11 things after Shabbat

Cuteness, courage, and connection

1. Because May and June consisted of multiple graduations plus moving, today was the first Saturday morning in a while I've been free to attend Shabbat services in person. I have missed this weekly anchor.

2. The moment I walked into the kitchen to pick up my mom on my way there, we both laughed. We were wearing almost identical outfits. White jeans, linen shirts just a few shades apart, sandals. "Should I change?" she asked. "No! We're cute!" I said. "But too cute?" she wondered. No way, I thought. No such thing. Not when you're 50 and 80.

3. Speaking of cute but not too cute, there was a b'nai mitzvah today, and watching some of the younger family members throughout the service brought me so much joy. Their ridiculously cute (but not too cute) outfits – satiny dresses and shimmery tights and glittery shoes, and their clapping very enthusiastically (and appropriately) during the more upbeat singing moments. I was lucky enough to get a photo of the shoes. Are they not the CUTEST?

4. This 13-year-old gave a d'var (a word of Torah) that left me both thoughtful and inspired, as a good d'var will. She began with sharing a summary of her parasha (the section/"portion" of Torah we had just read), followed by a number of questions it raised for her. Such good questions, wow.

5. She went on to reflect on one aspect of the story, having to do with the courage it takes to stand up to a majority opinion (and how just because a majority believes something does not necessarily make it true). I am still thinking about her words. I'm grateful our tradition not only values the voices of younger generations but explicitly creates a pathway to inviting them to become our teachers.

6. Speaking of this, beginning in the fall I will serve as the B'nai Mitzvah Coordinator at our synagogue. This is a newly created position – very part-time, so in addition to my current work. One of the things I'll be doing over the summer is diving into some existing curriculum and seeing what things we can implement. And I'm also just excited to support these young adults and their families, as I remember how overwhelming and at times stressful the year leading up to this rite of passage was/can be.

7. I'm thinking now about mentors. Who have yours been? What is something you learned from a mentor? How did you find them (or they you)?

8. One thing I love about being in the sanctuary is making eye contact with people. So much can be conveyed with a smile, an acknowledgment. Hello, I am here! You are here! Here we are together.

9. I also often feel aware of the fact that each person is having their own deeply personal internal experience even as the communal nature of the service connects us. Maybe they are deep in prayer and maybe they are thinking about the spat they had earlier with their spouse or maybe they are worrying about something or maybe they are in physical pain or maybe they are sloughing off the details of the week, letting something exhale through them that had been held in, waiting for release.

10. Back at home, I sat in my zero gravity chair in the backyard, drifting off a bit as a blessedly cool breeze blew through, creating music in the trees. Then we went to TJ Maxx, where I found a small messenger travel bag, perfect to hold a passport, wallet, notebook, sunglasses, and water bottle. I also got a neck pillow for the plane, an optimistic gesture to be sure that there will be any sleep to be had on the 10-hour flight from Boston to Tel Aviv. I read a beautiful (and challenging) essay, The Divine In Your Words, by Rabbi Irwin Kula out loud to M.J. and got completely choked up at the end.

11. Tonight, I am full of questions and a whisper of hope.

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