As the High Holidays begin, Beth Huppin considers Will Berkovitz’s Why Stories Matter and offers some reflections and questions to spark conversation at your holiday table and throughout the year. Shana Tovah!
“My kids are far away from the world of my childhood and further still from that of my parents and grandparents. I wonder how I can help them feel the connection to our past and appreciate the present they have been fortunate to inherit.”
-Will Berkovitz
The concept of memory is pervasive during the fall Jewish holidays. A biblical name for Rosh Hashanah is Yom Hazikaron/Day of Remembrance. Zichronot /Remembrances is one of the three central sections of the Rosh Hashanah musaf service, the part of the service when shofar blasts are heard. The holidays remind us that memories can be transformed from individual and private to collective and shared through the stories we tell.
- What family stories have you been told, and what family stories do you choose to tell?
- Are there stories you choose not to tell?
- What values are embedded in your family’s shared stories?
By Beth Huppin
Beth Huppin has enjoyed teaching Judaics to children and adults of all ages in both formal and informal settings for over 30 years. She is the recipient of a 2010 National Covenant Award for Excellence in Jewish Education.
