How to summarize 5 decades since 1966?!
First of all, THE Six Day War of June 1967--which unfortunately I experienced it in univ. in Cleveland and not here in Israel where I urgently wished to be. Nonetheless, decade by decade:
1st decade--higher educ. in USA & Hebrew Univ. of Jerusalem & starting my career as a medical social worker--trained at the world-famous Hadassah Hospital, Ein Kerem, Jerusalem.
Becoming fluent in Hebrew--not my mother-tongue--forever remaining with my giveaway American accent.
By start of 2nd decade after 1966--getting married, becoming a mother, and 5 yrs. later getting divorced--all of the above in Jerusalem. My one daughter's now 37, born meaningfully on Holocaust and Martyrs and Heroes Day here in Jerusalem.
By 3rd decade--1988 when making my "n' th" home visit back to my widowed mother's home [NW--DC Chevy Chase] from a medical working trip in Budapest, Hungary-3 difficult working trips within 1 year where I kept Kosher and Shabbat and Yom Tov--with the Iron Curtain half-up and half-down. Across the Atlantic [from Eastern Europe] I decided to try to find "our" Honors Class wonderful Mr. JP Morgan--yes, I did! I got him on the tel. at a Retirement Home in DC area--he was perfectly lucid--of course he remembered me--I was his student for 3 solid years plus my 2-3 yrs. on the LITERARY LINES lit.mag. of Woodrow Wilson--where I was Editor [or co-editor? in 1966] and he'd been intricately involved but ever so subtle and quietly very supportive.
I managed to THANK HIM for his very important input into my life & my conscience is forever clear on that! Bravo!
In early 2000s I finally studied officially--here--Russian--which I'd ''thought of doing" at good old Wilson High, but was afraid of its scary-looking alphabet [dumb blonde me!] not realizing til I "hit the books'' that the Russian alphabet is entirely Latin and Greek and Hebrew letters--which I'd known my whole life. Oh well!
To this day I can write something very primitive in Russian [like a First Grader] and it's literate enough, so I was told yesterday by a male nurse named Pavel to whom I wrote a Thank You note.
By the late 1990s into early 2000s I made my own comeback, in English, as a freelance journalist.
Google my name, if you wish--Sue Tourkin Komet--perhaps there are 1,800 references--many of them re: journalism. Some of my work was translated into European languages, behind my back, for free, but it was & is in the public interest.
Since 1996-til now 2016--2 full decades--my poetry's been published--approx. 100 out of 200 poems. Some rare ones won poetry awards, incl. in Boston & the Japanese Consulate there.
Since 2008--about 8 yrs.--this 5th decade since 1966--I've designed & built approx. 40 Model Sukkot--miniature model tabernacles--the love of my life--1 of which won First Prize at the world-famous Israel Museum of Jerusalem. Most of the good prize monies I gave away to Tzedakkah--Jewish word for ''charity."
In fact, my newest nickname in many recent years is: "SUSIE SUKKOT"!
I'd be interested in hearing, preferably by airmail snailmail, from former classmates who've visited here or wish to visit here. I have zero interest in any communiques which are not philo-semitic, i.e. to receive zero responses which are anti-semitic or anti-Israeli. I am still a humanist, a liberal--forever.
I'm a regular member and attendee at the Cinematheque [not on Sabbath and YomTov], do nightly power-walks, am mostly vegetarian for almost 5 decades, am Thank G-d very healthy, and work at it--it doesn't always come naturally as we all know.
There's always much more to share, but I wish to leave breathing space for others to consider re-connecting with me. I wonder what became of our male Israeli WILSON classmates--Yoav Aldaag [who was very quiet and very cute--and smart] and Oded Yinon [who was very quiet and very smart]?
Shalom m'friends. As we say every Passover for the past 4 thousand years--"Next Year in Jerusalem!" which I've been fortunately doing here for the past 48 years since 1968.
Shalom y'all, from the younger one of "the Tourkin twins"...

Sue Tourkin Komet a.k.a. "yaffa shulamit bat miriam minna" for Tefillah because I need it.
I'll pray for you too if only you request it--and make a special local trip to the Western Wall.
I live up the street--walking distance from Bethlehem--if Christian former classmates have any special requests in that direction. Not so safe, but I can handle many a challenge--my lifestyle.