I noticed the synagogue on Eighth Avenue for the first time today as we took the baby to the doctor for her shots. A vast building with stained glass and a Star of David perched atop the cupola, stark in the white winter sky. I felt foolish for not having noticed it before. This is our neighborhood.

A minute later, a thin woman pushing a stroller smiled at us and stopped.

"Excuse me," she said. "Is there a synagogue near here somewhere?"