Today, I started reading The Vaster Wilds: A Novel by Lauren Groff, a three-time National Book Award finalist. It is a taut and electrifying novel about a servant girl who escapes from a colonial settlement in the wilderness. One spirited girl alone in nature, trying to survive.
Ready or Not, Change is Coming!
The New Year Brings Hope and Opportunity
Estimated reading time: 1 minute, 51 seconds
I am celebrating the third new year since my wife passed away. It’s the beginning of the year 5784 with typical seasonal weather. The temperature during my walks is something I haven’t experienced since Passover. In my mind, I can finally picture a life without her. I have donated her love to others, constructed a memorial garden, reconnected with repairing the world, fostered new friendships, and learned to live alone. If I were to observe someone else living this life, it’s not a bad life.
However, I want to know if my life is sustainable. Luckily, I’ve been healthy and haven’t had to perform tasks such as nursing, cooking, or cleaning the house alone. I know individuals who can handle such tasks, and I could do it if I had no other alternatives. Would my late wife have wanted me to live this way?
Recently, I finished reading The Vaster Wilds: A Novel by Lauren Groff. It’s a gripping novel about a servant girl who escapes from a colonial settlement in the wilderness. A spirited girl is trying to survive all alone with nature. Towards the end of her life, she asks an emotional question, “To be alone and surviving is not the same as being alive.”
As the year 5784 begins, I find myself asking unanswerable questions. Can I be both alone and alive? Is it possible for me to love again? Is there anyone who would want to love me? These uncertainties keep me up at night. However, I’ve realized that to embrace life fully, I must face the future and embrace change. Although scary, it’s the only way to become fully alive. I’ve survived by living alone, but now it’s time to take the next step and find the courage to open my heart.
The Jan Lilien Education Fund sponsors ongoing sustainability and environmental awareness programs. Gifts made this month; I will match dollar-for-dollar. All donations are tax-deductible.
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May the Shofar’s Sound Awaken Me!
Being a widow for almost twenty-nine months, I have learned to live alone despite the isolation, not by choice but due to the reality of widowhood. I have survived by seeking meaning and purpose in life; as Viktor Frankl wrote, "Man should not ask what the meaning of his life is, but rather recognize that it is he who is asked. Each man is questioned by life, and he can only answer to life by answering for his own life and being responsible."
As we heed the shofar's call, let us awaken to our shared responsibility to repair the world. Let's work together to ensure this new year brings us the strength and courage to take action toward a better future. Shana Tova!
The Vaster Wilds: A Novel
The New Year Brings Hope and Opportunity
Estimated reading time: 1 minute, 51 seconds
