My Why

People have been asking me why I'm putting so much time and energy into supporting Israel and fighting antisemitism.

The answer is: I'm Jewish and I was raised to be a good human being.

A little more behind that answer is a story.

My dad died when I was 17.

In the hours after his funeral, Elie Wiesel came to my house.

He was scheduled to speak at my shul the day of my dad's funeral, and it was impossible to be in town that day and not know about my dad.

My dad was a very prominent figure in our Jewish community.

He was adored and respected. He was a scholar and a tzadik.

This past Yom Kippur, I started thinking about what it means to be the type of person the Elie Weisels of the world would want to honor.

My dad - my parents - taught me and my twin sister to be upstanding human beings, not for recognition, just because it's the right thing to do.

Truth be told, my sister nailed being outspoken when we were very young.

I took longer to figure it out.

But here I am.

We can all choose to be upstanding human beings.

It looks different for each of us, but every day we choose how we are going to show up in the world.

So choose wisely.

If it helps, think about what kind of worldly figure you would want to honor you, whether in life or death, and strive toward being the kind of person who could achieve that honor.

Don't do it for the honor.

Do it because it's the right thing to do.