the incidence of NEC and mortality in the subset of smaller ELBW infants (<750g).
Coordination of sucking and swallowing matures around 32–34 weeks of gestation. Hence, tube feeding is usually necessary in VLBW infants to ensure adequate milk intake for growth and development. Tube feeding may be either intermittent (bolus) or continuous, with a set volume per hour. Intermittent enteral feeding may be more physiological as it facilitates the normal cyclic surges of the gastrointestinal hormones.20,21 Continuous enteral feeding may however reduce the energy required for digestion and absorption and decrease feeding intolerance. The Cochrane Systematic Review which included seven trials that enrolled 511 VLBW infants did not show any difference in the incidence of NEC (RR 1.5 [95% CI: 0.4 to 5.9]), time to achieve full enteral feeds (weighted mean difference 2 days [95% CI: −0.3 to 3.9]), and somatic growth between infants who were fed continuously and by intermittent tube feeding.22 Available data do not provide evidence to determine best tube feeding practice in VLBW infants.
Quality of Evidence: (I)
Recommendation: (B)
Even though intermittent feeding may have some physiological advantages compared to continuous feeding, there is not enough evidence to recommend intermittent feeding over continuous feeding for reducing the risk of NEC, mortality or morbidity in preterm infants.
Feeding intolerance is very common among preterm infants who are on enteral feeds, and may either be a benign sign of reduced GI tract motility or may be an initial manifestation of NEC. Feeding intolerance is the one of most common reasons to delay advancement of enteral feeds or for suspension of feeds in preterm infants. However, there is no consensus on the definition and management of feeding intolerance. Usually, an increased amount or abnormal nature (e.g. bilious, bloody) of gastric residuals or abdominal distension regardless of gastric residuals is considered feeding intolerance. A case control study by Cobb et al.23 evaluating 51 infants with proven NEC versus 102 control infants without suspected or proven NEC indicated that a gastric residual volume of < 1.5 mL or <25% of a feed (the 25th centile for the NEC group) was probably within the range of normal but a gastric residual volume > 3.5 mL or >33% of a feed (the 75th centile for control subjects) was associated with a higher risk for NEC. There is no evidence that color (green versus milky) and or nature (mucus versus clear) of gastric residuals are early signs of NEC. Abdominal distension or visible loops may be a normal finding in preterm infant on CPAP and cannot be used as sole indicator in the diagnosis of NEC. Delayed advancement or suspension of enteral feeds based on gastric residuals or abdominal distension in the absence of other signs of NEC has not been shown to reduce the subsequent incidence of NEC. A retrospective chart analysis by Terrin G et al.24 to determine the safety and efficacy of minimal enteral nutrition (MEN) in feed-intolerant VLBW infants suggested that stopping or holding enteral feeds on the basis of feeding intolerance would increase the risk for sepsis (33.3 % in NPO group and 15.7 % in MEN group P<0.038), days to achieve the full feeds (Mean days = 11 in NPO group and 8 in MEN group, P<0.001) and days to regain birth weight ( Mean days =12 in NPO group and 8 MEM group, P<0.001).24
Quality of Evidence: (II-2)
Recommendation: (I)
Currently there is no evidence-based definition of feeding intolerance. A sudden increase in gastric residuals may be an early sign of NEC, 23 but abdominal distension and abnormal color or nature of gastric residuals are usually non-specific. If clinically stable infants develop feeding intolerance in the absence of any other clinical or radiological evidence of NEC, one may provide minimal enteral nutrition (trophic feeds) while continuing to re-evaluate the infant at frequent intervals, rather than suspending enteral feeding altogether.
