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August 25, 2023 (8 Elul 5783) Parashat Ki Tetzei - The 2% Solution
Dear Friends, I hope this correspondence finds you doing well and enjoying the concluding weeks of the summer. Please join us this Saturday morning for in-person Shabbat services, which will be broadcast on our regular Zoom prayer-link. While the summer is rapidly concluding, our preparations for the upcoming High Holy Days are in full swing. If you are interested in having an active role in our services, by leading a Hebrew prayer or responsive English reading, or assisting as a greeter, please be in touch with me or Cantor Zim at your earliest convenience. We would appreciate your help in making our High Holy Days celebration as inclusive and festive as possible. During the month of Elul, it is the custom to blow Shofar each day at the conclusion of Shacharit services. Our tradition offers several explanations for this cacophonous custom. First, after Israel sinned with the golden calf, Moshe spent 40 days pleading for our forgiveness. Then, he ascended Har Sinai once again for another 40 days. This ascent, which began on the first of Elul, lasted until Yom Kippur and was accompanied by Shofar blasts. To commemorate this, we blow the Shofar during Elul, ending on Yom Kippur, 40 days later, with a final, dramatic blast. Another interpretation suggests that the soul-stirring Shofar blasts are a kind of spiritual wake-up call to inspire us to come closer to Hashem, as we read, “Shall a trumpet be blown in the city, and the people not be afraid? (Amos 3:6)”. I have suggested previously in this column that the process of Teshuva (return and forgiveness), is not a linear process. In fact, it is ideally a daily challenge. It takes time, energy, and effort to take stock of our Neshama and be resolute regarding commitments to Hashem, Torah, synagogue, and the Jewish people. We blow the Shofar for a month, hoping that literally each day we can turn slowly, steadily, and appropriately to be our better selves. This consistent, spiritual effort would likely resonate with Harvard trained, Mass General neurosurgeon, Dr. Myron Rolle, who wrote The 2% Way: A Philosophy of Small Improvements. Rolle grew up in a tough neighborhood in Southern New Jersey. He recalls getting into a fight as a teenager for having assaulted an individual who directed a racist insult towards him. Standing in front of the judge in juvenile court, he set his mind to do the right thing. "Once I was able to overcome that moment, I said to myself, this is it. There's no looking back." He needed to go forward one step at a time. Rolle committed himself to his studies and graduated from Florida State University, where he excelled in athletics. He played football in college and went onto enjoy a brief career in the NFL, playing for both the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Tennessee Titans. Dr. Rolle shares: “The 2% Way is this mindset that my football coach at Florida State, Mickey Andrews, placed on all of us. He wanted us to make these small tangible, practical goals of improvement every single day and would challenge us to get 2% better, for example, in our back peddling, our ability to tackle, and our ability to catch the ball. And then, when we got off the field, he'd actually go into the locker room and write on the board: Myron Rolle. 'Did he get 2% better?' It helped keep me accountable and I extrapolated that ideology for life." After his brief professional athletic career concluded, Rolle found himself still a young adult with a lengthy life to live. He prepared for his next task 2% at a time. Wanting to study medicine, he began reviewing prerequisite and core curriculum courses, prepping for the MCATs, and finally fulfilling his dream to become a doctor, no less, at Harvard University. He also describes how the 2% challenge allowed him to become his most genuine self as he reconnected with his native Caribbean culture. In fact, due to his success, he founded the Caribbean Neurosurgery Foundation, which is dedicated to closing the systemic gap in neurological care in Caribbean nations. This giving endeavor helps him to stay connected to his home and people, a value instilled in him by his loving parents. Dr. Rolle’s book is really a “how to guide” for breaking up daunting, yet achievable, meaningful, and critical goals, into manageable tasks. As we enter Shabbat and the High Holy Day season, I encourage us all to take the 2% challenge. For each of us, that 2% increment will likely appear drastically different. Perhaps you will donate a little more Tzedakah, while your neighbor will Daven in one more Minyan per week. Perhaps you will study a little more Torah, while your neighbor will perform a few more hours of community service. Perhaps you will repair a damaged relationship, while your neighbor will further explore their connection with Hashem. I wish you all a Shabbat Shalom U’Mevorach and I look forward to hearing, in the near future, how the 2% challenge has changed your life! Shabbat Shalom, Rabbi Eric L. Wasser, EdD, Hon.DM
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