Here is a blog post whose title I would have like to have stolen, “How Can We Be Thankful As Others are Suffering?“. [It is a little off-color, be warned.]
That is how I feel on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving having just come from an amazing Intergenerational Day Program at our school.
It was a spectacular morning – and the although the theme was honoring American veterans and those currently serving in our armed forces, events in Israel required our attention as well. And that, along with Hurricane Sandy, makes it a difficult time for full glasses of joy. Those glasses are somewhat emptied by the sadness, grief, anger and 
helplessness we feel about those in harm’s way in the current conflict in Israel. (As I type a cease-fire is being announced, click here, but events are constantly shifting.) Our Middle Schoolers yesterday were simultaneously cooking a Thanksgiving feast for our veterans while hanging informational posters of support for Israel around the school. It was an important reminder of what it means to be an American Jew at this moment in history. Both our countries remain at war – as Americans we honor those presently serving in Afghanistan (and other places) and as Jews we honor all Israelis who face the constant threat of missiles and other terrorist acts as part of their “normal” existence. Helping our students – and families – understand, cope and respond to these challenges of American Jewish life is part of what makes the Schechter Jewish day school experience so unique and important.
And so it is with a heart beating with pride for our school and its many ongoing accomplishments and programs…
…and breaking for our brothers and sisters in Israel as they navigate a tentative ceasefire that I pause for a moment to give thanks for the many blessings I have in my life.
I am thankful for my beautiful wife and children. I am thankful for my parents, my children’s grandparents, and all our extended family and friends. I am thankful for our community into whose roots we sink deeper each year. I am thankful for the parents who entrust us with the sacred responsibility of providing their children with a Jewish education. I am thankful for mentors who force me to reflect and allow me to grow. I am thankful to the students who challenge, push, and motivate us to be and do better each and every day. And I am thankful to my teachers who inspire me to come to work each and every day to give 100% (even if much of it regrettably happens behind closed doors or off campus) of all I am to do my part to further the ongoing journey of this remarkable school we call home.
Happy Thanksgiving.
Very thought-provoking post, Jon. We are grateful for all you do for our children, school and wider Jewish world! Wishing you & yours a Happy Thanksgiving!