Preterm infants have higher protein turnover compared to term infants. Protein requirements for enterally fed preterm infants are inversely proportional to the body weight (i.e., the lower the body weight, the higher the protein requirement). 26 Even at full feeds (200 ml/kg/day), the protein, calcium and phosphorous content of human milk are not adequate to promote and sustain the tissue growth and bone mineralization in preterm infants. 27,28 Addition of fortifier increases levels of protein, calcium and phosphorous of human milk. It has been shown that the multicomponent fortification of human milk is associated with short-term improvements in weight gain and linear and head growth.29 However, there is a non-significant trend towards increased feeding intolerance in treated infants (RR 2.85 [95% CI: 0.62 to13.1]). There was no statistically significant increase in NEC in infants receiving fortified human milk (RR 1.33 [95%CI 0.7 to 2.5]). 29
Human milk can be fortified with either a human milk-based fortifier or a bovine milk based fortifier. To study the effect of exclusive human milk-based diet on the risk of NEC, Sullivan et al.30 performed a randomized controlled trial involving 207 VLBW infants fed with either "exclusive human milk based diet" or "bovine based diet". Exclusive human milk-based diet infants were fed only with either mother's own milk or human donor milk fortified only with donor human milk based-fortifier. Another group of infants were fed with mother's own milk or human donor milk fortified with bovine based-human milk fortifier. A third group (control) received mother's own milk fortified with bovine based-human milk fortifier and received preterm formula when mother's own milk was not available. The group receiving exclusive human milk diet had lower rates of NEC (p = 0.02) and NEC requiring surgical intervention (p = 0.007) compared to the group receiving human milk fortified with bovine based fortifier.30 However, a limitation of this study was the relatively small sample size, and the higher incidence of NEC in the control group (18%).2,3
Quality of Evidence: (I)
Recommendation: (B)
Currently, limited evidence suggests that fortification of human milk improves short-term growth moderately without a significant increase in NEC or improved long-term outcomes. There is also some evidence that human milk-based fortifier reduces the incidence of NEC. The high cost and unknown biological product risks associated with human milk based fortifier currently limits its routine use in fortifying human milk.
Osmolality is the concentration of a solution in terms of osmoles of solute per kilogram of solvent, whereas osmolarity is the concentration of a solution in terms of osmoles of solute per liter of solution. Current recommendations mostly based on historical consensus rather than experimental evidence are that the osmolality of enteral feeds should not exceed 450 mOsm/kg (~400 mOsm/L).31,32 The recommendations seem to have been mostly based on small studies in the 1970s by Santulli et al.33, Book et al. 34, and Willis et al.35. Human breast milk has an osmolality of around 300 mOsm/kg, while that of full fortified human milk is around 400 mOsm/kg, and all milk feeds that are currently used have an osmolality below 450 mOsm/kg.31 However, the addition of supplements (e.g. sodium supplements, folate) may markedly increase osmolality, with the exact magnitude depending upon the amount of supplement and the volume of milk to which it is added.36 The consequences of increased feed osmolality in human infants are not clear. Studies in neonatal dogs indicate that the actual osmolality of the feed itself was not a major determinant of the osmolality of the contents of the stomach or intestine, although hyperosmolar feeds led to delayed gastric emptying.37 Even if hyperosmolar feeds led to increased hyperosmolarity in the intestinal lumen, it is not clear that this would result in mucosal damage.31
Quality of Evidence (II-3)
Recommendation (B):
Studies that showed the association of increased incidence of NEC with hyperosmolar formula feedings were done at a time when osmolality of the feeds were very high and above the current recommended maximum (450 mOsm/kg). The increase in osmolality of enteral feedings by the addition of supplements and other therapeutic additives may possibly result in delayed gastric emptying, with an undetermined effect on NEC.
The evidence is convincing that human milk feeding, as compared to formula feeding, reduces the incidence of NEC in preterm infants. Minimal enteral nutrition is a safe alternative to complete fasting before initiation of progressive feedings and does not increase the incidence of NEC in extremely preterm infants. In clinically stable VLBW infants, early introduction of progressive feeds and advancement of feeds at a faster rate (30–35ml/kg/day) is safe and does not increase the incidence of NEC. There is no evidence supporting continuous over intermittent tube feedings in preterm infants. In a feed-intolerant preterm infant without any other clinical and radiological evidence of NEC, minimal enteral nutrition rather than complete suspension of enteral feeding may be an alternative. Human milk-based fortifier as compared to bovine-based fortifier may reduce the incidence of NEC but additional studies are required.
