Homecoming with Jessica

As I was sitting overlooking the Pacific Ocean, a majestic sea eagle swooped and glided, just ten feet above me. This miraculous moment inspired a contemplation on freedom, healing, and how the space to soar, unimpeded, can reveal a vast healing power accessible to each and every one of us. Original piano music by Jessica Roemischer

As I sit overlooking the Pacific Ocean, the waves crashing below me, made huge by a cyclone churning out at sea, I contemplate what it takes to make it through - to overcome trauma and the painful experiences any of us has experienced. What does it take to come through the barrel of the wave, the vast, rolling difficulties of life, and to emerge intact from it all. Original piano music by Jessica...

In this episode, I read a chapter from my memoir, "In Duet with God." It's the story of Flora, who entered my life when I was eight. She was my childhood nanny. As the decades unfolded, I'd realize that Flora was a beacon of light in the darkness, and that the story of this beautiful and loving soul was something I had to tell the world. Music is the Shaker hymn, "Simple Gifts," arranged and perfo...

I woke up this morning thinking about my dear dad, who passed just a few months ago. And I was overwhelmed with a deep grief that my dad isn't here with me anymore, in the way he was. And what came to me was the love he had for me and for music, and for the music I created especially for him. So I was inspired to listen to music I'd created to give him for his 85th birthday, just three years ago--...

As I sat on the beach, the water gently ebbing and flowing, I glimpsed a little boy. He was just 2 or 3-years old, and carrying a blue bucket and a shovel. Intently digging a sand pit, he walked back and forth to the water's edge. Suddenly, seemingly out of nowhere, a little French bulldog appeared. He ran up to the boy and for just a moment, the two became delightful companions. Here, I share the...

Compelled by the notion that we're entering an ENTIRELY new era--the "Anthropocene Era," as coined by renowned naturalist, David Attenborough--I explore the implications that Humankind has become the predominant force on Planet Earth. What does this mean for each and every one of us? Where are we headed? Indeed, how do we remake ourselves for the sake of our life here on Earth, and all the preciou...

In this podcast, I share some recent experiences. In the light of these, I've become convinced that we have to let go of labeling others and rather, ask, What's happened to a person? How was that person impacted? These are the important questions! They release the weight of stigma from the shoulders of each and every one of us! And alongside those questions, we can realize that in our essence, eac...

This episode of "Homecoming" is a reflection of the insects and the flowers, and how they are in a marvelous relationship with each other. How wonderful it is to recognize that 'duet!' Our appreciation for the myriad forms of life in this world--its many creatures great and small--together with our love and care for each other, is so possible and vital at this pivotal time. The story concludes wit...

At a pub, I found myself sitting next to someone who was reading a newspaper called "Melody Maker." As I'd discover, the paper covered the music scene in London and the USA, and this edition was from 1971. The man let me look at it and, as I did, I felt that I'd been given a time capsule from the past, from that period in my life when I was coming of age, and listening to all the rock and folks mu...

In this evocative episode, recorded near the sea, I offer a poignant contemplation of life, love and friendship. I read from the beloved children's story, "The Little Prince," and reflect on what it means for us to "become tame," that is to find friendship with each other and the myriad creatures of this earth. Piano music is "In The Garden," arranged and performed by Jessica Roemischer

As I sit by the ocean at sun rise, on the dawn of a new day, a new year, and a new life, I contemplate the essence of who each of us is - the wonder and awe that is our true nature. I share two stories of children whom I've seen, delighting in their discoveries. As the ocean stretches out before me, I wish all of us a blessed year to come--filled with these joys of innocence and delight. Piano mus...

Fifty-one years ago, I began studying the piano with a woman named Mrs. Marilyn Sophos. Fifty-one years. That’s a long time. Amazingly, more than a half-century later, my childhood piano teacher is still teaching. And in our phone conversations across the miles, she's giving me an enormous gift - the gift of re-connecting me to the girl I was then. Piano music - "Clair de Lune" by Claude Debussy,...

