I'm not going to lie: being interviewed is still new to me and still makes my underarms sweat just a little. With that said, it's hard to say 'no' to Michael Whidden, the host of the American Tributaries podcast. He's open, he's curious, and he wants to learn from people of all stripes and colors across America. Join Michael for the ride as he makes waves exploring the various currents of citizens across our fascinating country.
About the episode (from the American Tributaries podcast page):
On this week's episode of the podcast...a fascinating discussion about Israel, Judaism & the U.S.
Jessica L. Walton lives in the Maryland suburbs of Washington DC and recently completed a memoir about her years overseas when she sought admission to the highest echelons of the Israeli intelligence community.
Our discussion covers, among other things:
*how a Mormon friend sparked her curiosity about her Judaic roots
*the Torah and secular knowledge as dual sources of wisdom which are not mutually exclusive
*her journey from Montgomery County police internship to Bar-Ilan University outside Tel Aviv
*the indelible impact of her friend Roman, an elite Israeli commando originally from Siberia
*Judaic origins of some fundamental U.S political principles
*observations about the U.S. after she returned from Israel in 2017
Jessica finds hope in the power of storytelling and its ability to allow us to step into someone else’s shoes.
Thanks so much to Jessica for making time to get to know each other and share a very enlightening conversation! And thank you to our mutual friend Nic Adams for connecting us!
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About Jessica Lauren Walton: Jessica is a communications strategist, video producer, and writer in the U.S. defense sector. She has written articles on a range of security and mental health topics and conducted interviews with military leadership, psychologists, filmmakers, CIA officers, journalists, and more. Jessica recently completed her memoir about her experience as an American woman struggling with mental illness while trying to get into Israeli intelligence.
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