[photo credit: Jonah Gottfried] Watching the Lunar Eclipse Voice Memo 1: In the last ten minutes, seeing how it’s slowly disappearing, I can only imagine how the ancient people felt when they saw this. They must have been terrified, or at the very least baffled, confused. What was happening?! It’s very eerie, spooky, Jonah … Read more
Happy National Poetry Month! To celebrate, I’ve decided to participate in the 2022 April Poem A Day (PAD) Challenge. Of course, I’ll miss a few days for Sabbaths and Passover, but I’m not concerned since it’s just for fun. So far, it has been great fun to respond to the prompts, posted daily by Robert … Read more
I’m finding my way back to blogging, following a 3 three-month hiatus that also included a six-week break from Facebook. During this time I created curricular units, source sheets and lesson plans; taught classes and facilitated book club discussions; read 21 books; and attended a weekly Spiritual Poetry Writing class. I’ve also been attending a … Read more
While we’re celebrating the secular new year this weekend, we welcome the new month of Shevat in the Jewish calendar on Monday, January 3rd. This is the month in which we celebrate the new year of the trees, Tu B’Shevat. Growing up in the northeast, we celebrated this holiday in the middle of winter by … Read more
In early June, I began to consider abandoning my Reading Challenge goal of reading 54 books in 2021. My mind was consumed by COVID concerns and too distracted to read an entire book for pleasure. Other than reading to prepare for classes and book club, I mostly leafed through magazines during the first 6 months … Read more
My spouse recently pointed out to me that, although my blog is advertised as “Reflections about my life, and about the dogs and humans that I love,” I haven’t written about the dog who is currently my favorite canine companion. This kvetch contains a partial truth: I haven’t written a blog post about Henry. However, … Read more
“Home is where the heart is.” —Pliny the Elder “If you go anywhere, even paradise, you will miss your home.” —Malala Yousafzai My spouse and I recently began our twenty-third year of living in Metro Atlanta. As we’re now empty nesters and beginning to think about where we might move when he retires, I’ve been … Read more
We rescued Luna in December 2013, about 8 weeks after our first dog died. Jenna, a Chocolate Lab we rescued in 2003, had slowed down in the late summer. She was 13 years old, and her decline was swift. When it was time to let her go, we knew it was time. We agreed to … Read more
When I first joined Tiferet’s Spiritual Poetry Writing class in July 2020, I never expected to find a well-spring of creativity and a source of sustenance in an online community of writers, never imagined I would spend an entire year of Thursday afternoons on Zoom, connecting so deeply with strangers. The class is hosted and … Read more
Just over 2 years ago, I posted about the process of healing the body and spirit following a prolonged period of stress. It was the month before Rosh Hashanah, and I’d been reflecting on the meaning of teshuvah as restoring oneself. I’m not surprised to find myself thinking and writing about these same themes as … Read more