CJC Newsletter July/August 2005

Welcome Chaverim, to the CJC Newsletter in a new form!

We are experimenting with a new way to bring you our blend of innovative and inspiring pastoral wisdom, community news, lifecycles, and announcements. We are evolving in order to better integrate our web presence and email contact with you, the community. Your input is always welcome!

From Our Maggid: A Story of Presence by Jhos Singer

Shalom Chaverim-

The High Holidays are now visible on the horizon. As a Maggid I start gearing up for the Days of Awe the minute I first start smelling barbeque wafting through the air. (Some ancient connection to the temple sacrifices no doubt) There are musicians to rehearse, sermons to write, services to plan, commentary to study- mechanics and logistics take over the landscape. I am often so focused on the details of creating the community ritual that my own practice slides down to the very bottom of my 'to do' list and it isn't until the first strains of the Erev Rosh HaShannah Barechu that I start thinking about the Three T's (Tephillah, Tzedaka and Teshuvah). Not so this year.

(continued...)

Hollywood has made sure that this year I will be meditating on and practicing tshuvah all summer long. A few weeks ago Sony Pictures released "Lords of Dogtown" and while most folks who go to see it will get some insight into the role that teen angst played in the evolution of skateboarding, I have been sent into some of the darker recesses of my childhood.

I grew up on Venice Beach ('Dogtown') and one of my closest childhood friends was Jay Adams, one of the "Lords" of the films title. Jay and I came from equally chaotic homes, each its own strange blend of love and neglect, brilliance and idiocy, tenderness and savagery. Like all the kids in our neighborhood, Jay and I ran the streets while our parents ran amok. My mom, z''l, and Jay's mom (Philaine) z''l were kindred spirits in many ways, both of them sharp, philosophical and witty with impeccable taste in art, music, literature and a passion for Japanese culture. Both of them also had an unholy dependency on men, luck and inebriants to get them through another day of personal wreckage.

Jay and I were dependent on each other-He was a risk-taker, I was calculating, He was charming; I was smart. We were both mischievous and we were both compassionate. Like our mothers, we too were kindred spirits. Jay and I spent our summers together surfing, skating, going to drive in movies, sneaking into places we couldn't afford or didn't belong (including the first synagogue I ever entered), engaging in petty crime and generally making ourselves annoying to anyone not in our pack. Kid stuff. Wild. Stupid. Death defying. My mom and Philaine spent a lot of time together too. I suspect that they commiserated, worried, hoped and wondered about the future; shared and compared their individual dramas. Adult stuff. Boring. Stupid. Dead.

We moved 9 times from the time I was born until I graduated high school. Jay about the same. We had lived within a few blocks of each other until I was about thirteen, and then he moved to the next town over, a few miles away. He also moved more deeply into the culture of surfing and skating while I moved more deeply into the world of music and academics.

By the time he was a teenager, Jay was an amazing athletic force. He was a skillful surfer and he was a brilliant and fearless skateboarder. I was finding my prowess as a musician and as a student. He practiced skate tricks; I practiced scales and etudes. He studied surf moves; I studied literature, math and science. He read the waves and tides; I read Kurt Vonnegut, Charles Dickens and Richard Brautigan. By the time I was 19 we had nothing much to say to one another. The years passed, Jay mismanaged his shot at wealth and fame; he ended up in jail, he did a lot of drugs, he wiped. I dreamt about having a shot at wealth and fame and in the meantime had amazing adventures, played a lot of music, saw a lot of the world, I flourished. Jay and I grew apart. But our mothers didn't.

Philaine was a second mom to me. She taught me amazing things, she soothed my often-jangled nerves, she gave my first two books on Judaism. She was always interested and supportive of my endeavors. I would visit with her periodically long after Jay and I had given up maintaining our connection. My mom would keep me up to date on how and where she was, and when we would connect we talked mostly about us, not about Jay, but about us. The conversation was always fresh and current and never felt like any time had elapsed since the last visit. She continued to have challenges and triumphs and she made it clear that she was impressed by my accomplishments. I had made it out of the wreckage intact and for that I had her respect.

