I Didn't Even WANT to Chant - Part 2

In fact, the first time I chanted Torah, absolutely nothing magical happened...

...And that was the miracle!

I think a lot of people imagine that the first time you chant Torah, lead from the bima, or teach someone else to do it, you're supposed to have a magical movie moment.

Cue swelling music. Cue angels. Cue dramatic spiritual breakthrough!

Instead, what usually happens is something far less cinematic.

You chant.

People say "yasher koach."

And then the rabbi asks everyone to silence their phones so we can carry on with the service.

But that's truly perfect. The mundanity. The boredom. The normalcy.

Because the real miracle isn't that you suddenly become extraordinary.

The miracle is that you become ORDINARY.

The Torah stops feeling like something other people do.

And starts feeling like something you do.

That shift changes everything!

Not because you suddenly become a cantor or a rabbi.

Not because everyone starts looking at you differently.

But because YOU start looking at yourself differently.

You finally stop saying:

"I could never do that."

You stop saying:

"I'm not Jewish enough."

You stop saying:

"My Hebrew isn't good enough."

You stop saying:

"Maybe someday."

And eventually, something surprising happens.

You become the person another woman is watching.

You become the person another parent asks for help.

You become the person who can reassure a nervous b mitzvah student:

"No really. I truly never I could do this, either."

One of my favourite things in the world is watching this happen.

A student learns a trope.

Then a pasuk (sentence in the Torah).

Then an aliyah (a full portion, or a series of sentences).

Then suddenly they're helping their kid or their niece or their best friend's kid.

Or helping a friend.

Or volunteering at shul.

Or considering tutoring.

Or simply showing up differently in Jewish spaces.

That's the part nobody talks about.

Torah chanting isn't really about Torah chanting. It's not about what it's about!

It's about confidence.

Belonging.

Competence.

Continuity.

It's about inheriting something that should never have felt inaccessible in the first place.

And then passing it on.

Not because you became an expert.

But because you became a participant.

 And Judaism needs participants.

Lots of them.

Including you!