external-link
Skip to content
  • Instagram
  • Facebook
  • X
  • Get Alma in Your Inbox
  • Pop Culture
  • News
  • Holidays
  • Israel Guide
  • Shop

Finding Hanukkah Candles This Year Was a Miracle

“Grocery stores in Seattle are antisemitic,” I jokingly texted my wife.

By Aster Olsen

I’m Dealing With My Mom’s Dementia One Latke At a Time

While old age brings so much uncertainty, making potato pancakes while gossiping with the women in my family is something I can always count on.

By Janie Emaus

What Does Your Menorah Say About You?

Is it giving Burning Man regular or pottery enthusiast with too much time on your hands?

By Nicole Garelick

This Iranian Jewish Hanukkah Celebration Is Double the Light

Erev Yalda is a reclamation of two ancient traditions: Hanukkah and Shab-e Yalda.

By Rachel Sumekh
hanukkah romance books

8 Hanukkah Romance Books to Cure the Winter Blues

The cheesy holiday romance is a tried-and-true staple, and Hanukkah deserves to get in on the fun.

By Sonia Rubinfeld

Watching ‘The Shining’ Is the Perfect Hanukkah Tradition

Let me explain.

By Lizzy Rosenberg

ISRAELI-PALESTINIAN CONFLICT

A Day in the Life of an Activist Working Towards Lasting Israeli-Palestinian Peace

Standing Together, the largest Jewish-Arab grassroots movement in Israel, envisions a just and equal society that treats every person with dignity.

By Lizzy Rosenberg

How To Have Hard Conversations About Israel and Palestine With Fellow Jews

The way we talk to each other now will impact how we’re able to move forward for decades to come.

By Lizzy Rosenberg
A hand holding a vav and an ampersand

I Will Not Lose My Compassion For All, Israeli and Palestinian

I have found myself for these last weeks living in the “and,” and I want to invite you to live there with me.

By Lizzy Rosenberg

The Winner of Hey Alma’s 2024 Hanukkah Movie Challenge Is the Royal Rom-Com of Our Dreams

It's a cut above the rest.

By Hey Alma Staff

As a Convert, I’m Recreating a Joyful Jewish Childhood — In My 30s

The Jewish experiences of adulthood are important. But so are the crafts, games and Fievel Mousekewitz.

By Stacy Brooks

HEY, HEY ALMA

My Coworker Said Something Overtly Antisemitic. Why Am I So Nervous to Report It?

Hey Alma answers your Jewish life dilemmas.

By Stacy Brooks

I Can’t Believe My Jewish Daughter Is Going to Christen Her Interfaith Son

Should I just suck it up and go and pretend to be happy about it?

By Stacy Brooks
a cartoon image of a woman looking worried, with a thought bubble behind her including condoms, a phone displaying a dating app, and a diamond ring

I’m Modern Orthodox and Single — And I’d Like To Have Sex

It feels like it would be a total smack in the face to my family and upbringing. On the other hand, I feel failed by that very community.

By Stacy Brooks

    Meanwhile on the 'gram...

    Follow us for the best Jewish memes in the game (and other things, too, but really, the memes).

    happy new year, pals 🥳😇 happy new year, pals 🥳😇
    Fun fact: the first beauty queen of Iraq was a Miz Fun fact: the first beauty queen of Iraq was a Mizrahi Jewish⁠ woman! 👑 ⁠
⁠
According to the @jewishwomensarchive, on December 31, 1946 (exactly 78 years ago!) at the age of 21, Renée Dangoor was crowned⁠ Miss Baghdad. In September 1947, she was crowned Miss Iraq, making⁠ her the first beauty queen in the history of Iraq. ⁠
⁠
Tap the link in bio for more on celebrating the stories and cultures of Mizrahi and Sephardi Jews!
    "I could have ordered Hanukkah candles online, lik "I could have ordered Hanukkah candles online, like my mom suggested, but to spite local resident Jeff Bezos and in the spirit of human connection, I decided to go to a store, make awkward small talk with a cashier, bring home my prize and complain about the tiny Hanukkah section to my wife. The perfect errand. Easy. ⁠
⁠
I walked past the bright shelves full of LED Christmas lights, holiday chocolates shaped like reindeer, even past cinnamon and pine scented 'winter holiday' themed candles (a promising sign!) until I reached the Manischewitz section. I scanned past the matzah perched next to jars of gefilte fish and bags of egg noodles, and then I saw it: a box of candles. Shabbat candles. ⁠
⁠
Perhaps this wasn’t going to be so simple."⁠
⁠
Tap the link in bio for more from Aster Olsen (@asterviridae).
    ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
    "My sister is frying. My niece is chopping onions. "My sister is frying. My niece is chopping onions. My mother spreads another paper towel on a cookie sheet and continues counting. It’s that time of year. When the women in our family gather to make latkes while gossiping about life and sharing secrets.⁠ 'I have news.' My niece stops the blender. 'I’m using an iPhone app to help get pregnant.'⁠
⁠
Mom’s eyes widen. Birth control was not around in her day, let alone using a phone to track one’s menstrual cycle.⁠ As my niece explains the details, my mom’s expression turns to wonderment, much like a toddler’s. She’s trying to categorize this information. ⁠
⁠
But unlike a toddler who will hold the answer tightly in his little fist and move on to the next curious item, my mother will forget and ask me again. And again. And again. Dementia is taking her to foreign places.⁠"⁠
⁠
Tap the link in bio for more from Janie Emaus (@janieemaus).
    happy sunday, pals <3 (@kvellercom via kaufmanaudr happy sunday, pals <3 (@kvellercom via kaufmanaudrey)
    tap the link in bio for our ultimate hanukkah @spo tap the link in bio for our ultimate hanukkah @spotify playlist!! (@alexedelman)
    #grateful (@jewishfood) #grateful (@jewishfood)
    which jewish pet (pictured) speaks to your soul? ( which jewish pet (pictured) speaks to your soul? (@buffyfangirl94)
    tap the link in bio for 18 things to know about je tap the link in bio for 18 things to know about jewish drag queen @the_planejane! 👑💋

    Get Hey Alma in your inbox

    Get our latest stories on Jewish identity, pop culture, news, and more.

    By submitting I agree to the privacy policy.

    Hey Alma
    • Instagram
    • Facebook
    • X
    • YouTube
    • About Us
    • Write For Us
    • Contact
    • Merch
    • Advertise
    • Donate

    Sign up for our daily newsletter

    By submitting I agree to the privacy policy.

    70 Face Media Logo
    • Jewish Telegraphic Agency
    • New York Jewish Week
    • The Nosher
    • Kveller
    • Hey Alma
    • My Jewish Learning
    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms of Use
    © 2025 Hey Alma All Rights Reserved.