Facebook Post By Rabbi Perlin in the Time of Coronavirus (3/31/2020)

Tuesday Post 3/31/20: What Time is It? 

by Rabbi Amy R. Perlin, D.D.

With six grandchildren under the age of eight, I have watched my fair share of children’s programming over the past few years.  There are phrases from some of the shows that just stick with you, and probably will long after the show and the child have moved on.  For us, one of those phrases is from the cartoon, Bubble Guppies.  If you ask my granddaughter, Ella (2 ½), “What time is it?”  She will smile and respond, “It’s time for lunch!”  And it really doesn’t matter what time it really is, because that is the question the school teacher asks every day in the show as his students respond with glee that it is “Time for lunch.”  The daily routine gives the Bubble Guppie kids a sense of security, and teaches young children that there are different activities associated with different parts of the day.

Adults and children alike, stuck at home, are struggling with the tension of establishing routines for kids and adults, and giving all of us time to possibly enjoy the fact that we don’t have to be as programmed every minute of our day as we usually are.

What time is it?  At our house, lunchtime now includes a Scrabble game.  We are tied 5-5 since we decided to start a Pandemic Competition, even though I am taking a class today at noon, and we will have our game a bit later than usual.  Routine has become an important part of our survival in isolation.  Gary takes a walk while I am “working” each day, and then at the end of the day, before dinner, we walk together.  Some people walk their dogs; I walk my husband.

You may watch Governor Cuomo in the afternoon or the White House briefing before dinner (could ruin your appetite).  I know that many households with school age children are busy completing school assignments and trying to keep the day filled with art, reading, outside excursions, and a host of games, puzzles, and other things to keep kids busy, taking their minds off missing friends, and generally exhausting parents and wearing them down by now.  If you are one of those parents, Kol Hakavod, honor to you, for all you are doing!  If you are a teacher trying to reinvent education and missing your students, know that every parent in America appreciates you more now than ever.

For those of us at home without kids, we have a list of things to do, and the novelty is wearing off on completing the items on the list.  And lately, I am finding that things just seem to be taking more time and not enough is getting done.  If our lives are not in our control, we somehow want the time we spend in isolation to be in our control.  Only you can answer the question of how many shows you can binge watch, how many closets you can clean, and how many old files you can trash, and how many new or familiar foods you can cook in one week.

As I talk with religious leaders here and in Israel, they are working tirelessly to add meaning to people’s lives with spiritual content.  I am teaching once a week and we are attending services online for Shabbat.  Everyone is trying to find a way to keep life as normal, and as fulfilling, as possible.

What time is it?  It’s time to recognize that time itself isn’t really in our control.  After two weeks of being in, kids are gonna start melting down. It’s probably time to give them (and you) a day to vegetate in front of the TV.  And it is probably time to give yourself some time, too.  People seem to feel the need to be productive and maintain the “no time for me” pattern of normal life.  It’s time to lighten up and live it up.  Do something fun.  Do NOTHING.

There will be plenty of time to worry about finances and food shopping.  There will be plenty of time to wash your hands 50 times a day.  There will be plenty of time to make lists.  On this cold and cloudy day, when asked, “What time is it?” – maybe we can answer “Time for me.”