From Rabbi Craig Mayers
June/July 2019
Ah, Summer! The season that is upon us means different things to different people, at different stages of their lives. Growing up on Long Island it meant the end of the school year and the beginning of Summer Camp season. Ice cream trucks would begin to make their rounds down the residential streets, sending kids like me into a frenzy. The nights would grow long, and I would spend the early evenings chasing, capturing and then releasing (because my Mom made me) dancing fireflies.
Maybe in my youth the onset of summer meant the end of school and the beginning of vacation, but here in Melbourne as a grownup, it’s more like the end of Love Bug season and the beginning of Hurricane Season. And the start of brutal temperatures, humidity and afternoon thunder. We do still get the occasional ice cream truck, though….
Maybe in my youth the onset of summer meant the end of school and the beginning of vacation, but here in Melbourne as a grownup, it’s more like the end of Love Bug season and the beginning of Hurricane Season. And the start of brutal temperatures, humidity and afternoon thunder. We do still get the occasional ice cream truck, though….
They say Memorial Day (at least up north) is the unofficial start of Summer, which by the calendar starts on June 21 with the vernal equinox. But for Jews, the upcoming holiday of Shavuot really heralds in the summer. On Shavuot, we read the book of Ruth to teach us that at one time we all stood as converts before G-d and that our greatest leader, David, came from a convert: Ruth. We re-enact the receiving of the Revelation at Sinai, and for various reasons, we feast on dairy foods like blintzes and ice cream. Also, much of Ruth’s story takes place in Summer, which adds to the connection. I remember many a Shavuot luncheon held in the synagogue of my youth, which in some years were held outdoors. And boy, some years it was hot! So yes, Shavuot was more or less the start of Summer, at least Jewishly.
Summer as an adult is definitely different than Summer as a youth. Nowadays my Shavuot dairy meals are accompanied by large doses of Lactaid®. I actually spend less time outdoors in the heat and humidity, opting for the a/c instead. And of course school may be out for the kids, but work continues for us grownups; though many do travel and take vacations. Here at TBS, there is plenty to do in Summer! Starting June 19 and going all summer long is our Hebrew Reading class on Wednesday nights. If you’d like to learn to read Hebrew, or brush up in time for the Fall Holiday season, this is your chance. We will also be celebrating a Bar and Bat mitzvah over the summer, convening for Tisha B’Av observances, and celebrating our annual Flip Flop Shabbat on the beach. No, summer doesn’t slow down the way it used to for us. And that’s okay.
Summer as an adult is definitely different than Summer as a youth. Nowadays my Shavuot dairy meals are accompanied by large doses of Lactaid®. I actually spend less time outdoors in the heat and humidity, opting for the a/c instead. And of course school may be out for the kids, but work continues for us grownups; though many do travel and take vacations. Here at TBS, there is plenty to do in Summer! Starting June 19 and going all summer long is our Hebrew Reading class on Wednesday nights. If you’d like to learn to read Hebrew, or brush up in time for the Fall Holiday season, this is your chance. We will also be celebrating a Bar and Bat mitzvah over the summer, convening for Tisha B’Av observances, and celebrating our annual Flip Flop Shabbat on the beach. No, summer doesn’t slow down the way it used to for us. And that’s okay.
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I want to also congratulate our youths who graduated high school this year. We have a bumper crop of young adults who will be heading off to college in the Fall at the end of Summer. For them, Summer is not only a time to kick back and relax, but also to aim their eyes to the future by going to orientations, shopping for dorm essentials, registering for classes, and meeting new friends and roommates all before the end of the Summer.
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However you’re spending your Summer, I hope it brings you fulfillment. May the hurricanes stay away, may your air conditioners remain healthy, and may we celebrate together in joy the simchas of Summer!
Rabbi Craig Mayers
Rabbi Craig Mayers