The idea of “change” is one of the most powerful ideas out there. At the most basic level the idea of “change” speaks to the potential for transformation. That individuals, communities, organizations, and societies can change is an important and widely held belief. Recently I had a conversation with a friend who is admittedly afraid of change. […]
Daily Life
The prayer of my heart
Adonai my God Source of Life Thank you Thank you for this morning For waking up For sneaking out of the house while everyone else was still asleep For the cup of coffee I enjoyed on the way to the gym For the fact that my body didn’t rebel when I started […]
The best thing about being a rabbi
Well, there are many “best things” when it comes to walking on the rabbinic path, but here’s one of them: Giving voice. There’s an old joke (grounded in some truth) that rabbis like to talk. But when I reflect on what I love most about being a rabbi, it isn’t the brilliant words that I’ve […]
Life Lessons January 29th, 2016
Another Shabbat approaches, another week has gone by. Part of the beauty of Shabbat is letting go, part of the beauty of life is holding on. In that spirit, here are a few life lessons I’m carrying over from my week and into Shabbat: Every day is somebody’s birthday. Meanings aren’t fixed. Instead, we construct […]
Two affirmations of humanity
This week I had two separate series of experiences that reaffirmed two aspects of our shared humanity that I think are of great value. The first affirmation was an affirmation of the creativity capacity within each person. As human being we want, we yearn, we need to and can’t avoid engaging with our creativity. […]
talking to my 4 year old daughter about death
Last night I had one of those life defining experiences that no parent looks forward to: talking to my 4 year old about death. A tragedy has struck our community. A young father lost his battle with cancer. He has a child in my daughter’s preschool class. It’s a Jewish preschool and all of the […]