I was on a Zoom call with members of a group that I belong to and several of them said the equivalent of they wanted to say 'hi' but they were worn out, actually what they said was they were 'Zoomed out' from so many Zoom events. Even though they are 'sheltering in place' they are still very busy, with work meetings, organizing how to take care of the vulnerable, and Zoom calls or FaceTime with friends and relatives. They just couldn't deal with another Zoom call.
It is amazing that we have access to all of this technology that helps us to stay in touch, do Yoga or meditation, get patterns for sewing protective cloth coverings for our mouths and noses, sharing jokes and survival stories. It can also be overwhelming. Many of us need to connect. Many of us need to take a break from it all and find the strength and courage to go within. Sit still. Look out a window and see what is there. If you have birds or other wild life sit and breathe and watch for a while.
There is a verse from the Torah that Zalman Schachter-Shalomi [may his memory be a blessing] showed me when I was learning with him in Philadelphia when I was still a rabbinical student in the early 1980's. His teaching comes from the Book of Exodus where Moses is negotiating with Pharaoh to let us go into the wilderness so that we can worship God. Over and over Pharaoh refuses. Moses wants all of the people, including the women and children and all of the livestock to go a three-day journey into the wilderness in order to worship YHVH. Pharaoh wants to put limits on who can go and says that only the men can leave. During the negotiations, Moses insists that we all must go, and that "not a hoof shall remain behind . . .for we shall not know with what we are to worship the Lord until we arrive there". What do we learn from this half of a verse? We prepare for it the best we can, and we won't know until we get into the situation.
The 'situation' that we are all in, the whole world is in, is changing rapidly. Today it is hard to remember the reality we took for granted two weeks ago and two weeks ago we could not have anticipated how we would feel or what we would know today. Who knows what tomorrow will bring? Perhaps one of the things we need to bring with us into this new and ever-changing situation is the ability to be in the microscopic places, to be inside of our own skins, to see the buds and blooms on the trees, the daffodils and tulips. Maybe we need to drop the macroscopic picture for a while, limit the amount of news we watch, read or listen to and limit the number of phone calls, texts and Zoom meetings that take us away from our essential selves. Yes we are in this wilderness together and yet we each need to be deeply rooted inside ourselves, too, so that we can tap into that inner strength that resides deep inside each one of us and helps us to keep our emotional and spiritual balance.
PS: If you aren't "zoomed out" please join me and Noah Bloom for services on Saturday morning, and my class on the Jews of India at 1:00 pm Saturday afternoon. See details below.
It will be a fun adventure and an experiment. For centuries, prior to the advent of the printing press, Jews prayed without any prayer books and that is what we will be doing. We have designed the service so that you can simply experience it and participate in it without reference to any prayer books. If you would feel more comfortable with a text, you may download and print the PDF of an abbreviated version of our RENEWAL SIDDUR for Shabbat morning service (designed by Rabbi Chavah Carp and scanned by Howie Sagrans).
Saturday, April 18, 10:00 am 12:00 noon MT, ZOOM
Minyan HaLev Shabbat Morning Service
led by Rabbi Deborah Brin and Noah Bloom
ZOOM information will be sent soon
Saturday, April 18, 1:00 pm MT, ZOOM
MIshkan HaLev with Rabbi Deborah Brin
The Jews of Cochin
Join Rabbi Brin as she leads us in a ZOOM discussion about her recent trip to India.
ZOOM information will be sent soon