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Earth and Soul
In reading Earth & Soul: Reconnecting Amid Climate Change, some of the information about nature’s interconnectedness was new to me and some brought back many happy childhood memories of walking around the small farm I grew up on with a beloved uncle who loved to teach me about the natural world around me, about how…
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Being My Authentic Self
When I am asked how I’ve grown from my first steps with Shalem’s Heart Longings program to where I am today, the short answer is, I have grown tremendously. When I decided to apply to the Heart Longings program, I was seeking a closer relationship with God. I wanted to feel God’s presence more in…
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The Wilderness of Becoming
I have been thinking a lot about wilderness lately. I sit writing this piece immediately following the festival of Shavuot, when we Jews celebrate God’s giving of the Torah and our entering into covenantal relationship with God in the wilderness of Sinai. In addition, Jewish communities around the world are currently reading from the book…
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Opening the Heart of Compassion
How can we skillfully navigate suffering in the present moment? What practices might we employ that remind us that we are not alone? These questions have become particularly relevant to me in the last three years. Perhaps they are meaningful for you right now. In September 2022, my beloved husband of 24 years was killed…