This podcast follows from the previous one, in which I describe the past few years, and the experience of displacement and uncertainty. And after all this time, amazingly, the feeling of home is beginning to come upon me. As if I'm beginning to walk through my days in this subtle and sublimely beautiful way. Piano music - "Simple Gifts," a Shaker hymn, arranged and performed by Jessica Roemischer

The past two and a half years have been some of the most difficult I’ve ever experienced. I had to leave a marriage and my home. And now, finally, having arrived on a distant shore, I can begin to reflect on it all. And I feel inspired to share with you what got me through. Music - "Amazing Grace" by John Newton. Piano by Jessica Roemischer

In loving memory of my dear dad, on the occasion of what would have been his 89th birthday, I share a poem that he wrote. It's a poem called, "Fall and Resurrection," and that poem, which I lovingly helped him with some time before he passed, is now meaningful in ways I could never have imagined. Music - Pachelbel's "Canon in D" arranged and performed by Jessica Roemischer

Most mornings, I awaken feeling an underlying fear and uncertainty--something that's there, subtle and disquieting. And so, I decided to talk to God, and to my dearest my dad, whom I’m sensing mysteriously present in the wake of his passing a few weeks ago. It occurred to me to ask them to advise me, to open my heart and mind to what’s true, and to inquire, is it possible to become free of this an...

Perhaps you’re finding, as I am, that it’s hard to watch the news. There's so much suffering and uncertainty...every day there are tragic events in far-flung places, and right here close to home. In that light, this podcast describes an experience of insight and inspiration--as I watched an historic video of space exploration, and then contemplated it, overlooking the ocean and watching the magnif...

This podcast episode follows from the previous one--in which I recount the experience of the passing of my dear father. Since hearing of the news, each day, I go to my special place overlooking the ocean. There, I find myself closest to God and to my dearest dad. This time since my dad’s passing has been full of poignant reflection and revelation, and that place is where I go, to open my mind and...

This is not the podcast I’d planned to make. This is a eulogy - for my dad, my dear father. You see, a few days ago I found out that my dad had passed. Here, I share with you the moving, poignant and transformative experiences that occurred--overlooking the vast ocean--as I grieved my father's passing, and ultimately felt him near. Piano music is Pachelbel's Canon in D, arranged and performed by J...

As a child of seven, I helped rescue a little kitten from an animal shelter. This is the story of that grey kitten--Willow--and how she became my most devoted companion. The story is enhanced by a piano interpretation of the beloved Shaker hymn, "Simple Gifts," arranged and performed by Jessica Roemischer.

As I sit one morning overlooking the ocean, the sense of wonder and awe brings me back to my early memories of childhood - of the feeling of a presence close and near. I read from my childhood diary - a poem called, "The First Forest" - and ponder the peace and ease I felt despite the difficult circumstances I experienced as a youngster. Piano music composed and played by Jessica Roemischer enhanc...

As a young child, I kept a diary and devoted my writings to the beloved storybook character, "The Little Prince." In writing to the Little Prince, I found comfort and companionship amidst tragic circumstances. This evocative journey into the inner experience of a child is interspersed with piano music selections, My Wild Irish Rose, Be Thou My Vision, Mozart's Sonata K. 331 ad Erik Satie's "Gymnop...

In an evocative journey through music and time, I reflect on my earliest memories of playing the piano. For me, creating piano music would become a source of joy and inspiration through the decades. The seeds of our destinies, I've concluded, are often there, sown at the very beginning. Music of Mozart Sonata K.331, Bach Minuet in G, and original compositions by Jessica Roemischer enhance this epi...

In July of 1969, when I was 10 years old, two unforgettable events happened while at summer camp - one changed the course of history, and the other marked the most significant relationship in my life. Piano music enhances this moving, personal reflection - an original piano composition by Jessica Roemischer, and "Claire de Lune" by C. Debussy; Mozart's C major Piano Sonata, 2nd movement, performed...

In this episode, I describe me first memories of my nanny, Flora, a caring and tender woman. Flora's love would stay with me for a lifetime, ultimately inspiring me to write my memoir, "In Duet with God: The Story of a Lifelong Friendship." This is where it all began. Piano music is "Katy, Ray of Hope," composed and performed by Jessica Roemischer.