Financial disclosure: Funding sources: NIH funding for Dr. Ambalavanan; Dixon Fellowship and IKARIA funding for Dr. Ramani. There are no conflicts of interest
Publisher's Disclaimer: This is a PDF file of an unedited manuscript that has been accepted for publication. As a service to our customers we are providing this early version of the manuscript. The manuscript will undergo copyediting, typesetting, and review of the resulting proof before it is published in its final citable form. Please note that during the production process errors may be discovered which could affect the content, and all legal disclaimers that apply to the journal pertain.
Manimaran Ramani, Department of Pediatrics, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Mailing Address: 176F Suite 9380, Women and Infants Center, 619 South 19th Street, Birmingham, AL 35249-7335, Tel Office (205) 934 4680 Fax Office (205) 934-3100.
Namasivayam Ambalavanan, Departments of Pediatrics, Molecular and Cellular Pathology, and Cell, Developmental, and Integrative Biology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Mailing Address: 176F Suite 9380, Women and Infants Center, 619 South 19th Street, Birmingham, AL 35249-7335, Tel Office (205) 934 4680 Fax Office (205) 934-3100.
PubMed Central Canada is a service of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) working in partnership with the National Research Council's national science library in cooperation with the National Center for Biotechnology Information at the U.S. National Library of Medicine(NCBI/NLM). It includes content provided to the PubMed Central International archive by participating publishers.


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Elizabeth Liebert, SNJM Shares Insight About the Art and Spiritual Practice of Discernment
Elizabeth Liebert, SNJM, professor of spiritual life at San Francisco Theological Seminary, shared insights about the art and practice of Christian discernment in a video interview. Read more at: http://collegevilleinstitute.org/blog/art-spiritual-practice-discernment/. You can view the video directly at: http://youtu.be/QD9jVpUOk1U or by clicking below.


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We arrived in the 6ix on January 6th with a goal: Let's create BodyThoughts and have the biggest impact possible.
What followed was an incredible journey that took us across the city. We travelled to diverse neighbourhoods, explored cool buildings, made incredible new friends, and learned what makes this city tick.
We're excited to announce the launch of the BodyThoughts mini-documentary! It tells a beautiful story of the origins of BodyThoughts, and what motivated Alexa to step behind the lens herself. Director Elena Sarasom spent months developing and editing the film to create the beautiful story you see here. (Note: the film is NSFW)
Our first weekend in the 6ix was amazing! We had the pleasure of meeting many incredible individuals who shared beautiful thoughts, stories and experiences. Thank you for contributing to BodyThoughts and adding your voice to this important conversation.
Glancing at Facebook this week, it's obvious that Beyoncé killed it at the Superbowl. Not only did she launch a tour and a new music video, she executed an epic performance outshining Coldplay, and nearly the entire football game itself.
Her performance reminded us of her powerful music video, FLAWLESS featuring an excerpt from the TedX speech by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, a leading Nigerian novelist, short story writer and nonfiction writer.
The old Detox Market was perfect for our needs.
Looking through the window, we knew 367 King Street W was THE space for the Toronto BodyThoughts show. On the corner of King and Blue Jays Way, there was significant foot, car, and streetcar traffic to ignite the BodyThoughts conversation in the heart of Toronto.
Some intimate reflections from the Vancouver show.
Yesterday, I (Erica) was standing outside of the BodyThoughts pop-up space on King West in Toronto, speaking to pedestrian's about what we're up to. Two young men approached me and asked if they could take photos in front of the super cool lightbox in our window. I invited them inside, and learned about what they were up to.
