My family\u2019s in the middle of a month of celebrations. June is always this way at our house, but it\u2019s even more intense this time around.<\/p>\n
In a \u201cusual\u201d June, we celebrate two family birthdays and a wedding anniversary; it\u2019s also the end of school for our kids. This year, we started off with a bang. Our twins had their birthday on Erev Shavuot. In the morning, we joined the huge Pride Parade festivities. In the evening, our community, in Winnipeg, had a Tikkun Leil Shavuot<\/i> (a traditional night of study at the beginning of the holiday) with hundreds participating from four congregations. While we ate dairy foods and celebrated, to our surprise, the whole room sang our kids a rousing version of Yom Huledet Sameach<\/i> (Happy Birthday). It was something to remember \u2013 they were surrounded by smiles and learning.<\/p>\n
Shavuot is celebrated in a lot of ways. It\u2019s a first fruits and first wheat harvest holiday. It\u2019s also the day that we celebrate the giving of the Torah and read the Book of Ruth. Some observe this holiday as a day of radical inclusion, when everyone, no matter your age or gender, should hear the Ten Commandments read.<\/p>\n
Radical inclusion is something I think about a lot. This year, my nephew in Virginia, LJ, who has cerebral palsy and uses a power wheelchair and assisted communication device, celebrated Shavuot with his confirmation class at Temple Rodef Shalom, a Reform congregation near Washington, DC. He gave a speech at the service, carefully planned, about the intersection of his identities as a Jewish and disabled person and as an advocate for accessibility. He spoke eloquently about how Judaism teaches us to pursue justice, and how he works to help make that possible. LJ has given many speeches: on how others can learn about assisted communication, on how to teach math to those with visual disabilities, and on myriad other topics. At 16, LJ is already an accomplished advocate who rolls into rooms filled with adults and shows them new ways to help learners with disabilities.<\/p>\n
During his recent speech, LJ mentioned how his religious school helpers have gone on to helping professions: speech pathology, special education, and more. It\u2019s true that some see people with disabilities as having high needs, but all people have things to teach others and to give the world. LJ\u2019s need for physical support results in a huge net positive. He positively affects the lives of many others around him.<\/p>\n
At the Tikkun Leil Shavuot I attended, Rabbi Yosef Benarroch (who served in the 1990s as spiritual leader of Beth Hamidrash in Vancouver) gave the keynote. Benarroch is retiring from Congregation Adas Yeshurun-Herzlia here in Winnipeg and moving back to Israel to join his family. His address reminded us about all the ways in which we can help one another and perform acts of chesed<\/i> (kindness) towards others. His summary of a day in the life of a congregational rabbi made me feel tired! However, it was filled with ways he was of service to others, while getting to do mitzvot <\/i>(commandments) and sharing important moments in people\u2019s lives.<\/p>\n
I\u2019d be the first to say that, sometimes, as a mom, helping meet others\u2019 needs can be exhausting. There are years where I look ahead to June and think, \u201cWow, I\u2019ll be making a lot of birthday cake \u2013 and how many holiday and celebratory meals?\u201d Yet, hearing these two different perspectives, on Jewish advocacy and acts of kindness, really raised me up. It reminded me of how much there is to do in the world, and how lucky we are if we\u2019re healthy, capable and able to do it.<\/p>\n
Right now, in Manitoba, we\u2019re coping with huge wildfires and many evacuees. As the bossy mom, I forced everyone to go through their closets so we could participate in the donation drives, because something like 17,000 people have been forced to flee their homes. One of my family members said, \u201cWe just donated stuff! We probably don\u2019t have anything to offer!\u201d Three bags of clothing (women\u2019s, men\u2019s and teens\u2019) and blankets later, we were dropping off what we could find before Shavuot started. I reminded my 14-year-olds that this was their birthday mitzvah \u2013 the traditional extra commandment that they took on \u2013 and we celebrated it through the smoky morning.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n If you\u2019re like me, it can be a struggle to relax into a wholehearted celebration while holding so much in our hearts at once. Whether it\u2019s the hostages in Gaza, the war, the wildfires, antisemitism worldwide or issues closer to home, it\u2019s understandable if it\u2019s difficult to be completely joyful. Yes, we are commanded to celebrate at certain times, but I am reminded of the traditions of Jewish weddings. At every Jewish wedding, we break a glass to remind ourselves of the loss of the Temple in Jerusalem. We hold a bittersweet feeling of grief and pain even at our most meaningful moments. This acknowledgement doesn\u2019t keep us from continuing to hope, to celebrate, while including everyone.<\/p>\n Today, I\u2019ve had the honour of visiting a longtime family friend in the hospital. I brought her snacks and flowers from our garden. She\u2019s just undergone surgery after a fall. I was relieved to find her in good humour. I\u2019ve gotten to cook a bit for her family, as well as mine, and found time to work, walk the dog and even pull up copious weeds. Every handful of invasive greenery removed showed me the flowering plants underneath. I celebrated the riotous colour of both the weeds and the irises.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n There\u2019s no guarantee that every moment will be happy or every summer a celebration. Still, we have so many opportunities to do kindnesses, perform mitzvahs and be there to advocate for one another. If Shavuot sticks with me long after it ends, it\u2019s not because of cheesecake or even first fruits. During a month of family celebration this year, Shavout also offered the opportunity to celebrate our tradition, which offers us great gifts if we make the most of them: learning, Torah and radical inclusion, too.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Joanne Seiff <\/b>has written regularly for the Winnipeg Free Press and various Jewish publications. She is the author of three books, including <\/i>From the Outside In: Jewish Post Columns 2015-2016, a collection of essays available for digital download or as a paperback from Amazon. Check her out on Instagram @yrnspinner<\/a> or at joanneseiff.blogspot.com<\/a>.<\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" My family\u2019s in the middle of a month of celebrations. June is always this way at our house, but it\u2019s even more intense this time around. In a \u201cusual\u201d June, we celebrate two family birthdays and a wedding anniversary; it\u2019s also the end of school for our kids. 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