Jewish Ecology Shabbaton
with author and educator Hila Ratzabi
Saturday, Oct. 29 @ 1:00 and 7:00 pm

Hila Ratzabi is the author of the environmental poetry collection There Are Still Woods (June Road Press, 2022). Her writing has been published widely in literary journals and in The Bloomsbury Anthology of Contemporary Jewish American Poetry and Ghost Fishing: An Eco-Justice Poetry Anthology. She is director of virtual content & programs at Ritualwell.org and lives in Oak Park.

Speaking for Earth: An Ecopoetry Walk
Thatcher Woods (8030 Chicago Ave., River Forest)
Meet by the lake near the parking lot
Oct. 29 @ 1pm
 
“Each and every grass has a song” – Rebbe Nachman of Bratslav
 
We are living on a fragile and sacred planet that needs us to speak on its behalf. What happens when we attune ourselves to the songs of the grass, the trees, and the creatures that share our world? The act of reading and writing poetry can train us to listen deeply to the voices of the earth. We will come together at Thatcher Woods for a nature poetry walk. We will read a selection of environmental poems that will open us up to different ways of speaking for the earth. Then we’ll take a walk and engage in writing exercises inspired by the landscape. Bring a notebook, pen, and an open mind. All are welcome – no writing experience necessary.

There Are Still Woods: Poetry reading and discussion
Oak Park Temple
Oct. 29 @ 7pm
 
After Havdalah, Hila Ratzabi will share poetry from her debut book of poetry, There Are Still Woods. This volume has been described as "a radiant appraisal of life at the precipice of climate crisis and a haunting elegy for all we stand to lose." Books will be available for sale, and a book signing will follow the reading.