Pitching Tents, Pitching Ideas

by Devora Gila Berkowitz

Parshat Lech Lecha

Ever notice how we respond to someone's idea?

"Oh, well..." Hardly before we've taken it in, we're already giving over ours.

Now, Avraham would always pitch his wife's tent before his own (Midrash on Bereshit 12:8).

Let's extend the idea of pitching a tent (ohel) to pitching an idea (oh, well...).

We're so attached to our ideas. Some of us even write blogs about them(!).

But what if we invested in the other's idea first, before our own?

The next time someone shares an idea with you, don't judge it or respond right away.
Pitch their idea right back at them. Give yourself time to settle into it. Pull the flaps down. 
Only when you've given it enough time and consideration, dare to pitch yours.

What would our lives be like if we communicated like this?


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In the Footsteps of Avraham

by Devora Gila Berkowitz

Parshat Lech Lecha

Emunah. Emunah. Emunah.

-- The sounds of Avraham's footsteps.

Children. Wealth. Fame.

-- The sounds of Hashem's response.

What great blessings are awaiting your next step of faith?

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50 Ways to Leave Your Loved Ones

by Devora Gila Berkowitz

Parshat Lech Lecha

.

It's ad hominem, Shem

I'm goin' a capella, Shelah

It's now or never, Eber

Fifty ways to leave
your loved ones

Don't mean to be rude, Serug

No time to shmooze, dude

It's the end of the perek, Terach,

Gotta follow my G-d

Avraham doesn't need fifty reasons to split. He just has one:
to leave behind the false beliefs and misguided perspectives that are holding him back from receiving something much better: a reality that G-d Himself intends for him to have.  

Are you courageous enough to let go of the misconceptions you've had about yourself and your life until now, in order to enter into a broader, more blessed reality?


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The Flip Side

by Devora Gila Berkowitz

Parshat Noach

Does G-d save Noah because he is a righteous person in an evil world?

Or does G-d destroy an evil world because Noah is a righteous person? 

We can look at life in two ways:

1. Life is full of trials and challenges (the evil world metaphor) but G-d loves me enough to help ("save") me through it all.
2. G-d is smoothing the challenges for me (destroying an evil world) because I love Him so much.

The difference is very subtle. What do these differences feel like to you?


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Rainbow Vision

by Devora Gila Berkowitz

Parshat Noah

What do you do when you see a rainbow?

Do you stop whatever you're doing to behold its mystical beauty? Or look around for someone to share it with? 

The rainbow is G-d's sacred promise to never destroy the world again. A colorful connection between heaven and earth. Its only catch: it has to be seen (Bereshit 9:14). 

Who is it seen by?

I'd like to imagine that both we and G-d are eyeing that image together. We on earth, G-d in heaven, connected together by the rainbow.

So the next time you stop to stare at a rainbow, you're not alone -- G-d is looking at it with you.



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From G-d's Perspective

by Devora Gila Berkowitz

Parshat Noah

What is your preference in your relationships?

You prefer:

1) to take control
2) to defer control
3) interdependence


Noah is the third kind of person. Not interested in co-dependence, his "walking with" G-d speaks of a mutually responsibility in his relationship with G-d. He builds, G-d saves.


World flood?  No problem.  He doesn't argue with G-d to manipulate Him into changing His mind.  In fact, he does everything that G-d commands him to.  Easily, without complaint. It's almost spooky.


Does that make him Mr. Doormat, Personality #2?
Not a chance.  He walks "with" G-d so compatibly that the Torah even emphasizes: "so he did."


Noah has chosen an interdependent relationship with the Divine. He's not interested in controlling the Divine. He also doesn't blindly follow. The added "so he did" hints at his free choice in an interdependent relationship with G-d.


Noah's no dummy.  He knows what's going on in the world. Because he walks with G-d he is open to seeing through G-d's perspective -- as best as a human can, of course. And from there he makes the choice to build. And "so he did." 

How would life be different if we walked with G-d and tried to see it from His perspective?


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In G-d's Time

by Devora Gila Berkowitz

Parshat Noah

Did you ever get frustrated because you failed the first time?

In our parshah, when the raven goes out from the ark, it can’t find a resting place and returns. When the waters recede, the dove flies off and reappears with an olive branch in his beak: proof of dry land.

Sometimes we can’t achieve our goals because G-d just isn’t ready.

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Recreation Through Re-creation

by Devora Gila Berkowitz

Parshat Bereshit

Babies know the biggest secret of the universe.

Did you ever watch a baby squeal in delight while playing peek-a-boo?  Babies don’t get bored from playing the same game over and over again.

Every moment for little ones is fresh and new. They find recreation through the constant re-creation of their reality.

Why not see the world for a few moments today through your inner child’s eyes?

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