BodyBall is inspired by this finding: "The viewing of oneself as an object to be looked at leaves women with reduced cognitive capacity to perform in the world," from Costing the Invisible, a research paper published in the UK. BodyBall uses an unpublished self-portrait taken in the original series captured for BodyThoughts, and places it onto a black and white digital canvas.
When I was scouted by a modelling agency at the age of thirteen, I didn't realize the impact it would have on my life. And, I certainly didn't foresee that I would be doing what I'm doing now.
I was shocked when the agent approached me. It was the Calgary Stampede, and I was hanging out with my friends, eating a hot dog while awkwardly standing around. I wore skater shoes and some kind of neon blue hoodie.
Today we launch the BODYTHOUGHTS POSTER SERIES. This is a collection of powerful images by inspiring artists who have been moved to create from their own personal experience with BodyThoughts. Not only are the images visually intriguing, they tell important and personal stories.
The first image in the series, BodyBrain, was created by Vanessa Wirth, a dear friend, collaborator, and badass collage artist who found her way to us. BodyBrain is the product of over six months of work and collaboration. It is also the result of Vanessa's reflection on her fourteen-year struggle with bulimia
When piloting the BodyThoughts show in Vancouver in October, I noticed Elena. She stayed for several hours and sat in front of each picture in deep, reflective conversation. She approached me before she left to say, "Thank you," and to express how the experience had moved and inspred her.
Art is not supposed to change the world, to change practical things, but to change perceptions.
At a BodyThoughts experience, guests are immersed in a multimedium space designed to invite reflection and dialogue about how they experience the world through their own bodies. This album represents a collection of thoughts shared at the Vancouver BodyThoughts experience.
Photos by sara's spectrum
I'm sitting here thinking about you.
Two years ago I opened a book called the Fire Starter Sessions by Danielle Laporte. My life has never been the same.
Two years ago I emailed my favourite photographer with no expectation she'd even respond and we ended up Skyping, her little girl sitting beside her on her bed. I was humbled by HER humility and by her conviction to be the most herself.
We're officially three weeks away from BodyThoughts Toronto! FEBRUARY 11 DOORS OPEN.
Since January 1 we have been sleeping on friends' couches, stealing our parents food, and commuting across Ontario to bring the BodyThoughts experience to the biggest city in Canada. It has been the wildest adventure yet, and not without its challenges. We've rearranged our lives to pour our hearts into this mission. Everything else is on hold.
Today we joined a crew of eleven year olds for Girl's Club at an elementary school (thank you Ms. Mazzarello!). These eleven year old chicks were the best. We talked about what being a girl/lady/woman meant to them. A game was organized where teams wrote words from A-Z on a poster that described a woman or girl. We debriefed afterwards and the girls explained why they chose certain words.
There was a time where I wanted to know everything there was to know about body image on the internet and around the world. I set up google alerts, read academic papers and studied social media accounts. [Note that this obsession has not ended, but it's when the initial curiosity began.]
Alexa was in the process of creating the first Vancouver BodyThoughts experience. The show was in three days. Scrolling through her Facebook feed, Alexa found an article written by Erica about her modeling experience. The two had met once six years ago.


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On Sunday my hubby did something that sounds like a horrible nightmare to me!
He climbed 56 flights of stairs - for fun!
And he did it! I am so proud of him.
After years on the ugly drug, Prednisone, Jeremy has been diagnosed with Asthma along with other complications. So He decided he was going to do the American Lung Association Fight for Air Stair Climb.
Jeremy with his co-worker and fellow racer.
Their team name/costume theme was "Waldo and Friends Take Denver!" I think Jeremy's costume came out great! lol
The freaking tall building that Jeremy climbed - yes the whole thing! Yikes!
View from the top! Jeremy climbed 56 flights of stairs in 16:03 minutes. Amazing!
He said it was harder than the Bolder Boulder 10k he runs! Good to know!!
His medal! Congratulations Jeremy!! Jude and I are so proud of you!


