Adam Stone
Del Mar, CA
Do The Mitzvah Thing!
It’s a well-known fact that the Torah contains 613 commandments, or mitzvahs. Some include: circumcising your son, how a leper must shave his head, one should not practice sorcery, or seek information from the dead. In addition, there is a commandment not to appear in the sanctuary during festivals without a sacrifice. Mitzvahs (in the contemporary sense) are good deeds. Like going to a soup kitchen, donating clothes, cleaning the kitchen for your folks, and all kinds of nice stuff.
Does that mean we have to do 613 mitzvahs? No way! But if you haven’t noticed, volunteerism is really hot right now. Teenagers all over the nation are doing this, some for credit in their classes, and others just because they like it. Volunteerism was encouraged by President Bush when his administration cut social programs paid for by the government and told us to help each other now, with churches and synagogues and people all over having to share the burden. But it isn’t a burden at all. I, for example, drive around delivering meals to elderly people who can’t really leave their homes to go grocery-shopping. And it doesn’t matter if you can hear or not – the looks on the faces you deliver the meals to are enough. Those people really crave human contact, and I’m just happy to provide it to them. And believe it or not, I’ve met a few who do know sign language!
And you know what? It feels good. It’s not a drag driving down all the way to College Blvd. 30 minutes away and drive around aimlessly in neighborhoods for hours. It’s fun. And sometimes people ask me to come in and help them out, open a window or something.
But Foodmobile isn’t the only thing out there. You can clean out your room and throw out all the old clothes you don’t wear anymore, bundle them up, and send them down to Goodwill or Salvation Army. That’s a deed.
Adam Harmetz of Rancho Santa Fe, California, remarked, “I like the Tutoring Center [at Torrey Pines High School] best out of all the mitzvot I do because it’s really interactive. It’s almost as if you have to keep one step ahead of the person you are tutoring, and look for pitfalls before they occur. It’s great for the mind, and satisfies that you are truly helping someone and seeing the direct benefit on him.”
Up north in Redondo Beach, CA, an online personality who is commonly known as “History049,” participates in “One Voice,” an organization which helps impoverished children by giving them clothing, food, and scholarships. I also donate things I don’t need, like clothes. I was reluctant at first, but now I participate in it with all my heart. It’s really a part of life here to do community service.”
A former vice-president of the Jr. NAD chapter in Madison High School, Lena Matunine, added, “We went to meetings about once a week to discuss with members on how to improve leadership skills and we set up an fundraising/socializing event for new members and new students at our school. It really helps out kids with their socializing skills, and allows them to make new friends. It shows that kids don’t have to sit at home on Saturday night and flip their lips, so to speak.”
But go further! There’s a whole world out there, waiting for ya! Clean up the beach or the lake or the forests! Plant a tree and hug it! Help an old lady cross the street! Hug her! Tutor a kid! Hug him! Go to a soup kitchen! Hug all the pots and pans! Do the righteous thing! The Mitzvah Thing!
