10 | MARCH 18 • 2021 

(and they do!) reduced the con-
stant possibilities of prayer, study, 
book clubs and song sessions.
Still, a steady stream remained 
— though lately they seem to 
be dropping off even more. I 
remain so hopeful that organiza-
tions of all sorts will realize how 
they opened themselves up to so 
many new people this past year, 
and that they don’t have to lose 
those people when they’re ready 
to meet in person again. There’s 
no reason they can’t or shouldn’t 
continue providing accessible 
virtual events indefinitely to 
make sure all members of their 
community can be a part of what 
they provide.
My thinking has also evolved 

in a way: Because I didn’t have 
the opportunities to be con-
nected all the time before the 
pandemic, I may have under-
estimated how much energy 
online social interactions still 
take. It’s not lazy to need to take 
a night off from video calling (or 
even texting!) your friends and 
recharge.
Be kind to yourself. Surviving 
in a pandemic is work. A year 
later, it is still OK to see this time 
as an opportunity to rest.

FROM SARA NUSS-GALLES
Anniversaries are often a time 
of reflection — joy, accomplish-
ment, endurance, passage, loss 
and this past year, for me, a 

sort of survival. As a child of 
Holocaust survivors, I often 
tested myself with concentration 
camp scenarios. Could I stand 
at strict attention 
in the freezing 
Chicago winter? 
Could I skip a meal 
or two without my 
mother’s interfer-
ence? Could I resist 
the beloved Cella’s 
Chocolate Covered Cherry that 
taunted me from my jacket 
pocket? 
In the early weeks of the 2020-
21 year of COVID, I wrote that 
not only did I inherit my parents’ 
trauma, but I felt strengthened 
and prepared by it. My pantry, 
refrigerator and, yes, even toi-
let paper supply, were always 
stocked. All year I ate, I walked, 
I FaceTimed, I Zoomed (too 
much), I wrote and I read (a lot). 
I managed all that pretty well. 
What I hadn’t anticipated in my 
projection turned out to be what 
I missed the most: my people. 
My children, my grandchildren, 
my friends and, yes, my acquain-
tances in the grocery store, coffee 
shop, yoga class and drug store. 
The social capital that connects 
us to others both intimately and 
casually. 
My husband and I are the 
lucky ones, having had every-
thing we needed this past year. 
And now, two vaccines later, we 
are slowly, cautiously, joyfully 
connecting with those missing 
pieces — our family, our friends 
and our acquaintances. We wish 
it for the entire world.

FROM RABBI SETH 
WINBERG 
My personal view hasn’t 
changed. Without minimizing 
how emotionally difficult it can 
be, Halachah requires being 
together in person for certain 
rituals such as the Mourner’s 
Kaddish.

Many months of working 
with young adults virtually and 
in person has convinced me 
that the most important and 
fundamentally 
human aspects of 
community do not 
transpose easily 
to a virtual space. 
Brandeis has had 
very few COVID 
cases on campus. 
We’ve worked incredibly hard to 
provide continuous religious life 
in person for all faith communi-
ties on campus.
For some, virtual platforms are 
a meaningful way to get through 
the pandemic. For many others, 
a physical connection to a local 
community is vital and irreplace-
able.

FROM LINDA S. HAASE
When I left my office on March 
12, 2020, I never dreamed that 
a full year would 
go by without my 
returning. I never 
imagined how effec-
tive I’
d be in work-
ing from home or 
how much I would 
miss interacting 
with my colleagues. And I never 
anticipated how thankful I’
d be 
for Zoom, Teams and other tech-
nological tools that have enabled 

us to stay connected to friends 
and family — and to stream 
Shabbat services every week.
But I did have one thing right: 
When our community put our 
Jewish values to work, it made 
all the difference. From the 
woman who delivered loaves of 
challah to her neighbors every 
week to the day school kids who 
used 3-D printers to make face 
shields for frontline workers, we 
have found ways to care for one 
another and stay connected. 
Everyone has been so creative 
and thoughtful in taking their 
programming online. And I am 
so proud to work for JUF (Jewish 
United Fund of Metropolitan 
Chicago), which has distribut-
ed nearly $20 million in extra 
funding to help meet emergency 
needs in the community.

FROM RABBI AARON 
BRUSSO
We have spent thousands of 
years turning our world into a 
familiar and habitable place. We 
have carefully curated our sur-
roundings to convince us that we 
are the main characters on this 
planet. 
 One year into this pandemic, 
we are reminded that we are 
strangers in a strange land. We 
have seen traffic arteries cleared 
of cars while ventilators were 

“WHAT I HADN’T 
ANTICIPATED IN 
MY PROJECTION 
TURNED OUT TO 
BE WHAT I MISSED 
THE MOST: 
MY PEOPLE.”

— SARA NUSS-GALLES

“WHEN OUR COMMUNITY PUT 
OUR JEWISH VALUES TO WORK, 
IT MADE ALL THE DIFFERENCE.”

— LINDA HAASE

“MANY MONTHS OF 
WORKING WITH YOUNG ADULTS 
VIRTUALLY AND IN PERSON HAS 
CONVINCED ME THAT THE MOST 
IMPORTANT AND FUNDAMENTALLY 
HUMAN ASPECTS OF COMMUNITY 
DO NOT TRANSPOSE EASILY 
TO A VIRTUAL SPACE.”

— RABBI SETH WINBERG

PURELY COMMENTARY

Sara 
Nuss-Galles

Rabbi Seth 
Winberg

Linda S. 
Haase

continued from page 5

continued on page 12

ONE CANNOT LIVE 
BY MATZO ALONE

From Seder to Snacking and Everything in Between 

P
U

