Rabbi Barkan

I am grateful for each moment of experiencing this Mystery of Life.

Adina and I have been married for nearly 30 years. It has been quite the journey! We always wanted children. We figured out how to build our family through foster care and adoption around 10 years ago.

Now, my life is centered around my children. I work in a job that ends at the end of the day so I can focus solely on raising my children — picking them up from school, being present, doing gymnastics, making dinners, and tucking them into bed. Along the way, teaching them to be kind and good people.

How to balance family, work, self, community? This is the big question that drives me. Usually, the answer is dayenu — being grateful for doing just enough to keep this delicate balance. This reenforces my belief in a power greater than myself that sustains me as part of Life.

What are your priorities in life? What gives you strength to keep going forward through it all?