Each month, our Lab/Letter will include a Partnerhood Spotlight: a space dedicated to shining a light on the people, projects, and stories growing from within our community. These reflections are intended to share the creativity, care, and values we hold, and the many ways our community shows up in the world.

We’re honored to lift up Brynna’s story this month, as she shares about her experiences in Lab/Shul’s Kaddish Club, one of our core small group Circles of Communal Care.

Interested in making small group communal connections at Lab/Shul?

Enjoy a reflection about gathering in small circles from Brynna Fish:

When my Mom passed suddenly and unexpectedly, during COVID in May of 2021, not a single synagogue was having in-person daily minyan for Kaddish. Somehow my soul told me to call Shira Kline for help. She immediately reminded me about Lab/Shul and explained how Lab/Shul’s “Kaddish Club” could be helpful to me. On July 28, 2021, I participated and haven’t stopped! The warmth and deep reflections of our ritual leaders & circle holders helped me keep my “utterly broken & utterly grateful” self going. Getting to know folks going through a recent death or a yartzeit strengthened my connection. Six months later my sister passed suddenly and unexpectedly. I reached out to Naomi Less for some personal attention and while I have no recollection of the conversation I can tell you where I was seated in my home and how comforting it felt to hear Naomi’s voice respond to my sharing about my sister. I spent the next several years reading about death and burial practices and souls. As I did this I continued to feel a deep connection with the Kaddish Club. At the end of my year-and-a-half of saying Kaddish I continued to show up every Thursday at noon Eastern time so I could say “amen” for those saying Kaddish. I also have been gifted with folks acknowledging my presence and laughing and/or crying about my stories.

How many of you who have been to the Kaddish Club have heard about my “mama” rose bush? My mom’s Hebrew name was Shoshana, which means rose in Hebrew. A little special moment I’ll leave you with: On the morning we left for her funeral, there were no rosebuds or roses on the bush. When we pulled into the driveway after the funeral, there were 18 beautiful, fully bloomed roses waiting for us – 18 –  “to Chai (חי), to Life”!

Moments like that stay with you; like the moments I share each week with my beloved Lab/Shul community. I absolutely adore our ritual leaders and am humbled and honored to share love and light with this community each week.

~ Brynna Fish
@Brynn.Fish
Lab/Shul Partner since July 2021

With love & reflection,
The Lab/Shul Team