About 10 years ago I got a call from my mom letting me know that Philaine had just received a cancer diagnosis and would probably love to hear from me. I called her and we had a wonderful conversation. I had just begun my 'formal' maggidic training and I had her in stitches by recounting some hysterical moment at a 'woo woo" spirituality retreat I had attended and what it was like to be working at Peet's Coffee and Tea while wearing a kippah and tzitzit. It was lovely to connect with her like that. A few weeks later she called and left me a message. She said that things were really bad for her and that I had lifted her spirits so much in our last conversation that she'd like me to call again, that she could use a laugh. I totally choked.

Instead of just calling her and connecting with her wherever she was at, I nervously preplanned what I was going to say. I tried to come up with something really funny, but I totally missed. I called, got her answering machine, and left my long spiel on it. She called back the next day furious and hurt. I was utterly embarrassed and chagrined. I didn't have a clue in those days how to listen, how to sit still in the face of someone's anxiety and fear, how to check my own fears and anxieties before entering the realm of sacred service. I was a novice, and oy vey did it show. She needed me to just show up and instead I did bad stand up on her answering machine. Philaine was never one to placate, and she basically read me the riot act. I shriveled up and froze. That was our last conversation. She died a few months later.

I still regret not following up; I basically just disappeared at a time when my dear friend really needed me. I have felt Philaine chiding me from Olam Haba, "That sucked, Jhos." And I still cringe. I have also felt her and my mom on my shoulder in every hospital and hospice visit I have made since, gently steering me away from insolence or insensitivity.

I've found it in myself to be able to look into someone's eyes and simply see them, I have learned how to pray with them, and I have even managed to organically bring forth a laugh from time to time. And every time I am able to afford someone who is in distress a little comfort, I grieve that I wasn't able to just be real enough to give that to Philaine.

By the time my mom was dying, --strangely enough of the same cancer that killed Philaine-- I had learned a lot about how to be a 'non-anxious' presence with folks who were in distress. Even though I have never been more anxious in my life than those torturous days of waiting and watching my mom slip away from me, I was able to feel calm by knowing that this too is part of HaShem. I was able to be fully there for her, and we got to have some priceless moments together. I accepted her death and indeed it was stunningly beautiful when all was said and done. I knew that eventually the pain of my grief would soften and mellow-- I just needed to follow the shape and force of the feelings with grace and balance. It was like riding a wave…

As I watched 'Jay' soaring up the face of a drained swimming pool for the first time, and crashing down into the unforgiving concrete in "Lords of Dogtown" I was struck by our primal similarities. Watching him try something as crazy as riding a skateboard in a pool, failing, trying again, doing better, trying again and succeeding and then to evolve his form so that he was soaring instead of crashing, defying gravity, rejoicing in the face of danger and potential pain, I thought, "Wow, both of us rebbes. Who knew?" And I pray that Philaine knew.

May the memory of the righteous be for a blessing. And may each of us find the strength and balance to listen before we speak;the perseverance and humilityto right the missteps we have taken on our way; the patience and courage to continue to show up even after a fall, and may we all find redemption speedily and soon.

Blessings---Jhos

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Ruach Havurah, A Learning Salon at CJC
Please join us on Saturday, July 9 at Holy Family Church 12:30 for an aftern

 

Some examples of things we could explore together as a havurah might include some of the following:

§ Beginning or deepening your prayer and/or meditation practice
§ What is spirituality and what is religion? How are they similar or different?
§ Traditional and innovative spiritual practices
§ How do you experience and describe the presence of god in your life? In your family? In your work?
§ Hebrew as a language and tool for prayer § Elul: preparing your spirit for the high holy days
§ Cultivating a daily spiritual practice § Contemplative and mystical Jewish prayer and practice
§ Torah and text
§ God in our relationships

For more information and/or to RSVP, please email Karen at kaylee18@sbcglobal.net, or by phone at 415.566.2183.

