This is the kind of email I LOVE to receive.
Hello Dawn!
I went to my first Shabbat services today since I was a little kid, as we discussed. I was beyond nervous all morning and honestly, almost pulled out of the parking lot as soon as I got there because I was so anxious. I am very glad that I did not.
While it is all a completely new world to me, and a pretty stark contrast to the ways I’ve lived my life in the past, it felt very, very, very good to be there in person. The rabbi even recognized me from our Zoom call, immediately came up to me after the service, and introduced me to quite a few members of the congregation as well as the Cantor and a few other fellow musicians. I was blown away by how immediately friendly, interested in me, and accepting of me everyone was. It is a feeling I’ve never experienced before and never knew I needed.
I want to thank you so much for responding to my email, talking with me and offering so much perspective and encouragement. I think if we hadn’t talked the anxiety would have deterred me from going today as it has for the past weeks. While I can’t say for sure that I do not still have the problems we talked about at least partially running through my head, this is definitely the first step in feeling better. Thank you so very much.
Are you a person raised in an interfaith family? Are you feeling that you can’t seek or claim your Jewish self? Let’s talk. So frequently I am contacted by individuals who are anxious about their Jewish identity/status/ability to fit in. Believe me, there is no ONE SIZE FITS ALL. Each person must assess their desires and needs. They must determine what they want from a Jewish life and what they will give to attain that precise place of belonging. Is ANYTHING in the world possible? Of course not. But surely there is something better than pain. Email me at dawn@buildingjewishbridges.org and get started.