choosing choise

Fourth of July: A time of choosing

by Melanie Gruenwald

My husband and I were in the mountains this past week, enjoying the Colorado summer. It’s  a gift to live here, and to have time to bike, hike and explore together. We have been married almost 23 years. We’ve learned to navigate both quiet and busy and take advantage of good times together as a couple and as a family.

We moved to this state in 2008, when my husband assumed a pulpit at Hebrew Educational Alliance.

We’ve learned to flow with the tides of life, competing demands, supporting one another’s careers, while raising incredible children. We find time to be together- to move in the outdoor beauty- to smell the trees.

 

My ‘learning’ for this time away is about choice.

 

We have a choice in how we show up in adversity.

We have a choice of dignity and pride.

We have a choice how we connect to humans and other living things.

We have a choice to experience gratitude and wonder.

We have a choice in how we show up with and for one another.

We have a choice how we show up and love one another.

 

In our personal and communal lives, we always have choice to do better, to fight for justice and to pursue dignity.

Everything else will flow from there.

 

Enjoy your fourth of July weekend. Take care of  yourselves and the people around you.

What will you choose today?

1 Comment

Wendy Davis · July 6, 2024 at 1:03 pm

Beautiful inspirational poetry.
Thanks, Melanie, for reminding me.

Leave a Reply

Avatar placeholder

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Related Posts

image of fire in los angeles

Los Angeles is on Fire

Los Angeles is on fire. The Palisades are gone.   My teacher and friend, Rabbi Bradley Artson shared on TikTok: What are we supposed to do in all of this? All of our traditions, all

a new story blog

A New Story

by Dr. David Sanders   Rabbi Sharon Brous, author of The Amen Effect and founder of IKAR in Los Angeles spoke this past Yom Kippur on the stories which we talk about ourselves, our people,

magicall tree

Five Principles to Live By

by Melanie Gruenwald Life is a journey filled with moments of joy, challenge, and discovery. Along the way, we often find ourselves searching for meaning and clarity. For me, five principles guide my path and

A Maddening Parable

by Dr. David Sanders Once an astrologer-king saw in the stars that anyone who would eat of the coming year’s harvest would go mad. He called in his trusted advisor to ask for his counsel.

light in darkness

Finding Light in Darkness

by Melanie Gruenwald There’s an adage a historian once called a law of history, true of every society across the ages. The adage is, only when it is dark enough can you see the stars.