President's Blog

I attended a remarkable event this past weekend. It really should have been pretty ordinary, but it wasn't. Temple Beth Shalom had an outdoor event to celebrate the (near) end of Passover. Scheduled to occur late on a Saturday afternoon, we threw in a Havadalah observance as well (a Jewish two-fer if you will). 

Even the weather was ordinary. It wasn't one of our stunning central Texas spring days. Instead it was overcast and in the low to mid 60's. Combine all of this together and you have the recipe for a typical, ordinary Temple Beth Shalom event--which are usually pretty enjoyable.

What made this event remarkable was that in was our first in-person event in a little over a year.  The sixty or so in attendance were marveling at the joy of being together as a group for this first time in a trip around the sun. It's as though we were liberated from our cages and set free to walk around the Temple's parking lot. It almost seemed a little disorienting. 

The conversations were mostly predictable; how have you spent the last year? Is that beard new? Your haircut looks fabulous. But we were all basking in the joy of having these conversations without having our faces surrounded by a yellow box. And seeing our friends with legs attached.

Assuming we collectively continue to build herd immunity, gatherings like these as well as in-person services from our sanctuary will continue. Rest assured, one lesson learned from the pandemic is that even as we offer a greater mix of in-person events we will continue to stream services for those that can't attend or are uncomfortable attending.

If you can attend in person, please find the instructions on how to make a reservation here. If you have any questions for me, drop me an email here.