Welcoming in the New Year in the midst of such challenging times inspires me to look back at 2020 with an eye for important lessons learned.
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My birthday was last Thursday, and one of the gifts I asked my husband for was to support my wish to go the entire day without hearing any news. I hadn’t taken a full break from the news since February, and I was long overdue!
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I recently read my grandchildren a book by Leo Lionni called Frederick, a story about a little field mouse who, instead of working hard to gather corn, nuts and wheat for the winter months like the other mice in his family, just sits on a large stone gazing at the countryside in contemplation. The first time he is asked reproachfully why he isn’t working, he replies, “I do work. I gather sun rays for the cold dark winter days.”
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I’ve been reading a wonderful (and very timely) new book about healing from prolonged stress and trauma called, Widen the Window—Training Your Brain and Body to Thrive During Stress and Recover from Trauma, by Elizabeth Stanley, PhD.
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One of my wise father’s most thought-provoking assertions was that there are no bad people, only bad ideas. As someone who endured a lifetime of violent antisemitism before suffering three years of abuse as a starved slave laborer in Nazi concentration camps, his statement about human nature is even more surprising.
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During the many weeks this summer when the air in Northern California was choked with thick grey smoke from the wildfires raging all around us, the air wasn’t safe to breath and entire days remained dark as twilight. Some of those weeks had record-setting temperatures which made my house stifling.
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During this challenging time in history, my father’s philosophy and healing journey have provided a tremendous anchor and inspiration for me. Despite enduring inconceivable horrors, brutality and loss during the Holocaust, my father was eventually able to live a life of deep peace and joy.
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This past Tuesday, people from all over the country came together to amplify the energetic impact of focusing on their deepest wishes for the world. Collectively, participants in Circles of Light envisioned a healthy planet and a human family unified in their commitment to cooperation, justice and kindness.
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The most basic lesson I learned when I first became an organic farmer was that the seeds we water are the ones that grow. This isn’t only true for lettuce, arugula and carrots; it’s also true for weeds, which wait patiently in the soil for the chance to spring to life.
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In addition to working hard to affect transformation in the “real world”—getting people to vote, stand up against injustice, and help those in need—I’ve grown to believe that we can also be powerful changemakers in the energetic realms by amplifying the love in our hearts and sowing much-needed seeds of positivity. Visualization, done together in big groups to magnify the impact, may actually be able to function as a type of “spiritual elevator” for us right now.
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No matter our age, we must never stop trying to uncover the ways we have been taught to hate and fear. We must also work towards developing more tolerance, acceptance and generosity—as well as the bravery and determination to take a stand for justice. Honest and self-aware people like Joe Jedeikin are helping move the world in the right direction, and I feel very grateful that he has shared his story and wisdom with the world.
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A few months ago, I wrote one of my favorite blog posts, Lessons from Leo, sharing what I’ve learned about life from our sweet, quirky yellow lab puppy, Leo. The essay inspired my friend, Lisa Rudolph to ask herself: “What beautiful insights and revelations is my dog Luna offering that I haven’t yet taken the time to notice and fully appreciate?”
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This has been a scary, sad and difficult time for many of us living in California. The weekend of August 15th brought nearly 14,000 lightning strikes, igniting more than 840 wildfires. Resources to combat the blazes have been stretched very thin.
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A few months ago, I participated in a wonderful online event with the Museum of Tolerance in Los Angeles for Quest for Eternal Sunshine. Afterwards, the museum let me know that a Holocaust survivor and frequent lecturer at the museum—a man named William Harvey—wanted to connect with me.
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A few weeks ago, I shared my excitement about Quest for Eternal Sunshine’s inclusion in Parade Magazine’s list of the top 24 memoirs of 2020. Since then, I’ve listened to two of the other books on the list, Glennon Doyle’s Untamed, and Alicia Keys’ More Myself: A Journey. Both were powerful—honest, intimate, inspiring, and filled with wisdom. Because I love great wisdom-packed quotes, I want to share my favorites from each book with you.
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This week, I’m enjoying being part of Debra Silverman’s Conversations with Destiny online summit, where she’s been having intimate conversations with twenty-two top experts in their fields. This focus of the summit is on what astrological birth charts reveal about peoples’ personalities and life’s purpose, and it’s been quite entertaining to watch Debra blow everyone’s minds during these fascinating and thought provoking interviews.
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From time to time, readers send me little gifts in the form of letting me know the ways they’ve been impacted by Quest for Eternal Sunshine. Today, I’m happy to share six very different morsels of inspiration. I greatly enjoyed them all, and I know my dad would have loved them, too. Many thanks to every contributor, and please keep the comments coming!
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As 4th of July approaches during this time of tremendous upheaval, myriad thoughts and emotions are arising for me. As the daughter of two immigrant refugees who found sanctuary in America after surviving a horrific genocide, I was raised to be extremely grateful to this country—to “kiss the soil” I was standing on.
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One of my earliest disappointments caused by the coronavirus was the cancelation of a weekend writing workshop I’d been eager to attend at the Esalen Institute in Big Sur with Ellen Bass and Roxan McDonald. So, when I heard these two gifted, inspiring writers were teaming up to teach a one-day Zoom class in mid-June focused on writing and gratitude, I immediately signed up.
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This Father’s Day feels extra special to me, and no wonder—the book my dad and I posthumously collaborated on for so many years is finally out in the world. I feel his joy and can see his radiant smile!
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