Perhaps in 2025, in this tug-of-war between loyalty and morality, resistance is the true shape of patriotism. Reflections on the 4th of July. Reflections on Fourth of July themes.

What if Torah tells it wrong? What if wandering in the desert was not a punishment but a chosen path for a people who did not want to become Pharaoh? An alternative take on Shlach Lekha.

It feels like there is so much being lost right now. But we still carry those things in us. Like Levites carrying crates of holy regalia. A consideration of Parashat Bamidbar.

The house is a kind of living being – our individual houses and the one we all share. How do we help it release its past and present suffering?

How do you tell the story of Purim in a time when we are already activated, when we are beginning to feel the breath of danger on the backs of our necks?

I wake up every day in fear. But I am not in any personal, imminent danger. This is the conditioning of my past and the dread of the future. But I am not the captive of my conditioning, and dread is not destiny. In this moment I am strong. In this moment I am needed. May I be of use.

Coming back from rabbi jamboree in Colorado, I realize that even in what seems like the loneliest places, we are not alone. (Apologies for mechanical noise on the recording. Oy, what did I do wrong?)

Even if we believe that the Divine is all around us and in us, it's hard to shake loose the metaphor of verticality. What do you do to ascend to celestial heights? And how do you pour that back into the everyday?

We are at a crossroads: one path moving forward and one circling back. Thankfully, we are very good at circles. Some thoughts coming out of Sukkot, Hoshanah Rabbah, Shemini Atzeret, and Simchat Torah.

Spending a month alone in Worms was an unresearched, romantic idea. It wasn't what I was looking for. But maybe it was what I needed.