The ability to speak is the most essential part of our humanity. It’s the one thing that God gave humans the ability to do that no other being has in any comparable form. We have basically taken that ability, and instead of utilizing and cultivating it to bring out its true potential, we have pounded it down to its most basic form. We text instead of talk. We tag instead of hang.
Picking up the phone is a thing of the past. Getting a letter in the mail is the most exciting thing in the world, but instead, we send emails. Our communication capabilities have multiplied a hundred fold, but our communication competencies are gone with the wind.
Fortunately for us, there are places in our culture where phones are just not acceptable. Movie theaters, live show theaters, libraries, places of worship. Of course, these places are also places where we are forbidden to talk to each other so I guess it’s not as fortunate as I had originally thought.
But if you’re the type of person that enjoys taking advantage of all nature has to offer and goes on hikes and nature walks, then you could end up being forced to verbally communicate with someone based purely on the fact that you have most likely lost any kind of cellular service, data, and WiFi connectivity. Luckily, I have been brought up in a family where we do often take hikes together, but I understand that not everyone does.
There have been plenty of “disconnect to connect campaigns,” but do they really work? We sign up for an hour for one day and during that time we don't touch our phones, laptops, or any other form of technology—basically we pretend to be Amish. But then after an hour of ignoring the people around us because they didn't sign up for the same hour (honestly, I’m not really sure how that’s supposed to promote human interaction), we make a beeline for all of our devices.
However, as an orthodox Jew, I get to attempt to connect with people more often then just during these campaigns. I am blessed to be given 25 hours once a week to reset, recharge, and most importantly, reconnect. From sunset on Friday to sunset on Saturday, I am not allowed to touch any technology, cook any food, turn on lights, or drive cars.
Though this may sound challenging, it is the biggest blessing of my life. Aside from being prohibited to binge on Netflix all Friday night long and thereby being afforded the luxury to sleep for 12 hours straight, I am also required to have three full meals throughout the day. Often these meals are eaten with family, giving us a time to catch each other up on our lives and have serious, thought-provoking discussions in addition to a lot of fun.
Throughout the week we're busy and not all in the same place at the same time, but Sabbath reminds us that we care about each other and what's going in our lives. Oftentimes celebrating Sabbath with family is not an option, but that doesn't mean that now the meals have to be eaten alone. It means that I get to connect with another human soul.
Many Jewish teenagers spend a year studying in Israel upon graduating high school before beginning college. During this year, with our family back home, we get to meet new people and have awesome experiences inviting ourselves to total strangers for Sabbath. It gives us a new appreciation for people and all of the life experience they have to offer.
On top of these weekly days of connection, we have holidays where the same laws apply. This week we will be celebrating Passover, a holiday about connecting to the people around us in addition to our past while looking forward to the future. When contemplating all these special days that I have in my life, I feel truly blessed to be a part of a people that keeps me, as a person, in touch with my humanity and utilizes my human capabilities in their most basic form.
