Tikkun Olam
I was speaking with Rabbi Rabishaw the other day about writing this column for the month of January and explained to him my focus would be teshuvah as we would be visiting Watkins Shelter as a staff and as a Childhood Center community in January. I thought what better way to start the secular year off. He corrected me and said, “Teshuvah? Don’t you mean tikkun olam?” He was right, of course. It had been a long day and I had selected the wrong word from my jumbled brain. Teshuvah, which means a turning back, refers to our Jewish New Year and not the secular one we celebrate in January. However, everything happens for a reason and maybe that word came out of my mouth because it was what I was truly referring to. In retrospect maybe we need a little teshuvah in January, which will help lead us to a lot of tikkun olam.
I remember last year remarking that the modern equivalent to New Year’s resolutions must have their roots in Judaism (as I believe many customs do). The practice of reflecting back on the year and looking forward to what is ahead is very Jewish and we’re fortunate to have a lot of opportunities to do this built into our traditions. Whether it is in our morning or evening rituals, Shabbat traditions, or even if we wait until Rosh Hashanah to take inventory, we are wired to reflect and change our behaviors based on what we see.
So my challenge to each of you as Jews, parents, members of the human race is to ask yourself what you can do this year to assist you in this process. One of the things that comes to mind for me is to give back to the community to which I am a part of a little bit more. The temple staff will be visiting Watkins Shelter on January 29 to feed the families it services. I am proud to work in an organization where this is a core value. But you don’t have to work here to partake in this important mitzvah. You can contact Michelle Tran at mishtran@yahoo.com and pick a Monday evening to feed the families who find shelter at Watkins. You can perform this mitzvah with your family, friends, chavurah, or even with a group from work. Giving back is the cornerstone to reflection.
The Childhood Center will also be visiting Watkins Shelter on January 22 and this is where we can affect change in future generations. We ask families to attend together. Depending on their comfort level and ages, we have four-year-old children and 40-year-old parents working side by side fixing a little piece of the world right here in downtown Phoenix. Modeling the behavior ensures that our precious little ones will do the same for their children.
What else can you do this 2007? It seems like a simple question but one that if we do not ask ourselves and each other often, we will miss the mark by the time Yom Kippur rolls around next September. Use this New Year as an opportunity to take a pulse of how well you are doing on reflecting and performing mitzvot. Encourage your children to do the same. We may miss the mark on occasion but if we remain in tune to what our duty is as human beings and Jews, we will land much closer to the bulls eye.
L’Shalom,
Debbie
