Dr. Warren Cohn has been a part of the Isabella Freedman family for over ten years and is a co-chair of Feast in the Field: Annual Farm-to-Table Fundraiser, Sunday, August 15, 2010.

Where did the time go? It seems only a moment ago that I opened my Internal Medicine practice—thirty years of working hard to develop long term patient-doctor relationships, passing in a heartbeat. During these challenging and rewarding years, my enduring goal was to always radically listen, and to treat my patients with kindness and respect. We became partners in health and, in the process, learned so much about each other and about life's uncertainties. Witnessing many of my patients struggle through long illnesses with so much dignity and courage, I also learned something about the true nature of humanity. But, in 2003, I realized I needed to change gears—not to retire, but to use my energies in a different way: to take a deep breath, renew my spirit, spend more time with my family and climb a few more mountains—real and metaphorical. Medicine had been my identity, my passion; so, during this transition, I felt a bit lost. The future seemed somewhat vague and confusing.

Serendipitously, this life change coincided with two momentous events: the birth of my first grandchild, Yonah, and, shortly thereafter, the move back to Connecticut of my daughter, Jaimie with her husband, Shamu Fenyvesi Sadeh, who was to become the Director of Adamah, a new and exciting environmental program at Isabella Freedman. Thus began two new passions in my life: being 'pappy' to Yonah up close and personal, and becoming an integral part of the Adamah family.

But first, allow me to digress, because my wife Dana and I actually began our relationship with Isabella Freedman in 1996, when Jaimie and Shamu were teachers at the Teva Learning Center. A few years later, in the Fall of 1999, our family and friends celebrated their marriage by Lake Miriam, under a quilted chuppah of blessings. At night, after the ceremony, we all gathered around the fire circle, singing and dancing, as a full moon rose over the hills. It was Sukkot—the harvest festival, and also the beginning of Jaimie and Shamu’s own pilgrimage that would—unbeknownst to them at the time—one day bring them full circle back to Isabella Freedman to raise a family, and for Shamu, to plant the seeds of new growth for a generation of young, vibrant, Jewish souls—transforming them and the landscape at Isabella Freedman forever.

The idea of an Adamah program evolved over time, from a spark in the heart and mind of Adam Berman, the former Executive Director of IF. While Shamu was finishing his Doctoral in Environmental Studies at Portland State University, he and Adam—both of whom had been brainstorming together since Teva—collaborated, and in the Spring of 2004, Shamu, Jaimie and an almost one-year old Yonah returned to Isabella Freedman, where they lived in a tent for four months above what is now the goat pasture. Adam and Shamu were about to inaugurate their dream—today so familiar to so many— of the ADAMAH program.

My first memories with Yonah are so vivid:

• sitting in front of the tent on the hill, reading, listening to the pounding of hammers for the building of the goat pasture while Yonah is napping;
• Shamu and I and the first crew of Fellows hand tilling the field, converting it from a vast, overgrown tract of land to the sadeh—now a spiritual space for contemplation as well as a physical space for the hard work of planting, harvesting and "cultivating souls and soils, harvesting people and pickles;"
• Yonah and I meandering through the sadeh picking and filling our bellies full of sweet tomatoes and peppers;
• standing together in the goat pasture, in awe of the birthing of two new goats;
• gathering eggs together from the hen house and fishing for 'a big one' on the lake;
• and, more recently, a more thoughtful and 'wise beyond his years' Yonah, sitting with me in Boy's Town, petting the young male goats, looking over and saying, "You know, Pappy, these goats are going to be killed." We sit a while longer, quietly stroking the young goats.

This transformation of the Isabella Freedman campus—and over 150 Jewish farmers—didn't happen overnight. Over the past seven years, Shamu has interviewed and then invited a carefully selected diverse group of young folks to take a risk, come to Falls Village and join him and his staff in creating the sustainable landscape—an ecologic model of physical and spiritual beauty that we witness and enjoy today. In the process, under Shamu's gentle guidance, thoughtful leadership and passion, I have personally witnessed a whole new generation of empowered young Jews dedicated to making a difference.

What a joy and an honor it has been for me to share in this journey and the remarkable and ongoing achievements and goals of ADAMAH. I look forward to continuing to be an integral part of the ADAMAH family and the Adamah Advisory Board and, more importantly, continuing to find creative ways to be certain this vital work goes on.

Try to imagine this: I am sitting at a table, in the middle of the sadeh, with friends I have invited to experience Feast in the Field. A gentle rain is falling on the tent. Yonah and Ibby—my newest grandchild—are dancing in the rain to their own inner rhythms. We are all tasting the sweet greens and creative combinations, lovingly prepared by the Fellows, of pickles and sauerkraut, jams and chevre, eggplant and peppers, while listening to the quiet voice of a soon-to-be Adamah alumnae. I hear her utter phrases, inspired by digging in the earth, that seem so ancient, so wise:

• "this is a remarkable gift that continues to unfold...to reveal what is more precious within"
• "awe-inspiring, transformative"
• "learning how to repair...how to create harmony between ourselves and the land."
• "An I and a You: We create community, we create 'We'"

My eyes well up as I listen; I am transported back to a simpler time when communities cared for each other, lived off the land and shared their abundance. I am not a religious person, but I feel something new… and I know now why I am here.

Warren and grandson Yonah at Feast in the Field, 2009

Isabella Freedman is an allstream Jewish organization where people connect with themselves, Judaism, the environment and each other. We offers diverse programs and retreat experiences that renew and sustain the vibrancy of contemporary Jewish practice. Located only two hours from New York City and three hours from Boston, we provide glatt kosher dining, year-round country lodging, miles of hiking trails and an organic farm.