Explore every episode of the podcast Awake with Rabbi Lauren Holtzblatt

There are so many stories that are beneath the surface. And once and a while, we get to know what they are, when we make space and we listen. When we pause.

Thank you so much for listening. You can always check out more episodes at adasisrael.org/awake or on your favorite podcast provider. Please make sure to hit subscribe, rate us 5 stars, and leave a review to let us know you like the show, it helps us to get the word out. Finally, you can email us at awake@adasisrael.org to give feedback about the show - let us know what you like and what you want to hear more of. Thank you for listening, wishing you a holy encounter this week.

I am terrified of flying. And now I’ve committed to flying at least once a month to Utah to see my son. On my most recent flight, I had a realization...

Thank you so much for listening. You can always check out more episodes at adasisrael.org/awake or on your favorite podcast provider. Please make sure to hit subscribe, rate us 5 stars, and leave a review to let us know you like the show, it helps us to get the word out. Finally, you can email us at awake@adasisrael.org to give feedback about the show - let us know what you like and what you want to hear more of. Thank you for listening, wishing you a holy encounter this week.

This week I was listening to a podcast called “The Hidden Brain,” where they were discussing the formula ancient Stoics followed to minimize pain and maximize joy in life. 

Thank you so much for listening. You can always check out more episodes at adasisrael.org/awake or on your favorite podcast provider. Please make sure to hit subscribe, rate us 5 stars, and leave a review to let us know you like the show, it helps us to get the word out. Finally, you can email us at awake@adasisrael.org to give feedback about the show - let us know what you like and what you want to hear more of. Thank you for listening, wishing you a holy encounter this week.

I’m back and it’s great to be with you. This episode is about a conversation I had about the fear of all the good things in one’s life and how we can find God in adversity. 

Thank you so much for listening. You can always check out more episodes at adasisrael.org/awake or on your favorite podcast provider. Please make sure to hit subscribe, rate us 5 stars, and leave a review to let us know you like the show, it helps us to get the word out. Finally, you can email us at awake@adasisrael.org to give feedback about the show - let us know what you like and what you want to hear more of. Thank you for listening, wishing you a holy encounter this week.

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about prayer, moments of exaltation, moments of deep sorrow, moments of joy. All of the highs and lows that bring us to spiritual experiences. 

Thank you so much for listening. You can always check out more episodes at adasisrael.org/awake or on your favorite podcast provider. Please make sure to hit subscribe, rate us 5 stars, and leave a review to let us know you like the show, it helps us to get the word out. Finally, you can email us at awake@adasisrael.org to give feedback about the show - let us know what you like and what you want to hear more of. Thank you for listening, wishing you a holy encounter this week.

Today I want to talk about music, the sound of the soul. I have two stories to share, one of a glorious end, and one of a glorious beginning. 

Thank you so much for listening. You can always check out more episodes at adasisrael.org/awake or on your favorite podcast provider. Please make sure to hit subscribe, rate us 5 stars, and leave a review to let us know you like the show, it helps us to get the word out. Finally, you can email us at awake@adasisrael.org to give feedback about the show - let us know what you like and what you want to hear more of. Thank you for listening, wishing you a holy encounter this week.

In the first episode of a month-long series on Elul, I’ll be talking about tshuva, sharing some of the teachings and stories that I have found most helpful in my journey. 

Thank you so much for listening. You can always check out more episodes at adasisrael.org/awake or on your favorite podcast provider. Please make sure to hit subscribe, rate us 5 stars, and leave a review to let us know you like the show, it helps us to get the word out. Finally, you can email us at awake@adasisrael.org to give feedback about the show - let us know what you like and what you want to hear more of. Thank you for listening, wishing you a holy encounter this week.

Pandemic-mind is a term I coined for the monotony of space that leads to our thoughts running wild with fear and the unknown. 

Thank you so much for listening. You can always check out more episodes at adasisrael.org/awake or on your favorite podcast provider. Please make sure to hit subscribe, rate us 5 stars, and leave a review to let us know you like the show, it helps us to get the word out. Finally, you can email us at awake@adasisrael.org to give feedback about the show - let us know what you like and what you want to hear more of. Thank you for listening, wishing you a holy encounter this week.

When I was a kid I had a lot of anger about the world. Inevitably, I would be sent to my room, which would be followed by me longing to connect with my family again.

