When I think about how to live a good life, I think about our friend Alex Wexler.

Alex exemplified the idea of finding a sweetness to temper the bitter, a smile in the tears, and the growth inherent in any struggle.

Though he was devoted to Judaism, he used to joke that Julie Andrews was his higher power; that grace and kindness that she showed in her life, and the lessons abound in all of her iconic characters we as good as any jumble of letters to offer up as a prayer to God.

It was in this spirit that on the day that Alex got the news that his cancer had come out of remission, I wrote him a meditation to help us all remember to hang on to that spoonful of sugar in the difficult days to come.

I'd like if we could all read it together tonight, and carry the joy and memories with us as we head back out into our big, complicated world.

Prayer to Julie

Our Lady,

We implore that you intercede on our behalf,

With all of your earnestness,

That God may grant us

Courage to sing in the face of fear,

Imagination to turn vile medicines into lime cordials,

Grace to find laughter in prosthetic limbs,

And compassion enough for ourselves to take love when we need it.


haggadah Section: Nirtzah