One Heart Is Enough

I assumed my life would basically look like the life I had growing up.

We Don't Talk About...

Holding things together can come at a very, very high cost.

ObservationsJena SchwartzFebruary 21, 2022Encanto, Bruno, IFS, therapy, wholeness, Healing, familyComment

A Two-Cake Quarantine Birthday

Real Life, COVID-19Jena SchwartzJanuary 15, 2021birthday, family, gratitude, mindfulness, everyday life, real lifeComment

Family Meeting

"Here's what you need to know," my father began.

PoetryJena SchwartzNovember 19, 2019poetry, poem, poems, family, memoir, family historyComment

Petrozavodsk, 1990

But I couldn’t help myself. My love of Russia began to bang up against something else: The undeniable truth that Jews had left this place in droves, in search of the religious and cultural freedom of expression. Sure, some small communities had cropped up, particularly in the bigger cities, but here in the north, Jews were an anomaly — suspicious, strange, other.

Jewish LifeJena SchwartzDecember 27, 2018lake onega, russian women, family, lineage, poetry, jewish, freedom, russian jewComment

Shabbat in 11 Parts

A deep breath. The light changing so subtly and gradually, it’s almost impossible to discern. But soon enough, it will be dark outside. We’ll sleep once more, than start all over again.

Outgrowing My Fear of Anger

Take some time soon to write about anger. Set a timer for 10 minutes and make a fast and furious list (see what I did there?) of associations you have with anger. You could simply start with “anger = …” and go from there, returning to this equation if you get stuck.

I’ll Bring the Pencils

it’s no wonder a big part of my work in this world is to say: Come on in. Have a seat. Let’s hang out together. Let’s write and draw and listen to music and laugh and tell stories.

Real LifeJena SchwartzDecember 15, 2017sisters, family, childhood, stories, writingComment

Writers, Authors, and People Who Write

Something begins to shift the moment we loosen the reigns and declare, “I am a person who writes. I am a writer.” And this is the crux of the matter: A writer is a person who writes, and not all writers must be authors.

Real LifeJena SchwartzDecember 4, 2017fathers, daughters, family, poetry, Sinead Morrissey, writer, writing, parenting, author, committment, writing practice, communication, permissionComment

There Is No Perfect Life

And then it’s over and the house is still standing and you still love the people you love and they still love you and another day is passing, a day we’ll never get back, a day some people would do anything to have just one more of with the one they love and miss and lost.

No Mud, No Lotus

So there we were, after another hour of cross-cultural conversation, admiring and perhaps idealizing each other’s cultures. Facebook and Google are both illegal in China. Most Americans don’t know where their tasteless green peppers grew.

CommunityJena SchwartzApril 3, 2017language, lesson, friendship, starbucks, chinese, tutor, Umass, TOEFL, china, travel, confucius, lotus, self employed, entrepreneur, family, facebook, googleComment

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