“You shall not pick your vineyard bare, or gather the fallen fruit of your vineyard; you shall leave
them for the poor and the stranger...”
I chose this mitzvah because I believe that one of the most important lessons which Judaism
teaches us is selflessness and Tzedakah, or justice. This mitzvah refers to the necessity of
every human to always remember what they have and what others have not; we must always
be conscious of others who are in need rather than constantly focusing on our own wants or
pleasures. This message truly hits home for me, as I realize that I do not always recognize my
own privilege. While I may not be rich, I know that I am lucky to have a family that loves me,
supports me, and provides for me; I am lucky to have a nice house in a safe neighborhood; I am
lucky to be able to enjoy luxuries in my life, like receiving birthday presents or going on
vacations or participating in Heller High; I am lucky that I don’t need to worry about always
having enough food, clean water or clothes. I try my best to be aware of how fortunate I am now
(even though I still forget at times), but I have not always been so appreciative. When I was
younger, I had a sharing problem. Yes, I realize that this may seem like a ridiculous example, as
most young children have trouble sharing with others, but it was a bit extreme in my case. When
I was applying to private schools before kindergarten, my lack of cooperation in the sharing
department actually hindered my ability to get into certain schools. My parents tell me stories of
how I would get so focused and protective of specific toys that caught my interest that I would
refuse to move onto the next activity or let other children take turns. This problem extended
through much of my early elementary school years and impacted my relationship with my sister,
friends, and teachers. My parents expended much energy trying to solve this problem I’m sure,
but luckily, they succeeded. As I matured, I did begin to see how lucky I am and I began to
actively work to make up for all of my selfish moments as a naïve child. Now, I try to perform
acts of selflessness and giving whenever I can, even if I’m merely sharing my food or loaning a
friend money. Social action and giving back to the community are also incredibly central
elements of Jewish practice today, so I try to attend social action events at my temple as much
as possible as well as volunteer at the religious school for younger children every Sunday so
that I can teach them not to act the same way I did as a child.
This image of sandwiches perfectly encapsulates the main idea of Leviticus 19:10; the idea of giving away what I don’t need. At my temple, the youth group holds events called “Sandwich Brigades” every few weeks after religious school. Sandwich Brigades involve making as many peanut butter and jelly sandwiches as possible for a homeless shelter. As I stated earlier, because of my experience with selfishness as a child, whenever possible I try to give back to the community and those who are in need. Tzedakah is an incredibly important part of Judaism, especially reform Judaism, so, by participating in these events I both find a way to make up for my past mistakes and actively work toward developing my own Jewish identity.
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