This morning I want to speak a few minutes about wisdom &
inspiration. The difference between
wisdom and intelligence is experience.
After two years as your President, I certainly have more wisdom.
An example of wisdom that I gained is a greater understanding of the
ritual - services, holidays, lifecycle events, and now I am a pro at opening
and closing the Ark. Another area of
increased wisdom is how committed the Board is - they really are. One final example is that is more challenging
than I thought to have people change behavior,
even when it benefits Temple and themselves. I am thankful for this increased wisdom.
After spending time with OZ, other congregational leaders around Vermont
through Jewish Communities of Vermont, and across the country through URJ
(Union of Reform Judaism), I understand
better how Temple Sinai relates to other
congregations around the country . These
conversations reinforced that we do have a wonderful, strong, caring
community. Other congregations would
love to have the little debt that we do and over $200,000 in an endowment. It cost more to be members of most other congregations. Others would love to have the social and
religious activities that we have (I have trouble keeping track of all that is
going on). Other congregations would like to have the activities that we
have for families with young children.
Most others would like to have the Board Leadership succession that we
have.
I ask each of you to continue to
support the board under Joel's leadership.
I ask you to offer suggestions and offer to be involved. I ask you to be proud of all that we do and
focus on the good things that are part of our congregation. I ask you to reflect on the message that we
give to our children and the help that we provide to our members in need.
In closing, I say heartfelt Thank yous. Thank you for your support and
encouragement. Thank you for taking time
to let me know when you feel things should change. Thank you for the trust & confidence that
you have placed in me.
Now for the inspiration. Some of you have hears of Philippe Petit and
his wire walking between the World Trade Center Twin towers. You probably have not heard about his high
wire walk in Jerusalem. He was asked by
the Teddy Kollek, the mayor of
Jerusalem at the time, to open the Israel Festival. With all the conflict in Jerusalem, Philippe
decided to connect his wire between the Arab
& Jewish quarters over the Ben Hinnom Valley. He thought, wouldn't it be cool to stop in
the middle and to make the dove appear.
Philippe stepped confidently off the building
on the wire, walked to the middle and stopped. He looked up to the sky, and released the dove
with the most magnificent gesture. AS
Philippe describe it, "the bird goes flop, flop, flop and lands on his
head. People Scream. He grabs the Dove and for the second time
sends it in the air again. The dove who
obviously didn't go to flying school, goes flip, flip, flip and lands on the
end his balancing pole. He sits down
immediately." The Crowd goes crazy
thinking that he is a professional who knows what he is doing. So he takes a bow and then bangs his head on
the end of the pole to get the dove off.
For the third time, the Dove flops and lands on the wire behind
Philippe.
Now he is exhausted and still 50 yard from the end, so his steps are slow. The crowd begins to clap in unison in time
with his slow steps ... in applause of encouragement. Philippe remarked that the crowd forgot their
differences and became one pushing him to triumph.
On the Mayors desk is a picture of Philippe with
the dove on his head. Teddy told
Philippe that when things get tough, he looks at the picture and says, if
Philippe can do that, I can do this and he goes back to work.
Philippe ended his story saying "Inspiration! By inspiring ourselves, we inspire others. Please glue feathers to your arms and look at
the world from a different perspective.
And when you see mountains, remember that mountains can be moved."
It has been my honor to serve as your
President. I hope that I have inspired
each of you.
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