Ravel's Kaddisch by Julie Batz

We're nearing the Summer Solstice, and have just marked the Yahrzeit (anniversary) of the passing of CJC member Bev Cornet. One of the greatest gifts that Bev gave me came in the form of a request: more than anything, she wanted me to sing the "Barbra Streisand" version of Avinu Malkeinu for the High Holy Days. She copied the music for me, and gently nudged me until I agreed. I asked Lisa Spector to accompany me, and the resulting marriage of song, spirit, and text was one of the most special davenning/prayer experiences I have had. I will always see Bev's face shining light when I sing that Avinu Malkeinu.

(continued...)

As the High Holy Days/Yamim Noraim approach this year, I have been looking for a new song to learn and bring to our community. A few months ago, I came across a recording by Shalom Berlinski, who served as the cantor at the Synagogue de la Victoire in France from 1948-1979.

On the CD, is an amazing rendition of Maurice Ravel's Kaddisch. It is the most amazing musical expression of the Kaddish that I have ever heard, and Berlinski's voice and heart blew me away. I tracked down the music and once again called Lisa Spector: "Will you learn this with me?" Happily, she agreed.

The text of Kaddisch is the familiar Aramaic of the Chatzi Kaddish, and the melody is based on the nusach (traditional mode or musical motif) for the Shalosh Regalim/Pilgrimage Festivals and the High Holy Days.

Ravel wrote the music in 1914 as part of a two-song composition Deux mélodies hébraïques. It was first performed in June 1914 by Madame Alvina-Alvi (the soprano in the St. Petersburg Opera who commissioned the work), with Ravel at the piano.

May God's great name be magnified and hallowed throughout the world that God created according to God's will; and may God reign over God's kingdom in your lifetime and in your days and in the lifetime of the entire house of Israel, speedily in our day, and let us say 'Amen'.

[The Ravel setting does not include the congregational response line.]

I am grateful for the lasting gifts of those we have loved, and I hope that the addition of this Kaddisch will enhance and deepen our worship experience of the Yamim Noraim this year.

B'virkat Shalom/Blessings of Peace,
Julie

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Message from Our Prez by Linda Jacobson

Coastside Jewish Community is a spiritual group, a worshipping community, a caring community. I don't want to introduce the topic of organizational management into a holy place; but (isn't there always a "but"?) congregations must establish sound organizational structures and management practices, or we will not be able to fulfill our mission. That's why it's important to shout out "Baruch HaShem!" for the exemplar organizational management skills of the following four people, whose devoted, loyal, and insightful leadership has enabled CJC to flourish structurally and financially:

(continued)
... Jacque Maxon, our Treasurer (2003-2005); Stephanie Levin, event producer and director ('02-'05), Vaughn Harrison, Secretary ('03-'04) and Social Action Chair ('04-'05), and Lesli Sachs, CJC co-founder, Board member, past president, and den mother ('94-'05). They are adept practitioners of the 14th mitzvah on that ol' Top 613 List of Hit Mitzvot: It is a mitzvah to love other Jews (Leviticus 19:18, Mishneh Torah). Just as we thank these retiring Board members, we eagerly anticipate the involvement of our fab four new directors, Leslie Deman, Liz Gray, Lissin LevChaya, and Carrie Sealine. Welcome and mazel tov, new Board members!

Every Board member is happy to hear from you about your priorities and hopes for CJC ritual practice, social/cultural/educational programming, and growth. Schmooze us.

Still in gratitude mode, a big hand to lay-leaders Karen Erlichman and Wendie Bernstein Lash, who created and led a beautiful Shavuot observance at the home of Nancy Margulies and Gary Wahraftig. We hope it becomes a tradition!

Other business at hand: Please send in your membership pledge forms, and Todah Rabah if you've done so.

If you receive this newsletter but you're not a member, please consider the 119th Mitzvah: Each man must give a half shekel annually (Exodus 30:13). Yes, CJC relies on your shekels to meet our operating expenses.

