After the morning rain I took a short walk. Along the way I noticed the beads of water hanging on the tips and low points of the small branches of the trees that haven’t yet bloomed with the coming of spring. I understood that those beads of water represent the gathering of all the surrounding […]
Soul Love- A Nefesh Mountain Love Letter
This week I had the delightful joy of hanging out with Nefesh Mountain. If you haven’t heard of, or better yet, heard, Nefesh Mountain– it’s time to love up your ears. Once you’ve done that, this love letter will make more sense. After all, aren’t love letters all about making sense? Over the summer, in […]
Wendy Kanter Memorial Concert
On Sunday, March 4th, 2018, I had the honor of bringing Hello, Goodbye, & Peace to the Cincinnati campus of Hebrew Union College- Jewish Institute of Religion. The gracious invitation came from one of my most beloved teachers, Rabbi Ken Kanter, to perform at the annual concert series he hosts in memory of his wife, […]
The Clean Desk
Today I walked into my office to find a clean and spotless desk. When I looked at the spotless desk, a feeling of calm descended upon me. Who cares that the desk is clean because I moved the books and binders to the bookshelf? A clean desk wins over a cluttered bookshelf any day of […]
The most important lesson
The most important lesson I want to teach my students is the very same lesson I am trying to teach myself: let go of the past, let go of the future, be in the present. Be in: notice, acknowledge, appreciate, understand, dwell, exist. The present: what is happening now, what’s actually happening. There are many […]
What Makes a Jewish Song?
As a Jewish songwriter and composer I sometimes think about the question: What makes a Jewish song? There are many ways of responding to the question of what makes a Jewish song. Over the years, I’ve discussed and reflected on many of them. Today I stumbled upon a new answer. It came to me while […]