From the Desk of CEO Judy Halper: February 2020
What will you do with your 366th day?
What would you do with more time? Isn’t that the age-old, time-worn question of the ages? Most of us bemoan that we never seem to have enough time to complete a task, take up a new activity, exercise regularly or simply stop and smell the roses. Well, I intend to throw down a challenge. This year we will experience an additional 24 hours – it’s Leap Year 2020 – so what will you do with your 366th day?
How about claiming that 24 hours to do volunteer work? That is surely something many of us intend to do more often, but struggle to find the time. Jewish Family and Children’s Service of Minneapolis offers many one-time and ongoing volunteer experiences, and we can also refer you to other organizations that may have needs aligning with your interest and availability. For more information, contact JFCS Volunteer Coordinator, Dana Shapiro, at dshapiro@jfcsmpls.org or 952-546-0616.
Another way to meaningfully address that additional time is getting involved with advocacy. Not only is it Leap Year, it is an election year, and it is a census-gathering year! JFCS is hosting a training this Sunday, Feb. 23, intended to help individuals develop interest in legislative engagement. We’ll offer practical tools and skills in advocacy that you’ll learn how to apply on your own schedule. For more information, consult our website and register here.
That extra day is also a terrific opportunity to practice kindness. Day to day, we all get bogged down in daily stress and may feel frustrated with juggling the long list of things that “must” get done. Wouldn’t it be extraordinary if the extra day in our schedule compelled us to think about how we would feel if we committed more time to allowing ourselves and others more grace?
What would that look like? Would we feel less rushed? Would we listen better? Would we breathe more fully? Would we smile more often? Would we end up feeling that we had “the time” to do more of what we intend to do, and end up making more of a difference in our lives and in our complicated world?
I don’t know, but try giving it a shot! We won’t have a whole extra day – 24 additional hours –for another four years.