Creating Tomorrow
09/21/2017
Today is Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New
Year. I woke up to find an email from Temple Sinai saying that
someone had defaced the synagogue's exterior walls with anti-semantic
slurs. The email went on to say that the graffiti has been covered up
with paper and urged all of us to write loving thoughts on the paper
as we came to services today. At the start of services, our rabbi
asked all of us to turn to our neighbors and give them a big hug.
I cried when I read the email. I cried
as we drove to Temple and I cried as services began. I cried for my
parents, especially my Mom, who survived the Holocaust. My Mom still
cries everyday remembering the persecution she and her family and
friends suffered because they were Jews. I cried thinking of all the
DACA people who are scared today of perhaps being deported. I also
cried for the people who defaced our beautiful synagogue. What was it
about their lives that made them hate? Why did they want to hurt
other people? What do they need that they aren't receiving?
Like most people I know, I am
horrified and detest the rhetoric and tweets coming from our
President. He has, however, opened our eyes and helped us see how
unhappy and hateful so many Americans are. The question now is, what
can and will we do about it?
/
As I was reading the prayers today, I
was thinking that we are not adequately preparing ourselves for the
next stage of evolution. Technology is dramatically changing the
world. Climate change is happening. The gig economy and globalization
is changing the way we work and live. Our laws, politics, morality
and spiritually are not evolving as quickly as the world needs them
to evolve. We seem so fearful of the future that we are desperately
hanging on to the past.
My greatest hope for the new year is
that instead of fearing the future and blaming each other for how we
got here, we get excited about creating tomorrow. Instead of fretting
about how terrible fossil fuel has harmed the environment, lets be
excited about solar and get better prepared for global warming.
Instead of trying to lower healthcare cost by denying healthcare to
people who need it, let's get excited about finding new cures, drugs
and protocols faster. Let's consider single payer for long term
medical expenses and separating these expenses from healthcare.
Instead of trying to reinstate yesterday's jobs by tweaking
yesterday's laws, let's prepare ourselves for the era when machines
and artificial intelligence will do most jobs better than people can.
Let's create tomorrow in such a way as to ensure that everybody has
what they need to be safe, cared for and needed. This is how hate
will be eradicated.
I started the day crying. I'm ending
the day hopeful again.
Go! Go! Go!
