There is a way of navigating the world that is a constant flow of widening and narrowing. In my head I imagine this as a wave; at times we move inward, creating more of a tight center, at other moments we are broad, opening up to an expanse. Living our lives always in the tight center keeps us from broadening our world view but always living in the expanse can prohibit our ability to feel deeply connected. And sometimes, in moments that feel impossible to describe there is the broadening and narrowing simultaneously. Sometimes there is a broadening that somehow leads to the tightest feelings of connections.
I remember hearing about the invasion of Ukraine a year ago. I was in the hospital on bedrest, and while I certainly had access to all the same information as anyone else, I felt so far away. And I felt so confused about why this was happening, which certainly contributed to feeling distant. None of it made sense - it still doesn't. I kept seeing numbers of people displaced, images of couples torn apart as men went to war, elderly people slowly trying to escape war zones, wondering if they’d be able to move quickly enough. And it felt so far.
I felt compelled to expand my circle of connection and obligation, seeing myself as a part of a global community that simply cares about other humans. I tried to think about making the world a little smaller, ways that I could connect. I remember finding an artist on Etsy from Ukraine that sold digital prints. I purchased five just so I could support an artist in a warzone and so I could feel a little bit closer, so my world could feel a bit more narrow. So I didn’t feel lost in the vastness.
As this unjust war has continued, as Ukrainians continue to live in devastation, I fear that the narrowness, the connections, have faded. I’ll say that more precisely: My own sense of connection has lessened. So I am searching, and pushing myself, to remind myself that this world is not so big. Reminding myself that we are connected and that we can create narrowness wherever we choose, putting ourselves in obligated relationship even with someone across the world in a vastly different life circumstance.
My dear friend Alex works for the Joint Distribution Committee, and he just spent a week in Ukraine. He wrote about a Shabbaton that the JDC convened for over 600 Jewish Ukrainian volunteers that serve the Jewish community. Reading about his experiences there, I was overcome with the devotion of these volunteers: Burdened by the devastation of war, they give of themselves. Alex wrote about a 34 year old mother from Odessa who told him about her own debilitating fears as the war continued. She said, “So I made the decision to widen my world — to take on more responsibility, to take care of more people. And volunteering literally saved me.”
She widened her world. Even when she certainly had difficulties of her own, she took on caring for elderly Jews as a volunteer, helping them immeasurably. She widened her world, she expanded her sense of obligation, and in that process, she became deeply connected. I’m moved by her words, by my friend Alex’s work, and I am reminded that we too can make similar decisions. How can we look at the big world, and a country on the other side of it, and make our connections a little tighter? How can we widen our sense of obligation to make this vast world - with its devastating losses - just a bit smaller? This Shabbat, this one year since the war began, I pray that our actions create more connection, more obligation, and more love.
Shabbat Shalom, Rabbi Sarit
To access the JDC's Shabbat Tookit honoring Ukranian Jews, click here.
