It made me cry

Yesterday, I heard an incredibly moving pair of stories on NPR about folks recalling their experiences surviving Hurricane Katrina, almost exactly a year ago. I cried.

I cried because every statistic in that disaster has an equally heart-wrenching story behind it. I cried because every disaster has those kinds of statistics. It's too much for one person to bear, the pain and sadness in this world. Life and relationships are both so fragile, which is what makes them so beautiful.

The Talmud tells a story of Rabbi Eleazar on his deathbed, being tended to by Rabbi Yochanan. Rabbi Yochanan sees that he's crying (after lighting up the room with his bare forearm!), and asks him why. After several miffed guesses, Yochanan lets Eleazar speak, "I am crying for all this perfection, all this beauty which is fading into the earth."

Thank God that we are able to see the beauty and perfection of the world (and its inherent fragility), and also that we aren't so overwhelmed by it at every instant that we are incapable of functioning in our daily lives.

I am writing this on Shabbat, which shames me a little - not an auspicious way to start this blog! But in a way (traditional observances aside) this is what Shabbat is about - seeing the world for what it is and reveling in the grandeur of its creation without trying to impose our will upon it. I am glad for that.

A postscript from Rebbe Nachman:
Know! A person walks in life on a very narrow bridge. The most important thing is not to be afraid.