Returning to Our Best Selves
From the Desk of Sharon Glassberg, Board President
The board meeting of the Tucson Jewish Museum & Holocaust Center came early this month but was right on time as it took place during the Jewish month of Elul, the last month of the Jewish year. It is the time we spiritually prepare ourselves for the Jewish High Holiday season and new year.
What does it mean to spiritually prepare? It means taking time to reflect on the past year, how we might have missed the mark, and planning what changes we will make towards returning to our best selves as a way to accomplish this. If you have ridden the Tube in London, there are signs every where to “Mind the Gap”; be careful of the space between the platform and the train itself, and take a moment to navigate how you will get across. This is the concept of Elul.
Craig Taubman, a singer/songwriter and founder of the Pico Union Project in Los Angeles, publishes the “Jewels of Elul” each year, filled with writings by actors, politicians, educators, and more, to “uplift and inspire.” This year, Still, I Believe: Voices of a New Generation are from young people of all walks of life reflecting on quotes from Anne Frank’s diary, and their meaning today. It connects to our work at Tucson Jewish Museum & Holocaust Center and the profound impact a visit to the museum makes on our community students, along with meeting and hearing from a Holocaust survivor. I shared with the board a jewel written by Brhandon Arenas, age 18:
“I think young people today are under enormous pressure to be ‘enough’. Social media, school and family expectations all send mixed messages. Be unique but not too different. Be confident but not arrogant. Be successful but don’t brag. It’s no wonder so many of us feel confused, just like Anne Frank did, We are constantly being told who to be and when we fall short of those expectations, we blame ourselves.”
He ends his jewel by stating, “…in my own journey from a shy immigrant teen to a determined student chasing dreams, I carry her (Anne) words as a reminder that I’m not alone in this confusion, and that change doesn’t mean losing yourself, it means finding who you were meant to be.”
As I asked members of the TJMHC board to do as our meeting began, think of the possibilities open to you as you move through these High Holidays. Which ones will you grasp tightly and use to guide you in returning to your best self? While Anne Frank’s story is singular, it reflects the lives of 1.5 million Jewish children murdered in the Holocaust. A good first step is learning how our world impacts not only young adults today but all of us, and how we react.
Shana Tova, a happy, healthy, and sweet new year.