the power of practice

Here at home as lockdown stretches out we've felt the need to stretch our minds as well. My hoard of notebooks has never been put to so much use: three pages of journaling almost every day, notes for courses and tutorials, and so much drawing!

dust in the wind

Just like that, here we are - Lenten season has started with Ash Wednesday on February 17. 

Lent is the traditional commemoration of the 40 days Jesus spent fasting in the desert, according to the Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke, before beginning his public ministry. 

Ash Wednesday

On Wednesday clergy around the world draw a cross-shaped smudge of dark ash on the foreheads of millions of people. It is the ancient rite of The Imposition of Ashes which signals the start of Lent.

Year of the White Metal Ox 2021

wonder | wonder | world greets all - Kung Hei Fat Choi! Happy Year of the White Metal Ox 2021! 

2021 is an Ox Year

Ox is the second of all zodiac animals. According to one myth, the Jade Emperor pronounced the order would be decided by how they would arrive at his party. Ox appeared to be the first to arrive, but Rat, who had tricked Ox into giving him a ride, jumped down and landed ahead to take the first position. 

ang pau - lucky red envelope

In Asian culture, the Ox is a valued hardworking and methodical animal because of its role in agriculture. Positive characteristics attributed to the ox are its persistence, earnestness and honesty. 

Bellagio Gardens lunar display

This is a lucky year - perfect for focusing on relationships - in friendship or love. The year of the Metal Ox brings career advancement, success in business, prosperity, and wellness for all zodiac signs. It is a favorable year for economic recovery and consolidation, a year of long-term investments. 

Osnat Barazani | the world's first female rabbi

Osnat and Her Dove : The True Story of the World's First Female Rabbi, School And Library is written by Sigal Samuel and illustrated by Vali Mintzi. 

book cover (Levine Querido)

Journalist and novelist Sigal Samuel honors her Iraqi Jewish heritage with picture book about Osnat Barazani, the world's first female rabbi who led a sixteenth century Mosul yeshiva for Kurdish Jewry.