Home
September Musing from Rebecca Crichton: It’s Time for Some Awe
I love September. The activities of our lives gear up again, from new educational opportunities to enriched programming. This year, the Jewish High Holiday cycle begins on the evening of September 11 with Rosh Hashanah, heralding the New Year, and ends on September 21 after Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement – often pronounced At-one-ment. In between are the ten sacred Days of Awe dedicated to reflection, repentance, and reconciliation.
The standard definition of Awe states: a feeling of reverential respect mixed with fear or wonder. It is that potent combination of amazement and fear that motivates reflection and the possible reset of our lives.
Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel, a prominent Jewish theologian and philosopher, coined the term Radical Amazement to describe the attitude of perpetual wonder toward all of reality — a refusal to take life, the world, or the divine for granted.
My intentions for Radical Amazement this year include recognizing moments of awe in my life. From appreciating my tiny pet gerbils with their daily building excavations to the third blooming of the Keria Japonica outside the complex where I live.
When I stop long enough to notice, feel, and acknowledge the plentitude of wonder around me, I return to my body. The intricacies and mysteries of breathing, moving, and experiencing the senses are all conscious choices to awaken from the trance of the ordinary.
Awe resides in more than oceans and babies. I feel awe at the power of Nature when I am stunned by the orange sun through smoke-filled skies. I am in awe of my body, which I take for granted until it catches my attention with a stabbing pain or requires me to deal with the chronic demands related to aging.
Our capacity for resilience, compassion, and caring when facing hard decisions and diagnoses inspires awe. Our innate ability to sustain loss and grief deserves awe. Awe connects with Gratitude. Anne Lamott posits three essential prayers: Help, Thanks, and Wow.
My essay this month, Learning to Accommodate, invites us to consider how we adjust to the losses and challenges in our lives.
We’re looking forward to our first collaboration with Town Hall for the new fall season, You Ain’t Got Rhythm, on October 7. If you or anyone you know has experienced Afib, we hope you’ll attend!
NWCCA is glad to be part of evaluating Alli Care, an AI application designed to support older people. I am one of Alli’s beta testers, giving feedback to its developer. You can help with that too! See below for details.
We’re delighted to let you know about Sister Lucy Kurien‘s September visit to our area. Sr. Lucy’s motto, Love is my Religion, has been demonstrated over many decades by the work of the organization she founded, Maher, Mother’s Home, a community and interfaith organization for abused and destitute women and children.
May these shortening days be filled with awe and wonder!
Rebecca
Click here to join our mailing list and receive our monthly bulletin.
Your contribution to NWCCA ensures our future.
Click here to donate to this 501(c)(3) organization.
Visit our Events page for a list of virtual and in-person offerings in our community.
NWCCA’s Collaboration with Town Hall returns in October!
Your Ain’t Got Rhythm: Understanding Afib
Wednesday, October 7, 7:30 PM, The Mehdi Reading Room, Town Hall Seattle
1119 8th Avenue, Seattle; $10 – $35 sliding scale
Afib – atrial fibrillation – is a type of irregular heartbeat that may cause the heart to beat faster than usual. It is projected that by 2030, approximately 12 million people in the U.S. will have AFib. It is important to know that AFib increases the risk of stroke by about 5 times. Join Rebecca Crichton and April K. Watkins, a member of Swedish Hospital’s AFib Clinician and an advanced registered nurse practitioner (ARNP), board-certified in adult health. With over 15 years of clinical experience, April specializes in cardiac electrophysiology and adult hospital medicine.