Randy Schoch
Para-Rabbinic Fellow Emeritus
We are now into the month of Cheshvan which is the only Jewish month with not a single special festival day (except for Shabbat every week). Cheshvan can seem to be a letdown after the cycle of holy days and festivals we enjoyed throughout the previous month of Tishrei.
But we Jews have a knack for finding cause to rejoice with our families and friends. Rather than accepting Cheshvan as a month of nothingness, we can turn it into something special by continuing to celebrate the Sabbath and Thanksgiving Day with joy.
As some of you are aware, Jackie and I have not been to synagogue often lately. We have spent weekends in Pa. for my 50th high school reunion and to look at houses for a future vacation home and then again for my Aunt Ag’s 99th birthday celebration.
It was during these travels back and forth to Pa. with all the visiting of family and friends that I was once again reminded of one of my pet peeves: the indifference many people have about their physical fitness and health.
When teaching my classes of 5th graders, I always begin class with our Opening Ceremony which combines the three parts of our being (physical – spiritual – mental). Because they are in Religious School to learn Hebrew, they grasp the mind and soul connection quickly. But the physical takes some explaining. I try to make them aware that a healthy body is just as important as mind and soul.
During my travels on the weekend of my Aunt Ag’s birthday, I went to Delaware to pick up my sister Ruth (an Associate Member of Sha’are Shalom). Ruth has had a lifelong physical condition that she has come to terms with and has begun aggressively to correct. I am so proud of her and the progress she has make and include her in my daily prayers. Then I visited a childhood friend and classmate. He is in very bad shape (smokes, drinks, and no exercise) having had two major strokes and many minor ones. The next morning Ruth and I visited our 99 year old aunt. Aunt Ag is a non-smoker, drank rarely, and walked as her major mode of transportation around town. She is in good health (although fragile), mentally alert, and prays regularly. She is a model for us all.
A little bit of Kabbalah from the Rebbe, obm before closing: Every prayer of the heart is answered. It’s the packaging that doesn’t always meet our taste.
ב׳שלום,
R. Schoch, PRF, Emeritus
Disclaimer – Anything written in this column is only my own impression of events, the way that I interpret them, and not meant to be factual and true. If confronted by a challenge, I will immediately claim senility and deny writing whatever is being challenged