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Rutgers MFA Open Studios
Rutgers MFA Open Studios
Curated by: Julie Langsam
33 Livingston Ave.
New Brusnwick , NJ 08901
New Brusnwick , NJ 08901
April 24th, 2010 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM
Join us on April 24 for the annual Mason Gross School of the Arts MFA Open Studios, a part of Rutgers Day. We are excited to expose our under the radar Program. Offering numerous teaching fellowships and renowned faculty including: Ardele Lister, Diane Neumaier, Thomas Nozkowski, Hanneline Rogeberg, Martha Rosler John Yau and many more Mason Gross School of the Arts harbors exciting young artists.


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My Little Pony: Equestria Girls - Friendship Games DVD
Directed by Ishi Rudell
Feature-length spin-off of the animated children's show based on the line of toys manufactured by Hasbro.
In this sequel, the teenage students of Canterlot High are preparing to do battle against their rivals at Crystal Prep Academy in the upcoming Friendship Games.
Sunset Shimmer (voice of Rebecca Shoichet), feeling homesick for Equestria, meets Twilight Sparkle (Tara Strong), who is attending Crystal Prep to investigate the magical activity at Canterlot High, but she is also forced to compete for the opposite team.
- Format: DVD
- Region: 2
- Certification: (U)
- Catalogue number: HMEGDS003
- Studio: Hasbro
- Release date: 02/11/2015
- Genre: Childrens
- Colour: Colour
Free Home Delivery
on all orders
Pick up orders
from local bookshops


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Wind Power Won't Cool Down The Planet
August 24, 2010
The wind industry has achieved remarkable growth largely due to the claim that it will provide major reductions in carbon dioxide emissions. There's just one problem: It's not true. A slew of recent studies show that wind-generated electricity likely won't result in any reduction in carbon emissions -- or that they'll be so small as to be almost meaningless, says Robert Bryce, a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute, recently published his fourth book, "Power Hungry: The Myths of 'Green' Energy and the Real Fuels of the Future."
Because wind blows intermittently, electric utilities must either keep their conventional power plants running all the time to make sure the lights don't go dark, or continually ramp up and down the output from conventional coal- or gas-fired generators (called "cycling"). But coal-fired and gas-fired generators are designed to run continuously, and if they don't, fuel consumption and emissions generally increase. Recent research strongly suggests how this problem defeats the alleged carbon-reducing virtues of wind power, says Bryce.
In April, Bentek Energy, a Colorado-based energy analytics firm, looked at power plant records in Colorado and Texas. (It was commissioned by the Independent Petroleum Association of the Mountain States.) Bentek concluded that despite huge investments, wind-generated electricity "has had minimal, if any, impact on carbon dioxide" emissions:
- Bentek found that thanks to the cycling of Colorado's coal-fired plants in 2009, at least 94,000 more pounds of carbon dioxide were generated because of the repeated cycling.
- In Texas, Bentek estimated that the cycling of power plants due to increased use of wind energy resulted in a slight savings of carbon dioxide (about 600 tons) in 2008 and a slight increase (of about 1,000 tons) in 2009.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) has estimated the potential savings from a nationwide 25 percent renewable electricity standard, a goal included in the Waxman-Markey energy bill that narrowly passed the House last year:
- The best-case scenario is about 306 million tons less CO2 by 2030.
- Given that the agency expects annual U.S. carbon emissions to be about 6.2 billion tons in 2030, that expected reduction will only equal about 4.9 percent of emissions nationwide.
- That's not much when you consider that the Obama administration wants to cut CO2 emissions 80 percent by 2050.
Source: Robert Bryce, "Wind Power Won't Cool Down the Planet; Often enough it leads to higher carbon emissions," Wall Street Journal, August 24, 2010.
For text:
Browse more articles on Environment Issues


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Lucignano, located in the old town centre, building free on three sides, on three levels of approximately 230 m² On the ground floor with separate entrance, living room with kitchen, a bathroom. On the first level living room with fireplace, dining room, kitchen, study with panoramic terrace. At the top level three bedrooms and one bathroom. The renovation dates back to the 70s. Little fenced garden; very quiet area.
