A Sign of The Times

This morning I was due to be in Bradford, for the first time hosting a school visit at Bradford Reform Synagogue on an educational trip.

I set off incredibly early, so as not to dare be late and to give myself enough time to open up, ensure all was well and be ready for the group.

I was slightly anxious because a) it was the first time I was doing this and I was petrified I was going to forget the keys, or set the alarm off by mistake, or get caught in the most horrific traffic and be late and b) I had been warned - the usual spiel - about my own safety, entering a Jewish building by myself ( very sadly, there's always a risk of an anti-Semite taking an opportunity to vent their anger at a visibly Jewish person or at a visibly Jewish place ).

As I entered the outskirts of the city, almost an hour early, I decided to stop and pick up the newspaper, and kept a beady eye out for a newsagents. Sure enough, there was a local convenience store up ahead so I parked up and went inside with my vouchers (we are Times and Yorkshire Evening Post subscribers so are regularly issued vouchers at a discounted rate that we exchange daily).

The friendly shopkeeper was surprised when I asked if he had any newspapers; "No, we don''t sell them, love." was his reply when I couldn't find them on a shelf and asked where they were.

I was surprised, thanked him and went on my way.

I drove on, and saw a local post office and shop. Surely I'd be successful this time... I went in. No sign of any newspapers. I asked the post mistress where I could go to pick up a Times and she shrugged her shoulders at me, as if I was making the most incredibly odd request.

As I left, I started thinking about the demise of the newspaper, especially the actual newspapers when so much is online, the scepticism around published print now, the lack of interest in news...

I love being a subscriber and having a real actual newspaper (infact, two!) in the house every day. We'll all (including the kids) pick them up and have a read, do the sudoku, tear out an interesting recipe. to try. In the Yorkshire Evening Post I find out about local things going on in and around Leeds that help me feel part of the city, and I often find the comments or opinion pieces in The Times thought provoking around important issues.

But perhaps it really is very antiquated to be a regular paper subscriber, and it was a real wake up call to the reality of the diminishing demand for newspapers. I laughed to myself as I dreamed up the title for this blog post; I was struggling to find a sign of The Times!

I gave up my search, and arrived at the synagogue still with lots of time to prepare for the visit.

The synagogue itself is down a short road off Manningham Lane and often used as a cut through for boy racers unfortunately, and by people on the streets finding shelter in the doorways as they eat or drink.

This means that part of 'being ready' for a visit includes picking up the debris outside. As I picked up the half full can of beer and remains of a take away, I reflected on the different eras the building has witnessed (just short of 150 years) and lamented that the beer and take away was definitely a sign of the times.

Lights on, music playing (the acoustics are so amazing there I thought it would be cool to have some traditional Jewish music playing as the students arrived) and I was ready to host the Year 6 kids from a local Church of England primary school.

We spent the hour asking and answering questions, learning a couple of Hebrew words, exploring the prayer book and looking at the Torah. It was magical. I found them all totally engaged with the experience, insightful and an utter delight. I didn't ask the question, but I imagine I was the first (openly) Jewish person they'd ever met. Their respect for our culture, customs and beliefs shone through and I loved the whole experience.

As they left, and thanked me, one boy said to me excitedly - "in the Qu'ran it reads from right to left too!" and I thought to myself - now this is the sign of the times I must write about in my blog post today.

If you've enjoyed this blog post, and hopefully other posts too, please can I ask that you show your appreciation through sending over a tip on this link: https://ko-fi.com/annadyson it really helps me stay motivated and creative knowing that my work is resonating... Thanks!