12/14/2025
Twelve years ago, I had the profound privilege of working with one of the most remarkable people I have ever known. Though we were separated by nearly six decades and vastly different life experiences that shaped him into the man he became, he trusted me, engaged with me, and—without ever intending to—taught me the deepest lessons of forgiveness and compassion.
He was a survivor of Buchenwald, one of three concentration camps he endured. After being liberated, he immigrated to the United States, joined the U.S. Army, and eventually went on to become a math professor. Even today, I am grateful that I can still hear his voice through the oral history he recorded, now preserved at the Holocaust Museum in Washington, DC.
Through our time together, I had the honor of learning his culture firsthand—sharing homemade kugel, celebrating holidays during our sessions, playing dreidel, singing Yiddish songs, and gaining a new, deeper understanding of Hanukkah. Those therapy sessions were far more than professional moments; they were lessons in resilience, humanity, and connection that will forever hold a special place in my heart.
Each year, as Hanukkah begins at sunset, I think of him and the time we shared.
Chag Sameach! May your Hanukkah be full of blessings and joy.
