I’m not actually sure who felt the most joy on Tuesday at Coleman Elementary. Every year, Beth Sholom volunteers spend several hours at Coleman with hundreds of donated gifts. We simulate a gift shop, and students come in by class to pick out a Christmas gift to give to a special adult in their lives. Each child is accompanied by a volunteer to walk through the ‘shop,’ and the child decides to whom they are giving a gift (often it’s mom, dad, or grandma). Their gifts are lovingly wrapped with fun paper and a bow or ribbons. This year, through the help of some incredible volunteers, we were able to give 600 gifts for children to give to their adults.
Here’s what I know: The students excitedly find something they hope their special adult will enjoy. The school waits all year for this day knowing that we provide something to their students they wouldn’t otherwise receive. Our volunteers (this year, 26 of them) feel that this is a highlight of Beth Sholom’s volunteer efforts, bringing tremendous smiles to these students’ faces and hopefully to their parents as well. And I imagine that the parents, who rarely receive material gifts from their child, feel loved. I don’t think the holiday spirit is meant to mean anything but this.
After spending much of Tuesday at Coleman, I’m reminded how someone else’s holiday traditions can offer us a powerful opportunity. This beautiful multi-cultural world we live in doesn’t just mean that I celebrate my holiday and you celebrate yours. It cannot possibly be about arguing over what greeting we offer each other when we check out at the grocery store. This world of many celebrations gives us pathways toward connection even with those whose traditions differ from ours.
On Tuesday, those of us at Coleman witnessed these connections first hand. I look forward to next year, and hopefully, more of you will join us. And in the meantime, I hope and pray that we will continue to look out into the world, hoping to find ways of bringing others joy.
