Somewhere we have never been
by Rabbi Nate Degroot
HEY
C’MON
COME OUT
WHEREVER YOU ARE
WE NEED TO HAVE THIS MEETING
AT THIS TREE
AIN’ EVEN BEEN
PLANTED
YET
“Calling on All Silent Minorities”
by June Jordan
Ginna Green, a progressive Jewish movement leader, posted the poem above on Facebook the day after the election as part of a larger reflection that concluded with the following gem: “Not going back is going to have to mean going somewhere we have never been. With more care and more love.”
In the weeks and years ahead, that’s where we at The Shalom Center intend to go. To a place we have never been. To a tree that “ain’ even been planted yet.”
Over the last few days, like so many of you, I have been moving through periods of grief, sadness, inspiration, anger, and hope. I got needlessly frustrated when someone took too long to pump their gas, listened to Dylan, wandered aimlessly around my house, spent meaningful time with dear ones, listened to Klein, washed dishes, cried, found spiritual medicine in the form of Facebook posts, took seriously 10 ways to be prepared and grounded now that Trump has won, and joined a mobilizing call last night with 140,000 people who are ready to go together somewhere we’ve never been.
And those last two things - the article and the call - those are what gave me hope. Because, in the words of Palestinian non-violent activist Ali Abu Awwad, hope comes from “structure and strategy.” And those had both.
Now that doesn’t mean we know exactly what comes next, but we do know it’s not back to what has been. It doesn’t mean we know exactly how to get “there,” or what exactly “there” even is, but we do know our starting point is mystery, our direction is “more care and more love,” and our mandate is the thriving of All Creation.
Perhaps this is the new/ancient structure and strategy peeking through the lattice of our time. At a minimum, it is the structure and strategy we’ve been cultivating at The Shalom Center for the last 2.5 years:
Through actifests and collective experimentation, by rooting down into our holidays and the rhythms of Jewish sacred time with a sense of curiosity and wonder, guided by a fierce commitment to the sanctity of all life and an openness to how our work fits into broader ecosystems, we will be a part of midwifing together somewhere we have never been.
With love and blessings for wholeness,
-Nate