à la carte spirit by ilona fried
Faith
My Spiritual Nemesis? Glatt Kosher Restaurants
Nothing can dismantle my sense – or illusion? – of spiritual progress faster than eating at glatt kosher restaurants. In recent weeks I’ve been to three. Two in Montreal, where I visited an elderly Hassidic relative, and one in San Francisco, where I had dinner with my oldest, modern Orthodox nephew. Because strictly observant Jews cannot eat in non-kosher restaurants, … Continue reading
Feldenkrais: Learning as Prayer
Learning is turning darkness, which is the absence of light, into light. – Moshe Feldenkrais While decluttering last spring, more painstakingly and ruthlessly than ever before, I found handouts from a class on prayer, circa 2008. I had enrolled in the class at Temple Beth Zion in Brookline, MA, to see if I could I transform my relationship … Continue reading
Remembering a Holy Maverick: Encounters with Reb Zalman (z”l)
The world lost one of its luminaries, Reb Zalman Schachter-Shalomi (z”l), in early July. At a moving celebration of his life last weekend, I recalled a few of the more powerful times when my life intersected with this amazing being, with a “heart as big as the world”, if not as large as the cosmos. Grief introduced me to … Continue reading
A Tribute and a Request
In March, I wrote about the passing of Robyn Richey Piz, a fellow writer and co-founder of Salon Denver. She and her friend Christy Bailey invited me and a dozen others to this monthly gathering of writers to share works in progress and inspire each other. Some ‘salonistas’ who read that post had lovely things … Continue reading
Turkey is Not a Synonym for Gratitude
I didn’t always dread Thanksgiving. Growing up in the 1970s and early 1980s, I looked forward to it. I loved the special dishes my mother prepared (sauteed mushrooms and onions being one). I enjoyed making relish, hand cranking cranberries and an orange, rind and all, through a metal meat grinder and watching it ooze red … Continue reading
à la carte spirit by ilona fried 
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