We begin this new annual cycle of parshiot—weekly segments of Torah readings—like we always begin, with unique perspectives and interpretations, colored by our experiences and happenings around us. Currently, it is a shmita year and a year when we know more about global climate and our impact upon the earth than ever before. Breyshit, Torah's first parsha, contains glimpses into the primordial infrastructure of metaphysics, ontology, and relationship of the Abrahamic traditions. Deeper readings of the text might bear relevance to how we engage with others and Other in the setting of today's challenges.To whit, the omnipresence of God within the fabric of our cosmos, in spacetime, bears broad and far reaching implications for those inclined. Consideration of Genesis 1:2 “And the land was unformed and void (vohu)” might bring to mind voHu (as suggested by Michael Fishbane, Fragile Finitude), so that we might read, “the land was unformed, and He was in it”. The Creator then is not only beyond and above, but also within the earth and within all that arises from the earth (cf. Gen. 1:12,14, “And the earth brought forth”). As such, great care would be indicated in our treatment of the earth and the rest of God's creations. Further, not only can God be found in space, but also in time, as exemplified in the depiction of Shabbat (Genesis 2:2). “And He rested in the 7th day, making it holy.”There follows in Torah the story of how people became removed from God and how people came to have to work the earth for food. People began in Eden: in the full presence of The Creator and with food at their fingertips to satisfy. After Adam and Eve ate from the tree of knowledge against God's command, privilege was lost: “'By toil shall you eat of it [the earth] all the days of your life...' So the Lord God banished [them] from the garden of Eden, to till the soil...” (Genesis 3:17-19). Woe, the anxiety of separation from the One to which we most closely cling. Alas, the fear of limited resource, survival now conditional, partly upon labor.Shmita is called Shabbat la'aretz, a Shabbat for the land. Observing both our weekly Shabbat and Shabbat la'aretz―the former referred to directly as me'eyn olam habah, of the coming world; the latter, me'eyn olam habah by association-- provides the opportunity to allay said anxieties, through return and release towards Eden. By remembering weekly Shabbat, we may return to closer relationship with He Who is Unknowable Who dwells in our natural world. By keeping shmita we may release the land and ourselves. We may rest; we may commune with the past existence of unconditional sustenance, and with past satiety with security (Leviticus 25:18, You shall observe My laws and faithfully keep My rules, that you may live upon the land in security”); and we may enjoy more time with one another, and other spiritual pursuits.The benefits of Shabbat are manyfold; there is even data demonstrating the positive impact of a sabbatical on the earth. It came as a silver lining to the COVID epidemic. During the time of imposed “rest” in the form of quarantine and other restrictions, there was a global 17% decrease in carbon emissions1. While this reduction in greenhouse gases alone will in all likelihood not reverse or even slow climate change, what it did show was that when a large number of people “rested”--stopped driving their petroleum-fueled vehicles, and moderated electrical power usage-- it made a measurable difference. How much difference could the weekly observance of Shabbat make over the course of years? How impactful could a large community of people be by making additional ecofriendly choices this year and beyond? Is it worth the effort for a person to make educated changes to their consumption patterns, reduce greenhouse gases, and reduce human death and suffering? It is my hope that answers to questions such as these are elucidated over the course of this shmita.