Lobbied

Washington always strikes me with it's gravity and gravitas. I am sure those who live and work here can have difficulty seeing beyond it's marbled walls. I cannot blame them. But I suspect that there is a certain relief that comes from a group of teens who travel from the home districts and share their passion. And for the teens to stand for a time in that gravity well is an experience that reminds them of the power in their emerging voice. Senators Merkley and Wyden (personally) and the House staffers, listened with more than polite attention. The stories our teens told were personal, informed and passionate. And who know how far gravity waves travel.

Thank you to the staff of the RAC, to our chaparones and to CBI for supporting this trip.


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Shabbat and Beyond

Transitioning from flight to Shabbat was difficult. Shabbat is place/time - converting ordinary to extraordinary. Travel is noplace/notime - the extraordinary in which we seek to find ordinary - something familiar. It took me until Shabbat morning, wrapped in my tallit, to feel at home in Shabbat.

But more important is engagement with L'Taken. Our 15 teens are having a great experience, both within the program and asserting their personal independence.

Friday night after services and dinner the kids heard from presenters who spoke about their experiences with homelessness. They were very moving talks and change the way we look at the people we pass on the streets.

Shabbat morning was a program in which the kids experienced the entire process of lobbying - from meeting with senators to producing TV spots. This year RAC added a New Media component - with kids writing tweets and facebook posts. One of the LAs retweeted some the kid's tweets. They were great.

Afternoon was a visit to the Holocaust museum. No matter how many times I go there, I am caught by surprise - especially when I hear my mother's voice in the witness audio.

Outside were a pair of protesters linking Shoah to Gaza. I couldn't have been more offended. It took me some time to stop running an imagined confrontation with them through my head. My concern, though, was for our kids who were very affected by the Holocaust Museum and were about to go out for dinner. I gave a brief talk on the bus to help them transition - with a focus on life and remberance.

After free time in Georgetown, we gathered together, all 400 of us, for havdalah at the Jefferson Memorial. This is always one of my favorite moments. Public Judaism in our nation's capital. How rare that had been in Jewish history! We are spending a lot of time studying about the problems in our country. But we start with love and appreciation for all that America stands for.

Flying

I find it such a unique experience to have time such as this. Flying lets me find uniterrupted hours. At 30,000 ft. reading Karen Armstrong's chapter on the Greek Philosophers in her new book "The Case For God." Being reminded of the power of reason as a unifying, life-affirming point. "The Life according to reason is beat and pleasantest," write Aristotle, "since reason, more than anything is Man." All this while listening to klezmer music ("Klezmocracy") on my iPhone! There are things Aristotle, with all his reason could not have anticipated.

I am thinking about what these 15 teens will be experiencing in DC over the next few days. In particular we will be leading them to present rational arguments, based on Jewish learning, to our congressional delegation - as if reason, and not politics - was the key. I am not being cynical, I am admiring the power of optimism in our youth.

I want them to change our world.


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L'Taken. Yes We Can.

So here's what it's like: getting up much to early to join 15 high school students, 4 chaparones and a patient flight crew as we stagger to DC. We're stopped off in Denver right now. This is a really great group of kids. Very cohesive. And they really like each other.


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