Armadillo

Often I prefer to leave the subject line of an email blank. Is it going to make the difference of if you open it or not? "Oh, it's from Fleischmnann...Subject is 'Hello." No. I don't believe I'm in the mood to read a message from him with that title. If he'd have gone with 'Armadillo" that'd be a different story.

The question of titles comes up regarding blog posts. Sometimes I leave it blank. But omitting a heading doesn't feel right the way it does with emails. A post is an essay of sorts and that earns it the right to a title. Once or twice I've gone with Untitled as a title. Cop out? Perhaps. I'll just tell you that Peter Himmelman's most powerful song is called Untitled.

Someone recently sent me an email and the heading was a question mark. And for that second till I opened it I experienced irrational fear - had I said or done something that was being questioned, had I hurt the sender/friend in some way, was my whole essence being questioned with that mark? I opened to to find a question about Jewish Practice, the kind of question I love to bounce around in my hands like dice, to google and think about.

Someone know once got an email from his boss, the subject of which was a string of six or seven exclamation points. And inside was a frantic message about something that was already moot by virtue of having been taken care of by my friend.

I am sometimes proud of my memory. Lately I've been wondering if it's a burden in part, besides the major blessing piece. I think a lot of artists carry so much and then present it back out there. But carrying heavy loads can strain you in every sinew. Still, for the moment, I will share with you a memory from elementary school.

I was called for an aliyah and ran out of my row. When I returned the kid next to me glared at me and I smiled back blankly and he said, "You think it's funny, huh?" And I had no idea. Apparently I'd banged into his knees the way one sometimes does when running out of the row one's sitting in... Something about that stuck me and in my mind, connected to the exclamation point email.

Sonja Sohn, when asked about who her inspiration was answered spontaneously that it's like a ball of rubber bands. There are so many strands of so many people of so much influence. Maybe all of life is like one of those rubber band balls.

Shabbos is approaching. May we all really get it this week. A connection with Shabbos, which reminds us of the connection we strive for with people, which is a shadow of the connection we yearn for with G-d.