Thank you so much for listening. You can always check out more episodes at adasisrael.org/awake or on your favorite podcast provider. Please make sure to hit subscribe, rate us 5 stars, and leave a review to let us know you like the show, it helps us to get the word out. Finally, you can email us at awake@adasisrael.org to give feedback about the show - let us know what you like and what you want to hear more of. Thank you for listening, wishing you a holy encounter this week.

My kids have been asking me recently to tell them stories of my youth. Stories help mold us, they help us figure out who we are, and how to deal with the world. 

Thank you so much for listening. You can always check out more episodes at adasisrael.org/awake or on your favorite podcast provider. Please make sure to hit subscribe, rate us 5 stars, and leave a review to let us know you like the show, it helps us to get the word out. Finally, you can email us at awake@adasisrael.org to give feedback about the show - let us know what you like and what you want to hear more of. Thank you for listening, wishing you a holy encounter this week.

I’ve been talking with a friend about the different parts of this pandemic, and the phases we’ve gone through. And it’s had me thinking about journeys. 

Thank you so much for listening. You can always check out more episodes at adasisrael.org/awake or on your favorite podcast provider. Please make sure to hit subscribe, rate us 5 stars, and leave a review to let us know you like the show, it helps us to get the word out. Finally, you can email us at awake@adasisrael.org to give feedback about the show - let us know what you like and what you want to hear more of. Thank you for listening, wishing you a holy encounter this week.

During this time, many of us have found ourselves being very comfortable in our homes, staying in a single spot. And yet, there are other places that call us.

Thank you so much for listening. You can always check out more episodes at adasisrael.org/awake or on your favorite podcast provider. Please make sure to hit subscribe, rate us 5 stars, and leave a review to let us know you like the show, it helps us to get the word out. Finally, you can email us at awake@adasisrael.org to give feedback about the show - let us know what you like and what you want to hear more of. Thank you for listening, wishing you a holy encounter this week.

So one thing I have not spoken about on this podcast, is my chicks. When reflecting on them, I came upon a midrash which sung to me.

Thank you so much for listening. You can always check out more episodes at adasisrael.org/awake or on your favorite podcast provider. Please make sure to hit subscribe, rate us 5 stars, and leave a review to let us know you like the show, it helps us to get the word out. Finally, you can email us at awake@adasisrael.org to give feedback about the show - let us know what you like and what you want to hear more of. Thank you for listening, wishing you a holy encounter this week.

What’s been coming back to me again and again over the last few weeks are the words of Ilana Kaufman, “binary thinking is what seeks to divide us.”

Thank you so much for listening. You can always check out more episodes at adasisrael.org/awake or on your favorite podcast provider. Please make sure to hit subscribe, rate us 5 stars, and leave a review to let us know you like the show, it helps us to get the word out. Finally, you can email us at awake@adasisrael.org to give feedback about the show - let us know what you like and what you want to hear more of. Thank you for listening, wishing you a holy encounter this week.

As many of you know, I live in Washington, DC, where there have been sustained protests for the last 10 days. Last week, my son and I participated.

Thank you so much for listening. You can always check out more episodes at adasisrael.org/awake or on your favorite podcast provider. Please make sure to hit subscribe, rate us 5 stars, and leave a review to let us know you like the show, it helps us to get the word out. Finally, you can email us at awake@adasisrael.org to give feedback about the show - let us know what you like and what you want to hear more of. Thank you for listening, wishing you a holy encounter this week.

I come to you today feeling the pain that we are feeling the streets of our cities. While there is no way to fix this pain, I want to offer you a teaching about leadership.

Thank you so much for listening. You can always check out more episodes at adasisrael.org/awake or on your favorite podcast provider. Please make sure to hit subscribe, rate us 5 stars, and leave a review to let us know you like the show, it helps us to get the word out. Finally, you can email us at awake@adasisrael.org to give feedback about the show - let us know what you like and what you want to hear more of. Thank you for listening, wishing you a holy encounter this week.

Shavuot begins this week. In my quest to ‘keep it real’ with you all, today we are going to talk about repentance and Torah, the great magnifier. 

