*snippy* *chop* bam! You're jewish!

The last 30 hours of my life have been spent travling to and from Texas to witness the Bris of my new nephew, Max. Being Catholic, I'd never seen one of these before and was both surprised and honored that my brother and his wife chose to involve my mom and me in the ceremony. My role was to pass the baby off to Val's dad, who would hold him during the procedure. This gave me an up-close view of the whole thing. Part gruesome curiosity, part fear of acting inappropriately, I forced myself to watch.

I've never had to fight so hard to stay standing.

The Jewish community fascinates me. Very loving and supportive community and very family oriented. People from the synagogue who barely knew Eric and Val and were unable to make the ceremony still dropped off gifts/food prior to the event and called with apologies. Amazing.