You hear, “Tu B’Shevat!” You say, “Tu B’She-what?”
Tu B’Shevat, one of the little-known Jewish holidays, celebrates the New Year for the trees. Think Jewish Arbor Day. How on earth can we possibly celebrate trees when it is so snowy and cold outside?
The answer goes back thousands of years to the Middle Ages. Even then, rabbis saw how important it was to pay attention to the environment. They calculated the age of trees, deciding when to harvest fruits and when to celebrate the first signs of spring. That’s the secret of Tu B’Shevat: everything is growing and getting ready to burst even though you can’t see it yet under all that ice. A great message for kids, don’t you think?
Fast forward to 2015 in Park Slope, where the Workmen’s Circle, the Jewish cultural non-profit, is planning a Tu B’Shevat celebration of their own. Their focus is not just on the land, but on the people who cultivate it.
This Sunday, March 1, from 2 – 4, at the Berkeley Carroll School, the Workmen’s Circle is hosting a free afternoon filled with food, music, art projects and hands-on social justice programs developed in partnership with the Justice for Farmworkers Campaign. Designed for kids ages 5-13, this secular event will also include dancing with the famous duo Deborah Strauss and Jeff Warschauer.
Don’t miss this great opportunity to re-discover a hidden gem of a holiday, and to engage your family in activism.
This event is completely free – you just need to RSVP with Sandy Cheiten, the Workmen’s Circle Community Organizer. Send her an email or give her a call to find out more: scheiten@circle.org, (646) 291-8374. Please note that this will take place at the Berkeley Carroll School at 152 Sterling Place between 7th Avenue and Flatbush.
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