Purple Honey

Heshvan 2020 - How do we do our small part to solve large problems?

A conversation about small steps we can take to reduce our impact on the environment. I speak with Becky O'Brien, Hazon's Director of Food & Climate, about Jewish environmental action and how those two aspects of her life are integrated into Hazon's work.

Iyar 2020 - How do we give ourselves the time and space we need to shape our own lives?

A conversation about the dynamic layers of Jewish Time. I speak with Mo Golden, artist and educator, and Amanda Herring, experience curator and educator, about their creation - the Jewish Planner - a tool where Life Planning meets art, Jewish Wisdom, and Sacred Time Tracking, and gives us the space to be artists and architects in the way we shape our days, months and years. 

Shevat 2020 - What Does the Torah Taste Like?

A conversation about the connections between food and the Torah. I speak with Sarah Newman, writer, food enthusiast, cook and social justice advocate, about Neesh Noosh, her blog where she details her year long project to learn the weekly Torah portion and create recipes inspired by themes that emerged from the text.

Kislev 2019 - How Do Dreams Connect Us to the World Around Us?

A conversation about how we can connect to ourselves and our communities utilizing dreams. I speak with Rabbi Jill Hammer, the Director of Spiritual Education at the Academy for Jewish Religion, a pluralistic rabbinical and cantorial seminary in Yonkers, NY, and we explore the practice of dreamwork to connect to deep places within ourselves, to the vastness of the universe and to the deep feminine.

Tishrei II - What do we gain from telling the same stories over and over again?

A conversation about the wisdom gained from telling stories. I speak with Rebecca Entel, Associate Professor of English and Creative Writing at Cornell College, where she also directs the Center for the Literary Arts. Rebecca is also the author of the novel Fingerprints of Previous Owners, and we speak about how stories are constructed and how repeated reading and telling of stories can deepen our understanding of those stories and ourselves. 

Tishrei - How can the sacred practice of chanting help us through the new year?

A conversation about song. I speak with Stacy Kafka, Cantorial Soloist and Jewish chanting/meditation leader, about how chanting can help us connect to The Feels of this holiday season.

Elul - How do we find ourselves in Shabbat and how to we find Shabbat in ourselves?

A conversation about finding a meaningful Shabbat practice. I speak with Annie Matan, founder of Matanot Lev, Gifts of the Heart, Toronto’s radically inclusive, post halakhic Jewish community, about how Shabbat invites us into ease, meaning, presence, and connection.

Sivan - What does it mean to form a community?

A conversation about creating Jewish communities. I speak with Ariele Mortkowitz, creator of SVIVAH, and Lauren Spokane, the Lead Instigator and Board Chair of the New Synagogue Project, about their efforts in forming strong, modern, Jewish communities in the DC area.

Iyar - How can we move towards healing and wholeness?

A conversation about healing and wholeness. I speak with Rachel Brumberger, co-founder of Third Space Wellness, a gathering place and wellness space in Silver Spring, Maryland. We explore wisdom from the practice of acupuncture and Traditional Chinese Medicine and how moving what is stagnant, being with our whole selves through the pains is a path to healing.

Nissan, Part 2 - How do Birth Doulas and Postpartum Doulas support women physically, mentally and emotionally throughout the birth process?

A conversation about the transitional power of birth. I speak with Michelle Cohen, a Birth Arts International trained postpartum doula and a Yoga Alliance registered prenatal yoga teacher, on how doulas support women to connect with their bodies and their babies, through breath, movement and mindful awareness.