Musings from Students of the Pardes Institute of Jewish Studies in Jerusalem
Posted on November 2, 2011 by Heligman
Too often the shades of our life are drawn and God’s magnificent colors are missed. I am taking on this project as a means to stop and enjoy God’s brilliance. For the month of November, each day I will document the evening sunset from the Pardes Beit Midrash. I hope you will stop and notice with me. And I hope we can all share a moment of gratitude.
Today I am feeling gratitude for the clarifying ability of disappointment. At 4:51 pm I jumped from my chair and ran out of my afternoon class to the beit midrash hoping to catch the sun setting at it’s peak, but when I arrived I was disappointed. Was I too late? I had arrived after the sun came down, but the scene was still beautiful. On my walk home the disappointment was persisting and I realized why. I had seen the brilliance, but I missed the sunset. A sunset is not a 1 -2 moment of change. Like everything great in life it is a progression. This project is about experiencing that progression and appreciating how everything in the world blends into each other. I saw the colors, but missed the artist. I saw the stars but missed their birth. I feel disappointed, but tomorrow will be different.
Sunset from Pardes Beit Midrash – 11/2, 4:52pm
