Practices Search Results
By Husnaa Hashim in the KidSpirit Human Dignity issue.
I don't want learning, or dignity, or respectability. I want this music, and this dawn, and the warmth of your cheek against mine.
— Jalaluddin Rumi, “A Thirsty Fish”
The Rumi quote above suggests a longing to live in the present moment, love your fellow human beings, and appreciate the beauty of today rather than worrying about the mystery of tomorrow. Upon walking into Temple Rodeph Shalom one particularly crisp autumn afternoon, I feel welcome to appreciate the beauty of today. The windows of this sanctuary are stained glass, allowing the slightest distillation of light to shine through. I do not know exactly why I am here, but I do know that we are placed where we are meant to be, at the time we are meant to be in that place.
Proceeding to the basement of the synagogue, the large group of high school students and mentors of various religious backgrounds and traditions form a circle. I take my place. During this particular session we go on to learn about food insecurity, de-poverty, and reformed Judaism. We make challah bread, my brown hands dipping into white flour and braiding a strand that will be baked and shared with the other students.
Literary Wisdom
What is the meaning of life? The great revelation . . . never did come. Instead there were little daily miracles, illuminations, matches struck unexpectedly in the dark.
— Virginia Woolf in Lessons from the Dying by Rodney A. Smith