Yael Nehama

1. When you wake up, thank the Universe for a new day. The Jewish Prayer of "modeh/ah ani" is a good one to say. מודה אני לפניך מלך חי וקים שהחזרת בי נשמתי בחמלה, רבה אמונתך. Modeh ani lifanekha melekh ḥai v'kayam sheheḥezarta bi nishmahti b'ḥemlah, rabah emunatekha. I offer thanks before you, living and eternal King, for You have mercifully restored my soul within me; Your faithfulness is great. 2. Enjoy a cup of your favorite warm beverage. My choice, coffee. 3. Meet beloved people for more coffee and tea biscuits. (On the way, have an argument on the phone that upsets your tummy and then promise yourself not to do THAT again. Makes the hug greeting of your beloved people even sweeter and remind you of the great day you are having.) 4. Have many REAL conversations with long time friends, family and your children. 5. Dance, ALOT! 6. Hug more friends and your daughter, ALOT! 7. Forgive yourself and the other person involved in above argument. 8. Go shopping with belo...

My daughter is moving today. Close to three weeks a married woman, she and her beloved are setting off about 12 hours from my home to establish their home. This morning as I woke up she was who I saw in my mind's eye and she is to whom my thoughts turned and my heart was full of words and love that I want to share with her as she embarks on one of the greatest journeys of her life. My daughter, you are my daughter. This means you come from a long line of kick ass women. Never forget who you are. You are the granddaughter of Dawn Ann and Carmen Lydia. You are the Great granddaughter of Mercedes, Inez and Blanche. You are the great-great granddaughter of Maria de los Angeles. You are the daughter of Sarah, Rivka, Rachel and Leah and a child of Chava. All strong women, all wise women, and all of which you carry a spark of inside of you. Inside of you are the generations of women, strong and brave, tender and loving. Inside of you is all of the collective Wisdom and Light of your gra...

In my neighborhood there are some amazing hidden treasures of which I am beginning to discover. One of these treasures are several lavender bushes that a neighbor of mine has. I have been admiring these bushes for some time and joked with my daughter that was going to sneak up in the night and help myself. Of course she discouraged me saying, "Bad karma!"OK, fine, I would certainly not want anything negative revisited on my own little garden. So one day last week, I grabbed a pair of shears, gathered up my courage, and went up and knocked on her door."Hi, I'm your neighbor and I was wondering if I could have some of your lavender."She looked at me a bit peculiarly and I mentioned where I lived. She then seemed a bit more relaxed and said "Sure!" I was thrilled needless to say, and I asked her how much could I take.(I know me, talk about a kid in a candy store!)"Take it all! We are trying to grow them as hedges and they need trimming." "R...