Thank you so much for listening. You can always check out more episodes at adasisrael.org/awake or on your favorite podcast provider. Please make sure to hit subscribe, rate us 5 stars, and leave a review to let us know you like the show, it helps us to get the word out. Finally, you can email us at awake@adasisrael.org to give feedback about the show - let us know what you like and what you want to hear more of. Thank you for listening, wishing you a holy encounter this week.

I noticed the other day, we have a yellow rose bush on our front lawn that blooms every year. As I was out with my son yesterday smelling the roses, I saw something...

Thank you so much for listening. You can always check out more episodes at adasisrael.org/awake or on your favorite podcast provider. Please make sure to hit subscribe, rate us 5 stars, and leave a review to let us know you like the show, it helps us to get the word out. Finally, you can email us at awake@adasisrael.org to give feedback about the show - let us know what you like and what you want to hear more of. Thank you for listening, wishing you a holy encounter this week.

My family has been watching the documentary series “The Last Dance” about Michael Jordan and I’ve been obsessed. I’ve been asking myself, “what it is about him that makes people so enamored?”

Thank you so much for listening. You can always check out more episodes at adasisrael.org/awake or on your favorite podcast provider. Please make sure to hit subscribe, rate us 5 stars, and leave a review to let us know you like the show, it helps us to get the word out. Finally, you can email us at awake@adasisrael.org to give feedback about the show - let us know what you like and what you want to hear more of. Thank you for listening, wishing you a holy encounter this week.

I’m sure like many of you, there are stories that are happening in your house during this pandemic, that may not have happened before. For my family, we have been having a little bit of a mouse problem.

Thank you so much for listening. You can always check out more episodes at adasisrael.org/awake or on your favorite podcast provider. Please make sure to hit subscribe, rate us 5 stars, and leave a review to let us know you like the show, it helps us to get the word out. Finally, you can email us at awake@adasisrael.org to give feedback about the show - let us know what you like and what you want to hear more of. Thank you for listening, wishing you a holy encounter this week.

The past few months have been brutal. As I was at the cemetery burying a beloved congregant who passed from COVID-19, I was reminded of a passage in the Zohar, about homecomings. 

Thank you so much for listening. You can always check out more episodes at adasisrael.org/awake or on your favorite podcast provider. Please make sure to hit subscribe, rate us 5 stars, and leave a review to let us know you like the show, it helps us to get the word out. Finally, you can email us at awake@adasisrael.org to give feedback about the show - let us know what you like and what you want to hear more of. Thank you for listening, wishing you a holy encounter this week.

As I’ve been recording this podcast in my house, I’ve been thinking about the things that give us structure during times of chaos. This week, I found it in a Torah portion in the book of Leviticus.

Thank you so much for listening. You can always check out more episodes at adasisrael.org/awake or on your favorite podcast provider. Please make sure to hit subscribe, rate us 5 stars, and leave a review to let us know you like the show, it helps us to get the word out. Finally, you can email us at awake@adasisrael.org to give feedback about the show - let us know what you like and what you want to hear more of. Thank you for listening, wishing you a holy encounter this week.

My daughter recently got into an argument with some of her friends. We had a long conversation, and we got to talking about the difference between shame and guilt.

Thank you so much for listening. You can always check out more episodes at adasisrael.org/awake or on your favorite podcast provider. Please make sure to hit subscribe, rate us 5 stars, and leave a review to let us know you like the show, it helps us to get the word out. Finally, you can email us at awake@adasisrael.org to give feedback about the show - let us know what you like and what you want to hear more of. Thank you for listening, wishing you a holy encounter this week.

Over the last few weeks in quarantine I have been working on my headstand. I've noticed that this is a perfect parallel to where we are in the world right now. 

Thank you so much for listening. You can always check out more episodes at adasisrael.org/awake or on your favorite podcast provider. Please make sure to hit subscribe, rate us 5 stars, and leave a review to let us know you like the show, it helps us to get the word out. Finally, you can email us at awake@adasisrael.org to give feedback about the show - let us know what you like and what you want to hear more of. Thank you for listening, wishing you a holy encounter this week.

In the time we live, taking time to discover the self and develop a spiritual practice is more difficult than ever. In the midst of our daily chaos, we must take the time to ask ourselves: Who am I?

