This spring and summer, I was captivated by a short series of podcasts on hope, hosted by On Being with Krista Tippett. Each of the fifteen minute episodes ended with a provocation, inviting listeners to think, write, or speak with others about big questions of the moment, including — what is bringing you hope right now? In one of these episodes, poet Ross Gay observed: “Adult joy knows that suffering and loss always live close by (to) life and love. And that knowledge brings what is good and joyful all the more into relief.” Though I listened to this in July, it immediately brought to mind the Yamim Noraim, the Days of Awe, which will soon be upon us. More than any other time in the Jewish calendar, Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, and the days in between ask us to consider suffering, loss, and joy all together. We are reminded that our time on earth is short, and that the work of teshuvah — of returning to our best selves — is truly holy. We are also reminded that none of us do this alone — we do it in community, as we strive to leave things better than when we found them, even and perhaps especially when it feels impossible. 

While our youngest community members may not yet be able to grasp such ideas, older children and teens surely do, and are embedded in communities that matter to them. In these communities, they look to trusted adults – parents, grandparents, teachers, coaches, camp counselors and others – as guides to help them understand themselves, and better define their own values. 

Jewish LearningWorks is honored to train and support those trusted adults, who are of course themselves, lifelong learners. In partnership with you, and with hundreds of educators across the Bay Area, we are shaping our collective experience of “life and love.”