Shavuot: The edges of our fieldsThis month, Tikkun Tips comes to us via a special guest writer. NancyLee Bergy is just finishing her tenure as the Supervisor of Science
Curriculum for all four branches of the Perelman Jewish Day School in Philadelphia. This fall, her 5th, 6th, and 7th grade students will attend Teva Learning Center programs. A beloved member of the Teva community, NancyLee's delight in the wonders of the world is obviously infectious to her students. Teva also salutes the Perelman school's Stern Center for being one of the first ten sites in the country to be designated an official Monarch Watch Way Station.
Dear Friends-
Over Shavuot last week, I was thinking about the
edges of our fields. When we read the Book of Ruth we
think of the gleaners who were allowed to follow the
workers, harvesting dropped grain, or that left
standing for them at the edges of the field.
Most of us don’t have fields. We recognize the intent
of the commandment as an indication of our
responsibility to those less fortunate than ourselves,
and many of us try to meet this obligation through
tzedekah. And we should.
But I have been thinking about our obligations beyond
the human family. In this day and age, and in this
place, so much of nature is threatened. But this is
not a message of despair. There is so much we can do.
Most of us don’t have fields. But many of us do have
yards. In her book Noah’s Garden, Sara Stein suggests that if we were to plant the edges of our lawns as
hedgerows we would create corridors for wildlife. Even
an isolated hedgerow can provide shelter, a safe
location for nesting or burrow, and, if planted with
native species or berry-bearing bushes, natural
wildlife “feeders”. But if one neighbor after another
would plant (or allow) these hedgerows, wildlife would
have their own zones of safety to move from one area
to another without invading human space.
Unfortunately, I cannot post some of the lovely drawings from
Stein’s book showing how a series of lawns rimmed with
hedgerows fit together like puzzle pieces to create
these corridors. But here are some websites that may
substitute.
And of course, I stand ready to talk, help, cheerlead
and inspire. We can make a difference.
Shavuah Tov,
NancyLee
www.nwf.org/nationalwildlife/article.cfm?issueid=14&articleid=111
www.boskydellnatives.com/birdstest.htm#hedgerow
www.gardeners.com/gardening/content.asp?copy_id=5066
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