Thank you so much for listening. You can always check out more episodes at adasisrael.org/awake or on your favorite podcast provider. Please make sure to hit subscribe, rate us 5 stars, and leave a review to let us know you like the show, it helps us to get the word out. Finally, you can email us at awake@adasisrael.org to give feedback about the show - let us know what you like and what you want to hear more of. Thank you for listening, wishing you a holy encounter this week.

This week I've been thinking a lot about redemption. This reminds me of the story of Moses parting the Red Sea and the formula that the Torah gives us for noticing redemption in our lives.

Thank you so much for listening. You can always check out more episodes at adasisrael.org/awake or on your favorite podcast provider. Please make sure to hit subscribe, rate us 5 stars, and leave a review to let us know you like the show, it helps us to get the word out. Finally, you can email us at awake@adasisrael.org to give feedback about the show - let us know what you like and what you want to hear more of. Thank you for listening, wishing you a holy encounter this week.

One of the holiest parts of my partnership with my co-Rabbi Aaron Alexander is watching the other in moments of tremendous joy or pain with a congregant. This is a story of how I recently witnessed the transition of a congregant into the holy unknown.

Thank you so much for listening. You can always check out more episodes at adasisrael.org/awake or on your favorite podcast provider. Please make sure to hit subscribe, rate us 5 stars, and leave a review to let us know you like the show, it helps us to get the word out. Finally, you can email us at awake@adasisrael.org to give feedback about the show - let us know what you like and what you want to hear more of. Thank you for listening, wishing you a holy encounter this week.

As I spoke with the teens at Adas about some of the big issues they are facing regarding gun violence and climate change, I was reminded of the story of Exodus, the final plague and what it means to be willing to stand up for what you believe in, at any cost. 

Thank you so much for listening. You can always check out more episodes at adasisrael.org/awake or on your favorite podcast provider. Please make sure to hit subscribe, rate us 5 stars, and leave a review to let us know you like the show, it helps us to get the word out. Finally, you can email us at awake@adasisrael.org to give feedback about the show - let us know what you like and what you want to hear more of. Thank you for listening, wishing you a holy encounter this week.

Last night after dinner, I was craving a sweet. After enjoying a chocolate chip cookie, and then immediately wanting more, I thought about the yetzer hatov and yetzer hara, and the need to find balance in our lives. 

Thank you so much for listening. You can always check out more episodes at adasisrael.org/awake or on your favorite podcast provider. Please make sure to hit subscribe, rate us 5 stars, and leave a review to let us know you like the show, it helps us to get the word out. Finally, you can email us at awake@adasisrael.org to give feedback about the show - let us know what you like and what you want to hear more of. Thank you for listening, wishing you a holy encounter this week.

As I spent time with a congregant who was recovering from an illness, she told me that she was drowning in spaghetti. This reminded me of finding a balance between hesed (love) and gevurah (justice) - how to receive love and set healthy boundaries at the same time. 

Thank you so much for listening. You can always check out more episodes at adasisrael.org/awake or on your favorite podcast provider. Please make sure to hit subscribe, rate us 5 stars, and leave a review to let us know you like the show, it helps us to get the word out. Finally, you can email us at awake@adasisrael.org to give feedback about the show - let us know what you like and what you want to hear more of. Thank you for listening, wishing you a holy encounter this week.

As we were walking home one crisp evening, my son asked me, “Mom - How will I ever learn everything I need to know?” I thought hard about it, and then I told him this…

Thank you so much for listening. You can always check out more episodes at adasisrael.org/awake or on your favorite podcast provider. Please make sure to hit subscribe, rate us 5 stars, and leave a review to let us know you like the show, it helps us to get the word out. Finally, you can email us at awake@adasisrael.org to give feedback about the show - let us know what you like and what you want to hear more of. Thank you for listening, wishing you a holy encounter this week.

For the last few days I’ve had this tweak in my back. Many of you know that when you’re in pain in any way, that becomes your singular focus. In the story of Jacob’s Ladder, we can learn how to zoom out from that focus, look at the big picture, and find God in the every day. 

Thank you so much for listening. You can always check out more episodes at adasisrael.org/awake or on your favorite podcast provider. Please make sure to hit subscribe, rate us 5 stars, and leave a review to let us know you like the show, it helps us to get the word out. Finally, you can email us at awake@adasisrael.org to give feedback about the show - let us know what you like and what you want to hear more of. Thank you for listening, wishing you a holy encounter this week.