It was a long morning.
We have a committee in charge of the High Holy Days and this morning I became aware of the first fight they were having amongst themselves and with members of the Board. It’s hard working for a Jewish organization during the High Holy Days. It should be wonderful, but instead it’s just really, really hard. I thought I would have more of the Spring and Summer free of this fighting, but it’s already begun.
What do we fight about? We fight about: (to name a few) ritual and schedules and timing and announcements and typos and any and every imperfection (real or imagined). We fight about whether we are committed enough, welcoming enough, participating enough, and doing enough. In an effort to recognize and observe the significance of the season, we are unkind or downright mean to one another and we inevitably strip the season of all its joy and awe.
And it’s so unnecessary. There has to be a better way, but – mere cog in the machine that I am – I don’t know how to get us there.
So I turned to my Google Reader for solace (seriously, what am I going to do when my Google Reader disappears in 12 days) and when I got to the end of this article about Jewish Life and Time Management from Kosher on a Budget:
Ask yourselves: What must I do, halachically? What do I want to do, personally? What’s important to my husband? My children? Me?
And – most importantly – What can I let go of?
And I almost shout out loud to my computer, “YES!!!” And in thinking of what can be let go, I am reminded of something I was told a long time ago. To THINK: Is it Thoughtful, Honest, Intelligent, Necessary, and Kind. And if it isn’t, let it go.
Thanks so much for sharing my post! And wow, what an honor that I was able to help you snap out of your bad mood. I’m sorry about the fighting. Shul politics is so disheartening.
Thank you for helping to turn around my day! Yes, I feel like that could be the tagline for my this morning “Shul politics is so disheartening.”