Apartment – Lucignano, Tuscany, Italy
800,000 €
3 bedrooms 2 bathrooms
- Balcony or terrace
- Garden
Location and nearby objects
More properties
If this property wasn't for you, take a look at other apartments for sale in Italy.
You can see more apartments for sale in Lucignano elsewhere on our website.


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Demonstrators may be asked to leave St. Paul's in London
St. Paul's Cathedral raises doubts over protesters
Local churches in Joplin help to rebuild houses with "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition"
TV makeover show to build 7 homes in Joplin
Afghanistan lack in religious liberty
Watchdog group laments lack of religious liberty in Afghanistan
Category: Religious News
Missing Priest
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — The sister of a Roman Catholic priest from Indianapolis who went missing last week in Greece says her family is relieved he's made it safely out of that country after a nerve-racking week during which they feared for his life.
Nadia Kappes Charcap says her brother, the Rev. Christiaan Kappes, called their father's home Monday morning and told him he had left Greece and was in another country, which she declined to disclose.
Charcap said her 36-year-old brother did not explain during his call where he had been during the past week and their father was so overjoyed he didn't ask for details.
Charcap said her brother and his translator had gone to a Greek police station Oct. 1 to tell authorities they were both in danger because members of the translator's family wanted to kill them to get $70,000 from her inheritance.


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We will help you find a home geology tutor in London and anywhere in the UK. Home geology tuition is an excellent way to bolster confidence while increasing grades and doesn't have to be boring! Please use our service to search for London geology tutors and select the one who best meets your requirements.
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If you are a London geology tutor wanting to offer your home geology tuition services in London or anywhere else across the UK, please register with First Tutors or find out more about what we offer here. Private geology tuition is a fantastic way to re-affirm your own geology knowledge while helping someone else, all in the London area!


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Lempel-ziv welch compression
(LZW) The algorithm used by the Unix compress command to reduce the size of files, e.g. for archival or transmission. LZW was designed by Terry Welch in 1984 for implementation in hardware for high-performance disk controllers. It is a variant of LZ78, one of the two Lempel-Ziv compression schemes.
The LZW algorithm relies on reoccurrence of byte sequences (strings) in its input. It maintains a table mapping input strings to their associated output codes. The table initially contains mappings for all possible strings of length one. Input is taken one byte at a time to find the longest initial string present in the table. The code for that string is output and then the string is extended with one more input byte, b. A new entry is added to the table mapping the extended string to the next unused code (obtained by incrementing a counter). The process repeats, starting from byte b. The number of bits in an output code, and hence the maximum number of entries in the table is usually fixed and once this limit is reached, no more entries are added.
LZW compression and decompression are licensed under Unisys Corporation's 1984 U.S. Patent 4,558,302 and equivalent foreign patents. This kind of patent isn't legal in most coutries of the world (including the UK) except the USA. Patents in the UK can't describe algorithms or mathematical methods.
[A Technique for High Performance Data Compression, Terry A. Welch, IEEE Computer, 17(6), June 1984, pp. 8-19]
[J. Ziv and A. Lempel, "A Universal Algorithm for Sequential Data Compression," IEEE Transactions on Information Theory, Vol. IT-23, No. 3, May 1977, pp. 337-343].
Tagged: l
Read Also:
- Lemper
/ˈlɜmpə/ noun 1. Ute (ˈuːtɪ). born 1963, German singer and actress, noted esp for her performances of songs by Kurt Weill
- Lempert-operation
[lem-pert] /ˈlɛm pərt/ noun, Surgery. 1. (def 3c).
