Holiday gatherings offer us the space for quality time with family, and chosen family, that we are often too busy to enjoy. And also, these large and diverse gatherings can contain people with a wide range of political and social viewpoints with a diversity of perspective and great complexity of feelings. It can certainly be a creative and lively time, but it can also be challenging and even painful. And of course, we know that Jews have heightened sensitivity when we are hungry!
Before sitting down to our holiday meal tomorrow, let us consider how we can set up our hearts with compassion for our loved ones: those we disagree with, those we are missing from our tables, those who are in need of physical or emotional healing. I love this offering from my teacher Rabbi Yael Levy, who suggests that, before we take our seats, we bring our attention to our breath and say this prayer to ourselves:
May I know peace. May I know well-being May I know love. May I know healing.
May you know peace. May you know well-being. May you know love. May you
know healing.
Sim shalom, tovah uvracha, chein va’chesed, uv’rachamim aleinu.
Place upon us and all beings peace, well-being, blessing, life, grace, love, and compassion.
Rabbi Levy sweetly suggests saying this prayer for ourselves first, and then extending the blessing from our hearts to nine others, creating a minyan (a Jewish quorum) of blessing.
This Thanksgiving, may we experience relaxing time with our families and friends, and despite any ideological or emotional separation, may we find ways to send blessings directly to our loved ones and offer an extra dose of compassion to all the world.
–Cantor Emma Lutz