“The Forever Letter is one of those rare books that could change your life. It is chock full of stories—from the author’s own life and from the lives of hundreds of people she’s worked with—that will inspire readers of all ages to reflect on what and who is important to them and to express these values and this bond in a letter to a loved one. The author’s gorgeous writing is mesmerizing and intimate and insightful and will get you writing even if you are no writer.”
“I love this little book because it’s about writing real letters, a lost art in our time. Even more important, it’s about writing letters that matter to people who matter to us. What could be better than putting words to paper to tell people who we are and what we are becoming, and what it is that we cherish and value—thanking them for the way they helped point us toward our own North Star?”
“More than any time in our recent history, it’s critically important for families to come together and share their love and support for one another. Elana Zaiman’s The Forever Letter offers tools, guidelines, and examples for grandparents and parents to share their love, respect, and values with the next generation.”
“The Forever Letter is an exceptional book. Rabbi Zaiman offers moving stories and profound insights that have the potential to enrich, even transform, your most important relationships. It’s a book to read and give to members of your family.”
“Elana Zaiman has a mission: She loves connection, deep and personal, and wants others to experience the sweet joy she has lived of shared truth-telling. Her forever letter embodies the passing on of wisdom, humbling experience, dreams, and love from one person to another. It is a beautiful concept that all of us should embrace.”
“In her beautiful book, The Forever Letter, Elana breathes critical life back into the healing art of letters. With joy and insight, she shows us how to use the written word to heal our relationships and live with greater intention. It is the perfect gift for our hectic and frenzied hearts.”
“I find it hard to imagine that there are many other people who can be so “on”–high energy and passionate–in front of groups and yet so present and compassionate one on one. Elana is a rarity–a naturally gifted teacher with real wisdom to share and an ability to connect to with people of all ages. She is both inspired and inspiring.”
“Rabbi Zaiman is an amazing and generous person. Those qualities shine through in everything she does. As a teacher, scholar and writer, she’s brilliant and engaging, a pleasure to study and learn with; she has the ability to inspire you to see things anew.”
“Rabbi Zaiman’s humanity, scholarship, and down-to-earth-ness make her feel like she is speaking directly to you. The immediacy of her presence is augmented by the depth of her intellect.”
“Here is a book to help you clarify your deepest values, and transmit them. Rabbi Zaiman shows us how to leave not a legacy of possessions, but the legacy of a life.”
“My husband and I just wanted to send a note to the ‘powers that be’ about how fantastic the Forever Letter workshop at Seattle Cancer Care Alliance was. We got so much more out of it than we could have imagined. Elana Zaiman was fantastic, the length was just right and the room/food were really nice touches. I can’t believe it was all free-we would have gladly paid for it! I hope SCCA can offer this workshop again to other families. We learned so much, and it was also a great way to connect with other families going through a terminal illness with love and support.”
“Rabbi Zaiman showed me that forever letters are one of the most important gifts we can give to people we love and care about. Leaving words from our heart is just as important as passing on our material possessions. I will be recommending this book to clients and friends.”
“When I finished reading The Forever Letter I was so inspired, I sat down to write a forever letter to my children.”
“The Forever Letter is an invaluable resource for anyone involved in the estate planning area. I plan to recommend Elana’s book to my clients as a matter of course. If more people composed thoughtful forever letters in conjunction with their estate plans, I believe many painful will and trust disputes could be avoided.”
“The starting place for developing and implementing a successful family financial, wealth management or philanthropy plan is understanding our clients’ core values. Elana Zaiman’s book The Forever letter is a valuable addition to the advisor’s toolkit for helping families clarify and prioritize their core values.”
“I found Elana’s approach to sharing our values thought provoking. It made me realize we do not share enough meaningful and heartfelt words with the people we love during life. Using her approach, we can keep clients centered on their values, on what they want their family to remember in the present and long after they are gone, especially if something happens unexpectedly and they are no longer able to communicate what is in their soul. A great gift for you and for your clients.”
“We all know how nice it is to receive a meaningful letter, but few have taken the time and energy to really understand the components of a high impact “forever letter.” In just a few hours of thoughtful guidance, Rabbi Zaiman was able to reduce our anxiety and help us find our voice.”
“We loved having Elana as our scholar-in-residence. Her warmth, compassion, engaging personality, connectedness and humor made the material come alive. We had a wonderful weekend of connection, joy, learning and discovery.”
“As an attorney who brings years of experience as an occupational therapist into my elder law and estate planning practice, I’ve been seeking a way for my clients to communicate their love to their families that the passing on of worldly goods alone does not quite do. I am profoundly moved by how the writing of a forever letter encourages this communication. The Forever Letter will be a gift for each of my clients, and, I cannot wait to have Elana facilitate our first live workshop!”
“It was great to meet you and to hear you speak at the conference in Florida.The past six months have been months of real intent with my family, especially my oldest. That intent is a result, in large part, from you and your ideas. I have read your book and taken to heart the forever letter. I have written one to each of my children and to my husband. Working on letters for my parents – which is much harder for me. Something I hadn’t realized would be so difficult. You warned of that in your book. The emotions that could arise. I had no idea.
The phrase “I believe in you” is a part of my conversation now with my kids. Because of the letters I wrote to them. It has changed the way they think of themselves. Just by me saying it more often. Thank you. I am truly grateful for you, your work, you sharing your gifts.”
“Elana demonstrates in her speaking, teaching,and writing the transformational power of an ancient wisdom: we cannot value the meaning of our lives without confronting the inevitability of our deaths. Elana choreographs an interactive process that enables people from divergent religious perspectives to travel where they once feared to tread and to return from the odyssey with renewed hope in an enduring future.”