I have been thinking a lot about the Peter Culman series, and three things remains vital, vivid even, in my hearing still.

The first, and it brackets the entire series, is Peter Culman’s lovely shining face. The man gives enthusiasm a beatific name.

The second, and here I will return again and again, was Rabbi Wohlberg’s storytelling and questioning. I had never met this man and know little about him personally. Yet, in a very short time, with a disarming frankness, he took me into his world and very graciously showed me around, though he had no assur-ance that I would even remotely appreciate it. He exhibited qualities that I associate with good teaching: simple, straight to the point language; illustrations that help a person remem-ber the heart of the matter; and the humility to challenge his listener, eye to eye, with no hint of arrogance or superiority. As I think back on the series and ask myself what my expectations were, what I hoped for, and how these were met or not, I think the answers are about instruction. I came seeking illumination. I came to hear. When Rabbi Wohlberg spoke, my desire to hear found a partner.

The third element of the series that remains alive in me is a bit more amorphous. It has to do with the people in attendance. Some I knew. However, it is those that I did not know that keep stirring the pot. For the most part, it is simply the presence of so many people willing to come to such an event, and to return, week after week. And it is those who were willing to ask questions out loud, or to ruminate with their companions in the hallways. It is not, however, the content of any of these encounters about which I speak. It is that we ache, all of us, in so many different ways. There is a certain beauty in this. I am encouraged, and I am enticed by hope when I dwell on the sheer physical presence of the people who gathered at Chizuk Amuno. Their stories and their questions, so largely unvoiced, are nonetheless compelling, telling, and lasting.

Peter Whedbee is a local camera repairman and a participant in many ICJS programs.