Sign In Forgot Password

11/26/2024 03:03:54 PM

Nov26

Here I am

During a Thanksgiving season many years ago, a certain general of the Salvation Army decided to send greetings to every unit scattered across the world.  Since cable rates were very expensive, the general was forced to confine his message to a single word.  The general spent many minutes deciding which word to send.  What would best express the spirit and challenge of Thanksgiving?  Finally, after deep thought, he made his choice. The single word he sent was “others. The general chose this word because it represented to him the essential reason for his life work.

Imagine if we had to sum up our mission in life with one word.  How would we express what most mattered to us?  What would be the word we would choose?  Would this word reflect who we really are or who we should be?  Of course, we can think of people whose lives can be summed up in one honest but sad word, such as money, power, status, and ego.  But I would hope that, like the Thanksgiving cable, our word would be a source of inspiration to us and to others.  
What is my favorite candidate for the word?

Perhaps some of you are trying to guess the word.  No, it is not shalom, although the Hebrew word for “wholeness” and “peace” is indeed beautiful.  Nor is the word tsedakah or even rachmanut, the Hebrew term for “kindness.”  No, the most important word is hineini, which is best translated as “here I am.”  Three simple words in English and one word in Hebrew, but a word whose meaning is beyond measure.  

“Here I am” means exactly what it implies. It says: “I have shown up and I am ready to do what needs to be done.  I care enough to be here.”  
Saying, “here I am” means something precisely because you can’t say it if you are not already there.  Our presence speaks more clearly than the words.  When we fly across the country, or the world, to celebrate with loved ones, or grieve with them, we not only rack up frequent flyer points.  We show them that we love them.  And let’s not think our being there isn’t noted and remembered, even if we are distant relatives.  The only thing more noticed than who attends is who doesn’t attend.  Indeed, nothing can be more depressing for those who are celebrating than the fear that people won’t show up.

Of course, these days you can be present but not there in spirit. Our smart phones distract us. We have many things on our mind. And yet. I challenge each of us on this holiday season to find some way to be more present for those we love. It is really important, perhaps now more than ever.

Sat, December 21 2024 20 Kislev 5785