Speaking of shekels, when you shop, CJC wins! Sign up with eScrip -the electronic fundraising program in which participating merchants contribute when you buy stuff using your supermarket club/debit/credit cards that you register with eScrip. No receipts to collect, no tsuris (trouble) for you-and every purchase counts! Every time you shop at one of 6,000 merchant locations, a percentage of your purchase goes directly to CJC! It's simple and secure to sign up online:

Step #1: Go to www.escrip.com
Step #2: Click on Sign Up
Step #3: Enter CJC's Group ID#144028734
Step #4: Enter your card number(s).

It's easy. It's free. It's great for CJC.

Keep in touch, and keep the faith-Linda Jacobson

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Lifecycles - Bikkur Cholim

Congratulations to Lissin & Hearty on their wedding

Congratulations to Miriam  Gershenson and her family on her lovely Bat Mitzvah

Special Honors to Julia Van Soelen, Annie Blair's daughter, 
who graduated from UC Davis with honors in Sociology 

Congratulations to Thea Wallach who accepted a full-time K-1 teaching position
at Farallone View Elementary School. Her daughter Julia will be one of her fortunate new students!

Healing wishes to Amee Evans Godwin's mother, Adelaide Evans

Deepest sympathies to Elizabeth Ross for the loss of her father in June

“Help for our community is needed”

Anyone able to cook for or help transport our community when the need arises,
please contact Linda Bea Miller: lb250a@hotmail.com. We are in need of helpers.

Donations

GENERAL FUND

In Memory of Dorothy Rosenbaum:

Eric Rosenbaum
Alan Rosenbaum
Jan Rosenbaum Sass
Helen and Robert Sass
Francis Chandler
The Hoovan Family
Marcella Holzman & Martha Russel
Cathy Hauer & Nancy Baker
Vivian Chen Haynes
Anita and Chris Fong
Vaughn Harrison
Sara and Storm Russell
Lesli Sachs
Karen Erlichman and Jana Rickerson
Rachel Francisco
Hunter Gatewood
Emily Ho
Marcy Holzman
Gary Scherer
Alana Turner

In Honor of Miriam Gershenson's Bat Mitzvah:

Karen Erlichman and Jana Rickerson
Patti Moskovitz
Sara and Storm Russell



Selma and Ben Cornet, in loving memory of Bev Cornet

Lisa Joy Jacobson in honor of her nephew, Benjamin Jacobson-Bell's 3rd Birthday

Kevin Morgan

Jhos Singer

Merrill and Joanne Bobele in celebration of their son's wedding

Lesli Sachs in celebration of Merrill and Joanne Bobele's son's wedding

Karen Erlichman in memory of her grandmother Marion Young

Vaughn Harrison in memory of her father Norman Polansky

 

CANTOR FUND

In loving memory of Dorothy Rosenbaum:

Liz Gray
Francis Chandler
Edith Dobkin
Chris Goodman
Kerry Lobel

 

RELIGIOUS SCHOOL

Rachael Gershenson and Dana Lynch, in honor of Miriam Lynch Gershenson's Bat Mitzvah

 

BOOK FUND

Sheila Weiss in memory of her father Michael Kosmin

Get more involved with CJC!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Contact us!

CJC on the Web: www.coastsidejewishcommunity.org

Email: coastsidejewishcommunity@yahoo.com

Mailing Address: PO Box 1729, El Granada, CA, 94018

Spiritual Leaders:
Jhos Singer, Maggid 510-526-5397 cjcmaggid@sbcglobal.net
Julie Batz, Sheli'ach Tsibbur 510-549-3121 jbatz@sbcglobal.net

Board Members:
Linda Jacobson (President)
Sara Russell (Vice President)
Jacque Maxon (Treasurer)
Wendi Shafir (Education)
Stephanie Levin (Events)
Kerry Lobel (Fundraising)
Vaughn Harrison (Social Action)
Linda Bea Miller (Lifecycles)
Lesli Sachs (Past President)
Amee Evans Godwin (Publications)

Ocean Shore Printing
for all your printing needs
Bar/Bat Mitzvah & Wedding Invitations
575 Kelly Ave, Half Moon Bay 94019
650-726-5186

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Publications/Webmaster - coastsidejewishcommunity@yahoo.com