If your year has been anything like mine, it has been the year that has kept on punching, leaving me stumbling around the ring and hanging on for dear life kinda like Mike Tyson in his latest bout.
From the global and local rise in antisemitism, campus unrest, the Iranian missile attack on Israel, vandalism of two Jewish cemeteries, the election season, massive flooding in Appalachia, the hostages still held captive by Hamas in Gaza, and the plight of innocent Israelis and Palestinians caught in this escalating violence. Wherever you look, there is human suffering on a massive scale.
How can we stay strong during these times and keep ourselves from falling into despair?
For that answer, we can look to science. Multiple studies have shown that consistently writing down what we are grateful for can benefit our mental health. According to mental health experts, our lists can include “small” or ” large” things in our lives.
As actor Michael J Fox said in an interview on CBS Sunday morning, “With gratitude, optimism is sustainable.” With that in mind, here are some things I am grateful for here in Cincinnati.
Murals USA Today named Cincinnati one of the best cities in the United States for street art. Now, a mural celebrating Jewish history is on 124 W. 9th St.
Cincinnati Art Museum has one of the best collections of ancient art in the tri-state area and is a fantastic place to spend a day wandering through the galleries.
Local Music Scene Cincinnati has a robust music scene filled with great local artists and venues.
Coffee Shops Cincinnati has a slew of fantastic coffee shops. A couple of my favorites are Deeper Roots and Coffee Emporium. A special shoutout to the folks at Daylily in Columbia Tusculum, who take care of me every week.
Our local Jewish Elected Officials who are doing the good work of trying to improve the lives of people living in Cincinnati.
Cincy Jewfolk Contributors Eric Georg Tauber, Gayle Levine Schindler, Rabbi Austin Zoot, Rabbi Ari Jun, Rabbi Drew Kaplan, Miriam Fisher, Allison Cohen, Leah Zipperstein, Elliot Draznin, Tree Smith Benedikt, Claire Rechnitzer, Fletcher Guttman, Becca Blumer, Bailey Price, Madi Persinger, Prof. Matthew Kraus, Prof. Ari Finklestein, Mike Boberg, Miriam Steinberg-Egeth. (If I missed anyone, please forgive me and email [email protected], and I’ll add you to the list!)
Cincinnati Jewish Journalism Cincinnati has a diverse array of hard-working Jewish journalists, like Julia Olson at the American Israelite, Marshall Weiss at the Dayton Jewish Observer, Andrew Rowan at WCPO, and Rachel Hersheimer at WLWT.
As we move into winter, let’s use our gratitude as one of the lights helping us shine through the darkness.
Happy Thanksgiving from us here at Cincy Jewfolk to you and yours!
