6 | FEBRUARY 3 • 2022 

1942 - 2022

Covering and Connecting 
Jewish Detroit Every Week

To make a donation to the 
DETROIT JEWISH NEWS 
FOUNDATION
go to the website
www.djnfoundation.org

The Detroit Jewish News (USPS 275-520) 

is published every Thursday at 

32255 Northwestern Highway, #205, 

Farmington Hills, Michigan. Periodical 

postage paid at Southfield, Michigan, and 

additional mailing offices. 

Postmaster: send changes to: 

Detroit Jewish News, 

32255 Northwestern Highway, #205, 

Farmington Hills, Michigan 48334

MISSION STATEMENT The Detroit Jewish News will be of service to the Jewish community. The Detroit Jewish 
News will inform and educate the Jewish and general community to preserve, protect and sustain the Jewish 
people of greater Detroit and beyond, and the State of Israel.

VISION STATEMENT The Detroit Jewish News will operate to appeal to the broadest segments of the greater 
Detroit Jewish community, reflecting the diverse views and interests of the Jewish community while advancing the 
morale and spirit of the community and advocating Jewish unity, identity and continuity.

DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
32255 Northwestern Hwy. Suite 205,
Farmington Hills, MI 48334
248-354-6060
thejewishnews.com

 
 
Publisher
The Detroit Jewish 
News Foundation

| Board of Directors:
 Chair: Gary Torgow
 Vice President: David Kramer 
 Secretary: Robin Axelrod
 Treasurer: Max Berlin
 Board members: Larry Jackier, 
 Jeffrey Schlussel, Mark Zausmer
 
 
 Senior Advisor to the Board: 
 Mark Davidoff
 Alene and Graham Landau Archivist Chair: 
 Mike Smith
 Founding President & Publisher Emeritus: 
 Arthur Horwitz
 Founding Publisher 
 Philip Slomovitz, of blessed memory

 
 
 

| Editorial 
 DIrector of Editorial: 
 Jackie Headapohl
jheadapohl@thejewishnews.com

 Associate Editor:
 Rachel Sweet
 rsweet@thejewishnews.com
Associate Editor: 
David Sachs
dsachs@thejewishnews.com
Social Media and Digital Producer:
Nathan Vicar
nvicar@thejewishnews.com
Staff Reporter: Danny Schwartz 
dschwartz@thejewishnews.com
Editorial Assistant: Sy Manello
smanello@thejewishnews.com

Contributing Writers:
Nate Bloom, Rochel Burstyn, Suzanne 
Chessler, Annabel Cohen, Keri Guten 
Cohen, Shari S. Cohen, Shelli Liebman 
Dorfman, Louis Finkelman, Stacy 
Gittleman, Esther Allweiss Ingber, 
Barbara Lewis, Jennifer Lovy, Rabbi 
Jason Miller, Alan Muskovitz, Robin 
Schwartz, Mike Smith, Steve Stein, 

Julie Smith Yolles, Ashley Zlatopolsky

| Advertising Sales 
Director of Advertising: Keith Farber
kfarber@thejewishnews.com
Senior Account Executive: 
Kathy Harvey-Mitton
kmitton@thejewishnews.com 

| Business Office
 Director of Operations: Amy Gill
 agill@thejewishnews.com
 Operations Manager: Andrea Gusho 
 agusho@thejewishnews.com
 Operations Assistant: Ashlee Szabo 
 Circulation: Danielle Smith
 Billing Coordinator: Pamela Turner

| Production By 
 Farago & Associates
 Manager: Scott Drzewiecki 
 Designers: Kelly Kosek, Kaitlyn Schoen, 
 Deborah Schultz, Michelle Sheridan 
 

PURELY COMMENTARY

essay
Love and Marriage 
in the Time of COVID
I 

have recently written about 
my decision to retire from 
my psychiatric practice just 
prior to the onset on COVID. 
So, this is (as Paul Harvey used 
to say) the rest of 
the story. Or an 
important part 
of it. 
I met my wife 
when we were 
just kids, 17 and 
15. We had a few 
rocky moments 
while we were dating, but pretty 
much remained joined at the 
hip through college, leading to 
our marriage in May 1971, after 
my first year of medical school. 
Leslie started her teaching career 
and supported us until our 
daughter Adina arrived on the 
scene in 1975, during my resi-
dency years in Cincinnati. 

Despite our long-standing 
attachment, I realize now that 
neither of us were really prepared 
for marriage at respectively 22 
and 20. I was ambivalent about 
commitment and Leslie still held 
fantasies about “happily ever 
after.
” I prioritized time with my 
friends, playing sports or cards 
and Leslie often felt under-appre-
ciated. Our move to Cincinnati 
(for my residency) helped us to 
find each other, enhanced by our 
involvement in Jewish Marriage 
Encounter. 
We learned that staying con-
nected in a marriage takes hard 
work. We learned and practiced 
listening and communication 
skills, and I think we also both 
grew up along the way. Having 
children together also either kills 
you or makes you stronger. Our 
relationship got stronger.

Flash forward almost 50 years 
… As I approached the idea or 
retirement, I think we both had 
trepidations, remembering those 
early years before our now empty 
nest got full. We both wondered 
how our relationship would 
respond to being home together 
without the distraction of my 
going to work every day. 
 To some people, it might 
sound idyllic, but I think we both 
were worried about revisiting 
some of our early struggles. And 
then COVID showed up, which 
upped the ante.

A MIXED BLESSING
The pandemic oddly seemed like 
more of a mixed blessing for our 
relationship. I was in the process 
of retiring from my practice, and 
COVID meant I could see my 
patients on Zoom from home, 

which eliminated my commute 
to work. I could still go to the 
gym to exercise and perhaps 
play bridge more often at the 
bridge club, I guessed. Although 
that quickly changed. And what 
about my touchstone, my weekly 
poker game? We began to hear 
stories of old geezers like us all 
getting infected after meeting 
for their weekly game. Whoops! 
That wasn’t such a great idea 
either! Leslie and I also began 
to curtail our regular plans with 
friends for dinner and stopped 
going to the movies. 
So how was this pandemic a 
“mixed blessing” for our mar-
riage? Because suddenly all my 
outside activities, which had pre-
viously served as an alternative 
to staying home, were no longer 
an option. And my commute 
time was 30 seconds instead of 

Jeff London

continued on page 9

