The Jewish
year of 5777 will bring forth my 65th birthday. Thus, as Rosh
Hashanah approaches I contemplate many things; what is truly important, how do
we frame our core values; what is life’s true meaning; what Medicare plan
should I sign up for? Medicare is our
nation’s way of saying that growing old does have its benefits; and it is time
to schedule your next colonoscopy.
As I contemplate the days ahead,
I’ve been reading about mindfulness, have begun meditating and attempting to
live more in the moment. This, I find,
is a perfect framework for my complete lack of short term memory.
I am also coming to peace with
all I have hoped to accomplish and perhaps what may now be beyond my
grasp. For instance, I am now fully at
peace that no matter what I do, I will never be able to fold a fitted sheet.
I have begun taking yoga and, to
date, I hate it. I often feel like a
downward facing dog, and thus I see no reason for me to assume a position of
such. Let’s be honest, I’m in it for the
spandex.
I reflect on my life and think
about the choices I have made. In
wistful moments, I wish I had flossed more regularly.
But Rosh Hashanah reminds us
that “Hayom Harat Olam” “Today is the birthday of the world”. My sense is that the rabbis hadn’t concluded
that this is, in fact, the day the big bang occurred 5,777 years ago. Rather, I’d like to think that they are
reminding us that every year, and on every day, we have the opportunity to
recreate the world anew. It is a compelling
message of hope and opportunity. At
every age, in every time, new opportunities await us to find meaning, to make a
difference, to enrich our lives and the lives of others.
Few experiences opened my eyes
to the glorious possibilities and potential that lie in our collective future
than Nomi and Keith’s wedding this past summer.
The weekend gathering of friends and family concluding with the wedding
ceremony and freilich celebration that followed was a joyous affirmation of
love, hope and faith. Read more at http://draphael-emuse.blogspot.com/2016/09/nomi-and-keiths-wedding.html.
As always, my family continues to anchor me and ground me. In moments of
darkness thinking of them frames my life with joy and meaning. Alya will spend Sukkot with us, and can’t
wait to recreate memories of her childhood by making chains out of construction
paper. She is now using her science
background, her skill in communications and her overall extraordinary
competency and thoughtfulness as part of an innovative digital marketing team
focusing on health and medical related firms. Esteban is a lead professional at
a firm that creates customized DNA for research and pharmaceutical
purposes. He promises me that there are
ample safeguards in place to prevent a dystopian future. Nomi continues her studies at the University
of Maryland School of Social Work and thinks about working with inner city
children and building community gardens.
Keith teaches music at the Friends School and the Baltimore School of
Rock. Jacob is working in a local movie
theater, and, on off hours, focusing on his writing and building a wonderful
social network of friends.
Jo continues her work at the Epstein School as the counselor for the
younger grades and her mixture of kindness, thoughtfulness and strength are a
gift to children and families.
I remain the Executive Director of Boston University Hillel, a position
that brings together extraordinary opportunity and, at times, overwhelming
challenges. Working in Boston and living in Atlanta is difficult and, as a
long-term life choice probably makes little sense. So, life decisions lie in the near future.
The great joy of Nomi and Keith’s wedding in July was followed by
difficult doldrums of August when work challenges seemed to wash over me in
waves. During stressful and painful
weeks I was so bless to be able to reach out to dear friends and family for
counsel and comfort.
These are the great blessings, the great gifts that God has given
me. I am thankful to all of you who have
and who continue to enrich my life in so many ways.
May you have a happy, sweet, healthy and meaningful new year.
