My name is Masha. I am 58 years old, and I live in Cape Town, South Africa.
I was raised in a staunchly Zionistic home but my religious
education was sadly lacking. There was, unfortunately, no Jewish school in my
small town in the country and no Rebbetzin to give young girls, like myself, any
guidance or instruction.
I was married in an Orthodox shul in
Connecticut, 37 years ago, but no mention was ever made by the Rabbi on the
subject of Family Purity, and his wife who may have brought it up, was never
introduced to us.
It wasnt until some time later under the
encouragement of two wonderful Rebbetzins, that I was finally exposed to the
issue of Family Purity. Unfortunately, by then, I was already in the early stage
of menopause.
My ever challenging Rebbetzin, Nicole Green, encouraged me as well
as several other ladies of our community. Our group grew to eight women, most of
whom had also felt cheated by their lack of exposure and
opportunity to take
part in this beautiful mitzvah. We all committed to complete a months'
course of study on the Laws of Taharat Hamishpacha. The lectures were
intense and very informative.
Rebbetzin Green took this project very seriously. She prayed to
Hashem before each lesson for the wisdom to impart the knowledge correctly to us
and asked that we be receptive to all she had to teach. She lent us informative
material which highlighted many important aspects of this wonderful
mitzvah and helped us prepare mentally for this very spiritual, yet
physical mitzvah.
Thankfully, my husband was very supportive
and helped me feel very special during the time of separation. This space would
lead us to the
finish line and would revert a process that, through
circumstance,
had not been possible before.
The experience of my immersion in the mikvah was exceptional and very emotional. I felt a deep sense of being connected to Jewish women throughout history. I had finally come home - back to the living waters. I felt a purity and wholeness in fulfilling Hashems command.
I pray that Hashem looks upon this single act, this once-off,
as
if the commitment to the mitzvah had been there always.