- Lempira
[lem-peer-uh] /lɛmˈpɪər ə/ noun 1. a paper money and monetary unit of Honduras, equal to 100 centavos. Abbreviation: L. /lɛmˈpɪərə/ noun 1. the standard monetary unit of Honduras, divided into 100 centavos
- Lemuel
[lem-yoo-uh l] /ˈlɛm yu əl/ noun 1. a male given name: from a Hebrew word meaning "devoted to God.". dedicated to God, a king whom his mother instructed (Prov. 31:1-9). Nothing is certainly known concerning him. The rabbis identified him with Solomon.


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I have bought I Pad Air (Wifi Only) few days Ago. What are the devices that can be used to make it a cellular
- Asked by Amit P
1 Answer from the Community
Best Answer:
You can't make it cellular, but if you have an iPhone or another smart phone, you can turn on the personal hot spot and hook up your iPad. Hope that helped ;))
- Answered by Aral O from Boca Raton
- Jan 30, 2014


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At least year's annual meeting, an important step toward ensuring the longterm continuity of the ECCC was debuted: A nascent but formal Board of Trustees. As discussed, this year we're adding two representatives to that board via an election across all of the membership.
The Board
Like most such structures, the ECCC Board of Trustees has two key objectives:
- Provide independent strategic guidance, oversight, and decision making;
- Ensure long term continuity and survival.
Historically most of the overarching, major operational and strategic decision making about budgets, hiring, significant initiatives, etc., have ultimately resided with the conference director. Over time the board will assume oversight of much of this, particularly as/if the conference continues to develop a larger paid staff. One major goal is better sanity checking via peer review, and formal procedures discouraging ad hoc practices. However, the board also makes this decision making institutional rather than individual, able to be made—and hopefully made well—absent any particular person. In that vein, the board also acts as a knowledge repository, capturing lessons learned and institutional experience even as individuals come and go.
These things take time to develop and there are many well entrenched practices and people even as the conference has to continue to operate at full speed with limited human capacity, so the board is still maturing, settling on activities and responsibilities. However, it has been meeting periodically over the past year to discuss a number of topics. Prominent among these, as an example, is taking public input from the discussion at last year's annual meeting and settling on final criteria and procedures for the first representatives election. As another example of the kinds of topics addressed by the Board of Trustees, a major topic for the near future and our incoming representatives is a developing proposal that's been under intermittent discussion for some time to open ECCC racing to all youth, not just full-time students.
As currently architected, the ECCC board consists of nine volunteer members in two components:
- Seven trustees appointed and confirmed by the board itself and serving indefinitely;
- Two representatives elected from and by the full membership and serving for two years.
The current trustees are all longstanding leaders of the ECCC community:
- Emma Bast: Former Mt Holyoke rider, collegiate road national champion, and USAC Collegiate committee athlete representative; currently outside Burlington, VT.
- Christina Birch: Former MIT rider, collegiate cyclocross national champion, and general rockstar; in Boston, MA.
- Shane Ferro: Former Columbia rider, team leader, and race director; in New York, NY.
- Joseph Kopena: Former Drexel rider, team leader, race director, official, and conference director; in Philadelphia, PA.
- Michael Rea: Former Dartmouth and UVM rider, team leader, race director, longstanding conference advisor, and former NEBRA collegiate liason; officially in Washington, DC but often Hanover, NH.
- Rob Rowan: Former Columbia coach, race director, official, and longstanding conference advisor; in New York, NY.
- Ian Sullivan: Former UVM and Vermont Law rider, team leader, race director, official, and assistant conference director; currently splitting time between Pittsfield, MA and Rutland, VT.
The two slots for representatives are to be filled for the first time by this election.
As a whole the board is formally committed to maintaining gender parity in its structure. There is thus a representative for women and another for men, according to competition gender. However, all current members (currently defined as full-time high school and college students with at least one ECCC scholastic start this year) will vote on both positions.
The other eligibility criteria for the representatives are:
- Must have 4 starts in any discipline or category in a scholastic field at an ECCC event within the past year, i.e., was an active collegiate or high school racer this year;
- Must be at least 18 years of age at the time general voting closes;
- Must be approved by the trustees, with significant cause to be given otherwise.
