My Bali Gift
Relaxing next to a pool of floating flower petals in Bali
The four months that led up to my trip to Bali were incredibly challenging. March 2023 was my daughter’s wedding and the first time I saw my ex-husband since our divorce seven years ago. Organizing a wedding weekend with all the stresses, and navigating many potentially explosive moments was exhausting. To top it off, right after the wedding, many unlucky attendees, including myself, got Covid.
A few weeks after I recovered from Covid, I also had a hysterectomy -- thank goodness, everything turned out ok. All the while, in the aftermath of Covid, my 15 year synagogue went through a major restructure, inside and out, which was painful and difficult. I had to let go of people I deeply care for and synagogue life as I had known it. At the end of April, we moved half of our office into a smaller, less expensive space and the other half of the office into a temporary space in my home. I spent those few months rebranding and reworking the future business, which demanded many hard decisions regarding how to move forward. At the very same time, my beloved dog of 14 years was in her last months of life, one loss after the other.
Rabbi Judy in Bali
My trip to Bali in July was the womb I needed to rest in, regroup in, and was my vehicle to gain clarity. It was my plan to let go of all the loss and grief, and heal in that sacred land. The gift I received from my time in Bali and the retreat was all that and more. There was daily Kundalini yoga, stunning locations, healthy food, sacred water ceremonies, daily meditation and making new friends with people also in service to humanity. The rituals that we engaged in, metaphorically washed off all the past emotions that needed to be discarded. I found myself shedding an old skin ready to go forward in an empowered, excited new manner. Waking up daily in lush green forests, lined with sweet smelling flowers, bathing underneath sacred waterfalls led by the high priests and priestesses was exactly what I needed. To face the changes ahead, I felt grounded in my sense of self and the confidence in the direction that the Universe was taking me. I returned fully rejuvenated and can’t wait to go back and lead a retreat to bring others there with me soon!
Ocean-side meditation in Bali
