11:25 PM
Gil Student
R. Yaakov Horowitz writes about the difficulties facing single parents and their children on Shabbos and holidays (link):
There is much that you can do to be of help to single parents and their children:
• Invite a single parent and his/her children for a Shabbos/Yom Tov meal or two.
• Offer to take the boys (and perhaps girls) to shul and have them sit with you once there
• Before or during Yom Tov, please consider offering to assist with child care for a single parent so that she (he) can unwind, go for a walk, or just have some precious quiet time. With school out, single parents are on call quite literally 24/7.
• Please afford single parents and their children their privacy and dignity by doing your best to avoid asking them uncomfortable questions. My father passed away b’shem tov and all I ever heard during my formative years was people telling me what a wonderful person he was. Nevertheless, all these years later, I still remember my discomfort and the feeling of what-in-the-world-am-I-supposed-to-say listening to all sorts of comments made by well-intentioned people. I cannot even begin to imagine what it is like to be a child whose parents are in middle of a messy divorce.
