Ma'yan Tikvah - A Wellspring of Hope

Spiritual Wisdom from Earth and Torah

Divrei Earth

The views and opinions expressed in the d'vrei Earth represent those of the author.

Today Elohim

06.10.2019

Ma'yan Tikvah - A Wellspring of Hope

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by Judith Felsen, Ph.D. Today I spent an hour with Youa treat, a prayer, a meditationI heard you speakhum in silenceconsonant with the windair has a language of its ownthe universe, green kingdomintertwined within and outall substance of one cellnature spoke for You, Elohimmessaging the Shemain truth and experiencewe are one/Onein peaceJudith Felsen, Ph.D. is a poetess, Clinical Psychologist, coach, 2nd generation holocaust survivor, hiker, dancer, walker, volunteer, lover of nature, gardens, wilderness, beach, ocean and mountains. Her work addresses issues of recovery, 2nd generation survivors, the natural world, gardens and harvests, life cycle issues, spiritual questing, social issues, community issues and personal requests. Her poems have been published and widely distributed in national and specific publications. She is a New York native and resident of new Hampshire. She frequents Long Beach and lives with her husband and two large rescue dogs at their camp in the White Mountains of N.H. and house near the ocean in Long Beach. She actively studies the mystical and esoteric aspects of Judaism and is a member of the board of the Bethlehem Hebrew Congregation and the Chavurah of Mount Washington Valley. She writes often and offers consultation upon request.

Geologic Love

04.10.2019

Ma'yan Tikvah - A Wellspring of Hope

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by Jonathan BilligWhat does a glacier say? Let the mice declare, “striation! striation!” Geologists and the keepers of the holy names.Glaciers proclaim hilltopsWith impossibly slow song,Glaciers sing rivers,Fjords and moraines,Million-year cycles repeating refrains.Listen, O children of your own creation,The cosmos is our body, the cosmos isWounded here at home,Where squirrels lie open in the roadways,Children of our parkways,Heavy with oaks but few foxes,And flowing with rivers of cars. What is the sound of a glacier not coming?What is the sound of a glacier of flesh? Pebbles in my hand Weighty and cool as the hand of a loved one is warm-Billions of years,Nebulas flaring and spreading.Coagulation in space from a dust cloud of rocks.Water condensing on turbulent volcanic surface,Until somewhere in the oceans livedA smattering of molecules- The world decided harmony.Oh rocks whose name is breakdown layer transform,Oh elements holding my hands up and down,Oh cosmos, oh God, oh fellow humans,Will we avert our harsh decree? How does a human glacier learn to love? Jonathan Billig is a connection educator, exploring diverse fields as mutually reinforcing play-grounds for who we are and could become. He has worked as an education coordinator for public gardens and synagogues, taught aboard a sailboat and at outdoor education centers, and spearheaded the design of the volunteer program on Mount Monadnock, the most climbed mountain in the United States. He currently works as a consultant in Jewish, outdoor, science, and mindfulness education. He is committed to the ongoing process of seeing and transforming systemic societal injustice, while diligently practicing love of people and the more-than-human world.

Shanah Tovah 5780 - May We Be Like Rocks

29.09.2019

Ma'yan Tikvah - A Wellspring of Hope

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by Rabbi Katy Z Allen photos by Gabi Mezger We think of rocks as solid and unchanging, like G!d. We call G!d Tzur Yisrael - Rock of Israel, Tzuri v'Goali - My Rock and my Redeemer. But, rock changes. Influenced by wind and water, by plants and lichens, rocks break apart, become smaller and smaller. Influenced by heat and pressure, rocks join back together. Influenced by global movements, rocks rise up to form vast mountain ranges. As we enter this new year, may we allow those we love, G!d, the circumstances of our communities and the world, and the state of our planet to change us, to make us stronger, and more flexible, that we may be like G!d, and like rocks -- solid but ever-changing. Shanah tovah u'metukah -- wishing you a good and sweet new year, Rabbi Katy and Gabi

The above are examples of Divrei Earth - spiritual wisdom from Earth and Torah, in the blog written by Rabbi Katy Allen and members and friends of Ma'yan Tikvah.

Divrei Earth - literally words of Earth, provide reflections on the weekly Torah portion, as well as Earth Etudes for Elul, reflections in preparation for the New Year during the month leading up to Rosh Hashanah, and Counting the Omer, reflections on Earth and Torah from Passover to Shavuot.

CLICK HERE to view the blog, where you can subscribe to receive the posts via email.

Ma'yan Tikvah Makes the Globe!

Thank you to Lisa Wangsness at The Boston Globe for the fantastic article about Ma'yan Tikvah! Check it out here.

Help Protect and Save the Earth - 13 Tips

CLICK HERE to find 13 environmental tips with accompanying texts and commentary by Rabbi Katy Allen.

Watch at Eden Keeper

Webinar : A Transformation from Environamental Grief to Environmental Action

Watch Eden Keeper Webinar, "A Transformation from Environmental Grief to Environmental Action." During this half-hour video, Director Robin Purchia hosts Rabbi Katy and the two discuss grief, the management of feelings of loss, and how to tranform our dark inner places into joy and a spiritual connection to the environment.

Link to YouTube Webinar

Link to Eden Keeper Website

Some Spiritual Tips

Are you feeling a bit blue? Wondering about meaning? Despairing about the state of the world? Here are a few suggestions to help yourself get re-grounded spiritually.

Find a spot outdoors where you can focus on the natural world. Even in the city, you can always look up at the sky. Pay attention to what you see. Let it speak to you. Let the image, sound, or smell enter deep into your being.
Draw a picture. It doesn't matter if you "know how to draw" or not. Simply focus on something meaningful to you and record something of what you see, in either an abstract form or something more representative.
Think back to a moment in nature from your childhood or youth. Record your memory in words or images.
Sit still in a quiet place. Breathe deeply. Image yourself enveloped in love and mercy, beneath the wings of the Shechinah, the Divine Presence.
Find a passage from a sacred text, in the broadest sense of the word, Torah or other Jewish texts, your favorite children's book, a poem, or whatever strikes you. Connect it to your experience in nature or your drawing or writing. Think about how the two enrich each other.
Call a friend to ask how he or she is doing.