As I prepare for Thanksgiving, I turn my thoughts toward two community events: our upcoming congregational Friendsgiving on Wednesday, November 27, and the Port Washington Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving morning. Both are opportunities for us to gather, connect, and celebrate our bonds as a community.
The Turkey Trot is more than a race; it’s a gathering point for our entire community, where we come together with a shared purpose: to support the incredible organizations backed by the Community Chest of Port Washington. Through this common effort, we connect with friends, neighbors, and even strangers in the spirit of collective good. And there’s still time to sign up if you’d like to join us! Sometimes, relationships begin with a shared value, while others are rooted in family, longevity, or a kind of connection that feeds the soul—our nishamah.
Yet, what does it really mean to access a feeling of gratitude, especially when life can feel messy, challenging, and even overwhelming? In Jewish tradition, gratitude is not simply a feeling that arises spontaneously. It is a practice, a conscious act that, like all meaningful endeavors, takes effort, courage, and intention.
In our tradition, there is a blessing said upon witnessing something awe-inspiring: Baruch Atah Adonai Eloheinu Melech HaOlam, Oseh Ma’aseh Bereshit — “Blessed are You, Creator of the universe, who makes the work of Creation.” This blessing teaches us that acknowledging beauty, wonder, and the sacred requires us to pause and recognize the gifts around us. To truly be grateful is to be aware, to be open, and to accept that our lives are filled with blessings even amidst the messiness. Just as our ancestors embraced their journey with resilience, faith, and even a good dose of “messiness” (imagine nearly sacrificing one’s child!), we, too, are invited to seek gratitude through all of life’s complexities.
Gratitude is hard work, much like relationships. Real connection with family, friends, and community often requires facing challenges and accepting imperfection. Holding someone in gratitude does not mean ignoring their flaws, nor does it mean idealizing our relationships. Instead, it means seeing each person as they are, with compassion—rahamim, the Hebrew term for compassion, rooted in the word for “womb,” evokes a deep, almost visceral care that nurtures and sustains.
In Hayei Sarah (the Torah portion we read this Shabbat), our patriarch Abraham buys the Cave of Machpelah to bury his wife Sarah. It’s not just a gesture to honor her; it’s an act of creating a place where future generations can gather, remember, and connect. Abraham’s actions, layered with devotion, labor, and perseverance, show us that gratitude, like love, takes effort and sometimes sacrifice. He models for us the holding of a range of feelings—even in his grief, he thinks of the future. When we hold others with compassion, we make space for the messiness that comes with truly knowing one another, embracing each person’s reality with an open heart.
So, as we lace up for the Turkey Trot, gather for Friendsgiving on November 27, or sit down with loved ones this Thanksgiving, let us reflect on what it means to give thanks even when it’s hard, and to hold our family, friends, and community with compassion. When we say the blessing of awe, we honor the beauty of creation—even as we acknowledge the complexity of what it means to live with an open heart.
Wishing each of you a Thanksgiving filled with gratitude, connection, and compassion.
Rabbi Jodie