Note that the representatives need not necessarily be full-time students at the time of the election or afterward. Racers that just graduated, are taking a break, etc., all have much to contribute. However, especially for this first year we strongly encourage nominees and votes for representatives that will be active racers in the coming year such that they may be more easily acquainted with how the conference works behind the scenes.
Participation in the Board of Trustees is explicitly and critically not intended to be an overwhelming commitment. It is a significant, serious commitment but not on the critical path for ongoing operations. Expectations include:
- Attending the annual fall conference meeting if possible;
- Attending some ECCC race or races annually;
- Quarterly voice or video call with trustees;
- Ongoing but light/bursty email discussion;
- Taking lead on a particular area or project of special interest.
Once elected, the representatives will each serve 2 year terms. They need not be active racers throughout, nor even be committed to staying in the geographic region.
The timeline for our inaugural representatives election is:
- October 21: Call for nominees (this post!)
- October 28: Nominations close at noon (to provide time for collation & board review)
- October 29: General voting opens
- November 12: Voting closes at 11:59pm
- November 14: Representatives announced and introduced at the annual meeting
Nominations are to be made by the candidates themselves via this form:
If there are any questions about eligibility, the election process, or any other issues, please contact Joe Kopena.


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Admissions essays
Admissions essays
Weve brought up within a overall good sense exactly what makes an excellent essay, however its definitely helpful to check out targeted illustrations and listen to how admissions officers looked at them. Provided in this article is often a taste essay. Its perfectly-put together and eliminates the common entry essay risks spoken about in previous videos (listing from achievements as a go back to, covering some other person rather than which makes personal, for example.), so its not easy to understand how an admissions officer will act in response. Study the essay, and begin the comply with-up online video to know from admissions.
A misplaced foot within the accelerator rather than the braking system taught me to the patient of someoneAndrsquo;s reckless error.get-essay.com/research-proposal Hurrying using the black streets of my hometown inside an ambulance, I aimed to hold back my tears despite the fact that two supportive Emergency situation Professional medical Professionals (EMTs) comforted me. Whilst I struggled with a minor leg damage, the trauma of the wreck yet lingers. Fast forward 6 a long time to the offer. Now I am just sitting in the back of the ambulance, a newbie EMT, with my crimson safety gloves on, stethoscope around my the neck and throat, and then a reddish clinical container in hand. I am just also ensuring we now have appropriate health accessories stocked, among them throat collars and rather long body system panels.
After I step out of the ambulance, a sour wind nips at my encounter. Shattered window, two crushed family car hoods, and customers all around you, the scenario is put into view once i can last of all see precisely what is taking place. I quit into my monitors. It really is my crash all over again. Purchase the collars and panels, you will discover a possible rear personal injury," my lover whispers for me. I retrieve the items, however undertaking to manage my contradictory thoughts. Applying some help from 5 various other EMTs, we extricate the victim with the auto and safeguarded him towards the stretcher. In the ambulance, I discover considering that issues have been completely reversed. Now, clutching the individualAndrsquo;s hand, I tried to relieve him, and that he little by little calms decrease. I always keep my composure and make an effort to aimed to help the affected person think as relaxing when i does. Always keeping each one of his own stuff near me, we wheel him into the busy emergency room and transfer him in safety. As we leave, he looked at my view and I could truly feel his sincere appreciation. As an alternative to becoming an innocent patient, similar to the actual individual was, I am the rescuer.
While I thought the horrid moments rushing lumbar region, I stored my assignments as an effective rescuer with the cutting edge of my thoughts. Keeping my awesome from the facial skin of serious burden I came out away from the telephone a evolved man or women: someone who can observe a difficulty, irregardless of any bias I might have, while focusing only upon which is going on at that fast. With confidence confronting my own terrors, I noticed as if conquering my concerns authorized me to handle my requirements by having a grounded and sympathetic view.
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