LOOK NV ROADBLOCKS Even though your family may be sufficiently packed for their journey, this does not mean that you will be able to avoid all the roadblocks. After all, each leg of the journey will bring new and exciting challenges. However, if you are able to keep your eye on the road, the potential roadblocks will become easy to spot and should not serve as a deterrent to participation. "We really do not have the time." Each family has numerous ways in which it can spend their time. However, investing the time to enable your family to live a fulfilling Jewish life is a gift that will keep on giving. Once a life is framed in a Jewish context, other secular components of daily existence become Jewish events. For example, soccer, band and school all become opportunities to exemplify Jewish values.The business week becomes an exercise in time management according to the Jewish calendar. Family time becomes sacred time. Participating in Jewish experiences with your family incorporates many of the other "fun" activities you may have thought you were missing out on—it gives you the chance to sing and dance, draw and read, meet new people and re-introduce yourself to your Jewish soul. It provides a connection to your Jewish past, a link to your present Jewish community and a glimpse at your bright Jewish future. "My kids just can't sit still." Jewish Family Education bears in mind the developmental needs of all its participants—from infants to grandparents. Most J.E.F.F. programs provide many hands-on interactive activities because it is proven that most meaningful Jewish memories are created through experiential learning opportunities.Yet each activity has a specific educational goal in mind—this is not simply play time, but rather informal education with a purpose. "But my kids go to religious school." And that is great! But when you drop your child off at your congregation, who is continuing to educate you about the vastness which is Judaism? Jewish learning is a lifelong endeavor. Imparting the value of a Jewish life is everybody's job—not just the rabbi's or the religious school teacher.Attempting to teach a child about being Jewish without educating a parent about being Jewish is like trying to heat a home with the windows open.The Detroit Jewish Community has created a mosaic of organizations committed to providing Jewish educational opportunities regardless of the level of one's educational background. FUEL TANK RESOURCES THAT ARE AVAILABLE TO YOU Even though J.E.F.E is committed to being with you every step of the way, it is expected that there may be some curves in the road or even breakdowns once you have hit the road.Therefore, you may want to store some of the following resources in your trunk (next to the jumper cables and flares): IN CASE OF EMERGENCY, PLEASE CONTACT: J.E.EF. office number—(248)645-7860 Your rabbi's phone number (for many of your questions about Judaism) www.jewishfamily.com a website which strives to help families apply Judaism and Jewish values to their everyday lives by providing user-friendly, family-oriented information and entertainment. www.jewish.com your Jewish place in cyberspaces. Includes links to "ask a rabbi", "Torah", and "The Jewish Store". www.Whizin.org the home-page of the Shirley and Arthur Whizin Institute for Jewish Family Life with information on hot Jewish Family Education topics, and new Jewish experiences. - - - To learn more about the fundamental principles of Jewish Family Education, read: "Introduction to Jewish Family Education" found in Learning Together:A Source Book on Jewish Family Education, edited by Janice P. Alper,A.R.E. Publishing, Inc. Denver, Colorado: 1987. To learn more about the benefits of participation in family education programs, read: "Home is Where the Heart Is: Families in a Jewish Learning Community" by Victoria Koltun Kelman found in First Fruits:A Whizin Anthology of Jewish Family Education, edited by Adrianne Bank and Ron Wolfson,The Shirley and Arthur Whizin Institute for Jewish Family Life, Los Angeles, California: 1998. While there may not be one formula—words that can be spoken, feelings that can be invoked—that will ensure a rich and meaningful Jewish life for your family, opportunities do exist that increase the likelihood for infusing your daily life with Jewish content and for framing it in a Jewish context. J.E.F.F. looks forward to serving as your partner on this Jewish journey. "...Hear our supplication, for You listen to prayer and supplication. Praised are You, Lord who hears prayers." Amen. Jewish It' t ' 6735 Telegraph Road, P.O. Box 2031 Bloomfield Hills, MI 48303-2031 Phone (248) 645-7860 • FAX (248) 645-7867 e-mail: jeff@ajedetroit.org • www.ajedetroit.org/jeff.htm A Department of the Agency for Jewish Education "Take a Jewish Journey with J.E.EF." is a monthly addition to the Jewish News. 9/8 2000 103