Mayim Rabim

This post by Renegade Rebbetzin (a sequel to this post) is quite eye-opening as to what it might be like to be the recipient of all those bedikah cloths. It's also -- much as I feel bad for the Rebbetzin -- probably the funniest post about bedikahs ever. For the full giggle, be sure to read the comments too....

...black pantiliners for sale on eBay. (Don't all go bidding against each other or anything.)...

..Moshiach, of course. But along the way, also awaiting the end of pregnancy and the birth of a new baby. And as the birth neared, I found myself with very mixed feelings: my focus was not on this new life I would (with G-d's help) merit to bring into the world within the next week or so, but on the fact that childbirth would leave me niddah.

My husband had to sit in the car alone, anticipating my return and our reunion, a few extra minutes one recent cycle. I waited to call the attendant because of the beautiful song I heard outside of my preparation room. (splash) "kaaahh-sher" (splash) "kaaahh-sher" (splash) "kaaahh-sher" (pause) (splash) "kaaahh-sher" (splash) "kaaahh-sher" (splash) "kaaahh-sher" (pause and repeat) The beauty.. it renewed me as much as my own participation in the song, the cycle, the life.....

Last night I did the hardest thing I've ever done in my life. I went to the mikvah knowing I wasn't going to be using it for a long time. I went to the mikvah knowing that when I came home I was going to ask for a get.

At first I was apprehensive about my approaching labor. After all, childbirth would render me niddah, forcing a separation from my husband. After 9 months of being tahor, I dreaded once again being niddah. But then as the contractions grew more intense, and I shifted into real labor, my focus shifted as well. Shifted and narrowed. I was forced to concentrate on each contraction as it washed over me, and I no longer wanted to...

Just wondering if anyone else goes through the stomach churning anxiety that surrounds making a mikvah appointment for motzei Shabbat? Maybe if you live in a larger community with many mikvaot this might not be a problem. In my community, it's an ongoing issue, and add to it that the particular attendant on duty for Shabbat and Saturday has a habit of returning calls rather late. The mikvah's voicemail recording announces that one should make...

Last week, when I called the mikvah to schedule an appointment and heard the recording listing its hours, I noticed something: the mikvah is open on Shabbat but closed on Yom Tov. This peculiarity doesn't affect me, since I don't live within walking distance, but it strikes me as strange. Shouldn't the same leniencies and restrictions apply, whether it's Shabbat or Yom Tov? Is tevilah allowed on Shabbat simply because it is the preferred time for men to fulfil their conjugal obligations to their wives? I'd always assumed that Yom Tov was similar to Shabbat in that regard, but perhaps I was wrong.