Oy!
By
Michele "Simcha" Long
(Unedited)

"So... you didn't know I was Jewish!"
Well neither did I!

Oy, I have been told is not a word, but a vocabulary. It is uttered for many reasons and in many ways to express a multitude of feelings.

Please keep in mind that these are not the writings of a "seasoned" jew but a "newborn" seeing her new experiences though childlike eyes. For those seasoned jews who read this please keep in mind that I am a"Reform" Jew and still learning the Jewish ways to walk in God's Laws. Some of you will laugh now while sharing my learning experiences with me as you notice the mistakes I make along the way, yet I may not see the humor at first myself. It might not be until later years as I re-read my original experiences that I will then sit back and laugh at the novice Jew! I welcome you to enjoy my new book with me. When I converted I choose a Jewish name as is the custom. My Jewish name is "Simcha" which means joy.
Table of Contents

A Musing
A Peace Maker’s Morning Prayer
A Torah For All Seasons
A Twist of Fate
Adele and Harry Arpadi
Appreciation
Assumptions
At The Finish
Autumn Revelations
Awakening
Backhanded Blessings
Be Watchful
Beauty in the Air
Before Anything Else
Beyond Words
Blessed And Then Some
Blessings and Curses
Bubbles of Possibilities
Camping Trip Weekend 05/30/03
Childlike
Child's Play
Dad's Peanut Butter-ed Cookies
Day of the Lord
Definition of a Pervert
Disappointment
Essence of a Man
Focused
Gone Fishin'
Grandma's Labors of Love
Humble Purpose
Just Her Nature
Life Changes
Life's Ladder
Lily
Love's New Journey
Lured
Moon Glow
Mother's Pride
My Dark Side
My First Tisha B'Av
My Friend Mike Lainoff
No Return
Normal, The Golden Mean, and Maimonides
One Deep Experience
One Step Back and Two Steps Forward – Teach our Children Well
Seeds of Creation
Reflections
Reflections in My Shabbat Candles
Remembering My First Passover
Silent Vows of Love
Subconscious Appetite
The Bigger Picture
The First and The Last
The Flaw of Perfection
The Guidance of Aaron
The Misleading Eye of Perception
The Sensuous Woman I Am
The Waiting Game
Those Moments of Awe
Time Warp of Emotions
To Be Humble Like Moses
To Presence the Oneness
Today I faced the Dragon Lady
Virtual Reality
What Have I Learned?
To Know One Man
Unanswered Questions
Waiting for the New Purim Vision
What If Free Will Is Only A Myth?
With Sincerity
Why Not!
You and Me