LETTERS and AVID READERS RECOMMEND, March 1, 2026

New Mexico Jewish Journal

01 Mar 2026 — 4 min read

Peace by © Gloria Abella Ballen. The Hebrew letters, from right to left, Shin, Lamed, Vav and Mem, spell the word Shalom, the Hebrew word for Peace. "What we all need and want: Peace, an agreement to end hostilities, and to have security for the collective well-being," said Abella Ballen.

Letters to the Editor of 200 words or less, about articles published in the NM Jewish Journal will be considered for publication in Letters and may be edited for length and clarity. Include your name (indicate if ok to publish) and email (which will not be included).

Avid Readers Recommend: Suggest articles you have read elsewhere and wish others would read are listed with a short excerpt. Send to editor@nmjewishjournal.com with subject line: Letters & Avid Readers

LETTERS received about articles we've published in recent issues:

RE: New Mexican by Proxy or How My Soul Came to Belong to New Mexico, by Corinne Joy Brown, 2/1/26.

Dear Corinne,
Your story moved me in a way I am still sitting with. There is a quiet beauty in the way you trace the threads of your life—family, history, land, identity—and show how they wove themselves together long before you realized the pattern they were forming. The way New Mexico claimed you, gently and persistently, feels almost like a kind of spiritual adoption. You did not choose it so much as it chose you, and you welcomed it with an open heart.

Your personal history and the history of New Mexico seemed to speak to each other across time. The rediscovery of your family’s past, the echoes of hidden identity, the resilience carried through generations—these aren’t just coincidences. They are the kind of moments that remind us life has a way of guiding us toward the stories we were meant to tell and the places where our soul feels at home.

And anyone who reads your story can feel it.
—J. Gilberto Quezada
Gilberto Quezada is a retired educator and an author, writer, essayist, and poet in San Antonio, Texas and the author of Border Boss: Manuel B. Bravo and Zapata County (Texas A&M U Press).

Re: Hidden in Plain Sight, Unearthing the Subterranean Mikveh of Ortigia, Sicily, by Lena S. Keslin, 2/1/26

Dear Lena,
I have just read your latest article, not once, but twice! You made Ortigia, Sicily come to life and your description of the Jewish community of Guidecca left me longing to have been in your shoes as you walked the narrow streets, What a fabulous find and I an humbled by Amalia's curiosity and determination! I had never heard of a Mikveh, but I could feel the spirituality of the site through your words. Thank you, my friend!

LETTERS February, 2026

Hi Diane, I am one of those relatively rare creatures, a politically conservative reform Jew. While I disagree with some of the opinions published in the Journal, I do support the general goals of your mission and thus my subscription.You have a great selection of articles and I do read many of them. Just thought you would be interested in hearing from one reader Who has a somewhat different slant on Jewish life.

Happy New Year, Charles Brown (Congregation Albert member for 45 years).

I'm reading your 50 Reliable Sources feature. What a fantastic compilation. It's taking me forever to get through the last couple of issues of the Journal because of a new diversion in my life, but I'm taking time this morning. The articles are getting better and better. I want to spend more time on Hart's articles and damn, wish I'd read the pre-election article before the election. The newsletter is brilliant, Diane. Thank you so much for doing this. 11/20/25 – Joanne Eakin, Albuquerque

Editor's Note: We also refer you to our standing list of More than 50 Reliable, Varied Sources of News, Analysis and Opinion About Israel and the US. Of those 50 sources, The Times of Israel, a free website, is our first choice for up-to-date news and commentary about Israel from Israel, and the Jewish Telegraph Agency (JTA), Moment Magazine,
The Forward and Jewish Insider (more to the right 😼) in the U.S.