by Rachel Weinstein
Here’s my deal. I’m a therapist. A wife. I have two kids. I am trying to exercise, take care of our chickens and dogs, clean the house, shop for groceries, and shuffle my daughter to multiple swim and martial arts practices (sometimes several in a day). Like whoever is reading this—life is busy.
I love Bet Ha’am. Though when I come to services, or even meals, I’ve noticed something interesting: there’s usually an seat or two between families or worshipers. We’re not all snuggled up to each other. That’s fine. But it’s still a metaphor to me—that empty chair or two between us. We can be tentative around each other. We gather to pray and to be together, but often we don’t know each other well. Busyness and other stuff in our lives often interferes with our spending enough time together to really get to know each other.
Prayer and community are so much more powerful when we gather together and feel connected. Our hearts open more easily; we can be supported in our trials; and we can be reminded that we are a part of something greater that ourselves.
So—since many of us may not come to temple every Friday night, or every Saturday morning, even if we might like to…let’s get together and get to know each other. Come join me for a connection-building day. Join an experimental group—K’Sharim: Connections. We will gather on Sunday, March 1 at noon for facilitated conversations. We’ll deepen our knowing of each other followed by fun activities. Join in baking and maybe some crafts. (Though if you just want to sit and schmooze—that’s OK too!) We will get to know each other and share about ourselves. So that next time perhaps we’ll sit together at a pizza meal or a service. And if we see each other in the hall we’ll remember each others’ names. We’ll build new friendships.
No need to register—just show up. See you there!
Image via Unsplash.