What do you call someone who isn't a cousin, an aunt, an uncle, a brother, a sister, a parent, or a grandparent, but is someone you hope to keep in your life forever? For our family, we call them forever friends.
Looking out across the sanctuary and seeing so many smiling, supportive faces was truly a gift. Following the service, people shared how confident and comfortable Andrew was up on the Bima. Which got me thinking. Can a place be a forever friend?
As an only child and a huge fan of playing pretend, I've been known to befriend a few inanimate objects. In fact, I believed, okay still sort of do believe, that my stuffed animals are unable to "breath" if you put them in a plastic bin. Danny joins me in this belief. When we were moving out of our apartment, we both panicked when we saw all of our stuffed friends tightly sealed in a plastic container.
So given this, my answer to the question about places and friends is an emphatic YES! Our friendship with the Adath began when Andrew was four months old enrolled in Adath's infant daycare program. At 18 months he moved into the transitional toddler room and then graduated into the preschool program.
The synagogue for Andrew has been a school as well as a playground. The long hallway that runs the length from the chapel to the sanctuary to the social hall, also known as the spine, was his sprinting track during the daytime. He learned to climb up and down stairs in the social hall. The classrooms upstairs have also been home to Andrew's Sunday school and Shabbat Morning Program classes.
Watching Andrew deliver his Torah portion this weekend, reminded me how much this building has become a forever friend to our family. Reflecting on the amount of time Andrew has spent in and around the building, it really comes as no surprise that he's as comfortable as he is. The surprise is how much time has gone by and the many memories the building for us now holds .
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