Page 5 - Harlem Shavuot Companion 2020

important. Sometimes taking the time to listen and to understand is a luxury we cannot afford as a
precursor to action.

At JCC Harlem, we have felt this shift in enormous ways too. All our work is informed by our
community. Meg Sullivan, our director, often jokes that our home on W 118th Street was built on
hundreds of cups of coffee - each cup representing a conversation with a partner, a neighbor, a
supporter, a collaborator. These conversations informed everything from the location and layout
of our space, to each of the programs and events hosted in and beyond its walls.

And then, suddenly, we had to shift. We closed our doors before fully understanding why or for
how long. The Purim celebration we’d planned over months was canceled with two days’ notice.
We had to pivot fast, moving some programs online and canceling others. And, the part that has
felt like a true arm twist to our team - we’ve added new virtual programs to our calendar based on
our own quick needs assessments, and before we had the time to test or pilot these programs with
our best collaborators - our community. We momentarily reversed the order of things. We did first,
and asked for feedback later. We had to fold our arms the other way around, and it felt weird. It
still does.

But slowly, very slowly, these changes are starting to feel less otherworldly. We’ve been in this
long enough for habits to form. Grabbing my face mask feels almost as automatic as grabbing my
keys before leaving the house. If I don’t sing the happy birthday song in my head twice while
washing my hands (someone recommend another song please!), I haven’t done it right. And, at
work, we’re learning to throw more spaghetti at the wall. To experiment. To be in conversation
with our community at the same time as we are developing new programs and exploring new
modes of engagement (shameless plug for our newest spaghetti throw: activity kits that will be
available in our outdoor lot this summer for contact-less pickup!)

And so one of my takeaways from the Shavuot story this year is to lean into the discomfort of
these challenging times. To jump between Na’aseh (we will do) and Nishma (we will listen) with
a more practiced dexterity. And to find new ways of listening in, and through, this turbulent time.

Try folding your arms the other way around again. Was it a little easier this time? Try a few more
times...it’ll get easier still.

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