Summertime Jewishness

     My Facebook newsfeed has been filled this week with Pre-K and Kindergarten graduation pictures (too cute!), last day of school shots and dance recital videos. It must be time for summer. Hooray!
     This has gotten me thinking about how we spend our summertime. Of course there are camps to choose, vacations to plan, but what about our "Jewishness"? Without any major Jewish holidays during June, July, and August, do we stop being Jewish? Now, of course the answer to that is "No". So I guess the question is really, what can we do to celebrate our "Jewishness" all summer long?

     I've posted in years past about how I've made my family vacation include Jewish customs, rituals, and celebrations. But now I am thinking about the whole summer. Jewish day camps and sleep away camps are a wonderful way to instill the love for Judaism, Jewish culture, music, etc. And, many synagogues locally still offer Shabbat services (Friday evening or Saturday) all summer long. As a matter of fact, these summer services are usually more laid back, offered earlier, and often are shorter. What a great way to expose young kids to temple worship! To find something close to you, checkout our online calendar : https://www.cjepb.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=184&Itemid=355
     For me, I think turning any summer activity into a something Jewish can be fun. A backyard BBQ on a late Friday afternoon/evening can become an outdoor Shabbat meal. A Saturday afternoon at the beach can become dinner and Havdalah service. I've always wanted to plan a Pop-Up Shabbat in a fun outdoor location. All you need is list of your friends and a place. Then you email, text or post on Facebook and/or Twitter a location you choose for a Pop-Up Shabbat location. Ask others to bring an item or food dish. What a fun and different way to celebrate with other families.
     And then there's the obvious for me.....reading our favorite PJ Library (http://www.pjlbrary.org/) books together and discussing the stories and the Jewish values and ideas in each one. These ideas (and others I am sure you can think of) all take very little planning but can have a big impact. I say, summertime is not a vacation from our "Jewishness" but rather another chance to make it fun for the whole family. And, if you need a little help to make it happen, you know where to find me, a.bergman@cjepb.org.