The Journey: From the very beginning I felt that Lech Lecha, get up and go for your benefit, was my call to move forward. It was only years later, as I learned the Biblical commentaries and subsequently lived in Israel, that I more fully appreciated the depth of the command. My first journey into the unknown was as a teen discovering Judaism. Her emphasis on family, intellectual honesty, and deep values drew me home and I converted at 21. After finishing a BA in Judaic Studies and Education at U.C. San Diego, I worked in Jewish Education for more than a dozen years teaching and lecturing across the United States to students from 9 to 99.
At 29, I understood that my time as a synagogue educator had only been preparing me for the next journey into the unknown. I headed to the Ziegler School of Rabbinic Studies where I earned an MA in Rabbinic Studies. But, my circuitous path toward God’s call had another detour in store in the form of guiding people through the beauties and challenges of the land and state we call home, Israel. Eventually, I heard Lech Lecha again and I returned to Ziegler to finish my formal studies and move fully into the rabbinate. I was ordained as a Conservative Rabbi in 2020. Looking back, it is clear these were the anchor points of my journey. Each centered around continuing my own growth, education, and spiritual development around people. Each was about sharing with others the integrity, lessons, and all-encompassing nature of the land, text, and spirituality I have come to love. To meet someone, where they are, and have the opportunity to open a door for them or walk with them for a while on their journey stills my heart and gladdens my soul. I have been honored to touch and be touched by many people thus far in my life and look forward to continuing this journey to “a land that I will show you.”
As a licensed Israel Tour Guide since 2007, I combine my background in Judaic and Rabbinic Studies, informal education pedagogy, and my love of Israel to share the amazing land and history of Israel with visitors from around the world both in Israel and abroad. Once again the honor of working with those from 0-99 abounds – families, congregations and community trips, interfaith, and special focus groups fill the year. I love integrating my Jewish and Rabbinic background with Israel to bring text and tradition to life by placing them in their original location and social surroundings.
To celebrate my 40th birthday and gain an in-depth look at the country, I hiked the 940-kilometer Israel Trail from Tel Dan in the North to Eilat in the South and I am now working on some of the other beautiful trails in the country. In addition to hiking and backpacking, I love to bike, explore new (and newly revealed) sites in Israel, and simply enjoy the outdoors.
Born and raised in Southern California I spent my youth raising Guide Dogs for the Blind, sheep, and riding horses. I was also an avid reader, photographer, and science geek.
Today: I pray for the opportunity to continue to develop myself intellectually and spiritually so that I can most effectively provide avenues for others to see the beauty I see in Judaism. To share how the values so inherent to Judaism can inform and strengthen their lives, our community, and the world. To live intentionally, humbly, and with integrity. To relate to all people as b’tzelem elohim, in the image of God. I hope to leave this world having made a positive contribution by serving God’s purpose for me and having helped to ensure that Judaism will continue to bring her values to individuals and the world.
The Story: The Talmud tells a story of Avram(Abraham) just after God said: “Lech Lecha, Go forth from your native land…” (Gen 12:1). In the story, Avram is compared to a man who sees a birah doleket. He wonders if the world has a caretaker to which God replies ‘I am the Sovereign of the Universe.’ Birah Doleket is an ambiguous term. Typically translated as a ‘burning palace,’ in God in Search of Man, Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel understands that bira doleket can also be understood as a ‘palace lit by a bright light’.
I love the dichotomy of these texts. At its base, Avram shows total trust in God’s path for him by heading out to an unknown destination. While he wanders he sees the world as a birah doleket and questions if God acts in the world. The question I am left with is what does he see? Does he see the world burning, brightly lit, or perhaps both?
We walk in this world on our spiritual journeys where we must learn to trust God and where while it is often easiest to see the world ‘burning’ we can choose to see and to work toward a world which is ‘brightly lit.’ While this spiritual work is ours alone, the embrace of others along the path supports and encourages us.
Perhaps you want a new look at traditional texts, interpretations, or rituals. Perhaps you want to bring God and spirituality more fully into your life. Whatever your path is, I hope that the offerings on these pages will help to support you along your path.