Innate GPS

Years ago, I knew how to navigate the South Shore.  I knew to use Peninsula Boulevard to get from West Hempstead to Cedarhurst and to take Hempstead Avenue to Broadway when I needed to get to Hewlett or Lawrence.  If any route was blocked, I intuited alternatives since I knew the overall direction in which I was headed. 

Not anymore.  Is it because I haven’t lived there for awhile?  I don’t think so.  Frankly, I blame it on Madam GPS.  Since she entered my life, my navigational capacity has atrophied.  She is the reason why I no longer remember how to get to Atlantic Beach without paying a toll.  Because of her, I can no longer say with certainty at what point Broadway crosses Fifth Avenue. 

The New York Times recently featured an article about this phenomenon, so I know I’m not alone.  Julia Frankenstein (no relation), a cognitive psychologist, wrote about how our innate spatial abilities diminish when we don’t routinely engage them.  Before GPS existed, we instinctively noted landmarks and estimated distances; post-GPS, for those of us who use it regularly, we are less able to navigate our surroundings naturally.

I fear the weakening of what I’ll call our innate GPS.  I fear it on a number of levels.  Despite the many advantages of on-line communication, I’m concerned that our children and grandchildren will become less skilled at direct interpersonal communication, less adept at reading social cues and understanding relationships, than previous generations.  I hope that they will be able to navigate intellectual discourse well and I wonder if on-line chats sharpen skills of engagement in quite the same way as face-to-face discussions and book groups.

Many of us want to encourage our youth to have a strong connection to the State of Israel.    Here too, we should aim to sharpen the innate GPS.  Our teen trips to Israel, guided by Youth House staff, help students to begin to understand the complex realities of Israeli society.  So do trips sponsored by Ramah, USY and Birthright. 

On February 25, following our Shabbat service, we will host a program called “The Many Faces of Israel,” geared toward the entire congregation.  Brought to us by the Long Island Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC) and sponsored our Israel Affairs Committee, the program will feature Israelis from a variety of cultural and religious backgrounds.  Yet another way to engage our GPS as we consider the rich tapestry that constitutes Israeli society. 

Ultimately, we want everyone connected with Temple Israel to develop a well-honed Jewish GPS.  Rather than simplifying matters of theology and spirit, we should be fortifying one another, through our vast array of services and programs, to engage 21^st century life creatively and responsibly through a Jewish lens.  If we do our job well, then the campuses, communal organizations and professional settings that we populate will be the beneficiaries of our unique Jewish perspectives. 

Toward the beginning of our national story, God told Abraham to “arise and walk about the land.”  (Genesis 13:7)  Abraham had garments, but no Garmin, and yet he managed to find his way.  So have we, and so shall we continue.