海角大神

Though she鈥檚 admittedly 鈥渨ell beyond retirement age,鈥� there鈥檚 nary a rocking chair in sight for Marilyn Price.

Performer, author, educator, foundation head, networker, and all-around resource person to many, she keeps moving, her proudest distinction her 40 years as puppeteer to the 80-branch Chicago Public Library. This month alone, she is performing in a Utah children鈥檚 museum, performing again near Seattle, reading at a West Coast bookstore, and teaching California teachers about using the arts in education. This, after spending a weekend in New York City with her daughter and grandchildren, and before meeting up with her son鈥檚 family for Thanksgiving in Los Angeles.

In between, back home in Evanston, Illinois, she鈥檚 overseeing installation of puppet stages in each of the Chicago public libraries, and participating in end-of-life decision-making as part of her local hospital鈥檚 ethics committee. She describes herself as a 鈥渃onnector,鈥� ever seeking out, learning about, and even eavesdropping (鈥減eripheral listening,鈥� she calls it) for opportunities to engage in life. She gobbles up interactions and lesson-illustrating experiences, absorbing stories and recounting them as she goes. 鈥淧eople need to learn to live a good life,鈥� she says.

In the Judaism that underpins her decisions, the injunction against harming others also includes a moral imperative to make one鈥檚 own life matter. 鈥淚 need to use it to make a difference,鈥� Ms. Price says. 鈥淸Judaism] also commands you to judge carefully 鈥� not to judge the way other people live.鈥�

She shared her thoughts about the Sixth Commandment 鈥� Thou shalt not kill (Exodus 20:13) 鈥� as part of the Monitor鈥檚 series聽exploring how people of different faiths use the Ten Commandments鈥� ancient principles in their modern lives. The word 鈥渒ill鈥� in Hebrew translates as, roughly, 鈥渕urder.鈥�

In town for meetings, Ms. Price chatted one rainy night recently at a favorite Philadelphia hotel that she considers to be a place of calm amid her travels.

Her favorite thing is puppeteering 鈥� using puppets to tell stories. She chooses stories, often classics, that show children how to make their own lives better. 鈥淭he Little Engine That Could鈥� is a perennial favorite, she says.

Ms. Price also runs a foundation helping teachers use the arts in school. So when she鈥檚 not talking 鈥淭he Little Red Hen鈥� with children, she鈥檚 talking 鈥渢ri-braining,鈥� multiple intelligences, and pedagogies with grown-ups.

A management consultant early in her career, she did her first puppet show at a holiday celebration at her synagogue, hiding behind an upright piano with a friend who, like her, was expecting her first baby. When, as a new mother, Ms. Price didn鈥檛 want to return to an office, she, along with her friend, pursued other synagogue gigs, and eventually she became聽the Chicago Public Library鈥檚 official puppeteer. She says she did 鈥減ieces no one wanted to do, in neighborhoods no one wanted to go into,鈥� and before long, she got a break through Burr Tillstrom, of early TV鈥檚 legendary 鈥淜ukla, Fran and Ollie鈥� show, for a children鈥檚 display as part of an exhibit about Pompeii at the Art Institute of Chicago. From there, she expanded into storytelling for adults 鈥� who tend to be a bit uncomfortable around the puppets, 鈥渁t least at first,鈥� she says.

Ms. Price, married 51 years, her two children raised, and now a grandmother, has a get-things-done approach that goes way back. She and her husband were raised in different movements of Judaism 鈥� she in the more liberal Reform tradition and he in Conservative 鈥� and as a compromise between the two traditions, the couple founded a Reconstructionist congregation in Evanston, which is still going strong.

鈥淭eaching good choices is the closest we get to the Commandments these days,鈥� Ms. Price says, overt religion being a non-starter in the mostly secular institutions where she makes her way. She taps sources as diverse as Hans 海角大神 Andersen, Italian folklore, American classics, and the Old Testament of the Bible, whose stories are familiar to both Jews and 海角大神s. Her aim is to show good choices in action 鈥� taking care of each other, showing loyalty, using time wisely, paying attention, remaining steadfast, working together. She doesn鈥檛 tell her listeners what to think about the stories. 鈥淎 good story is open enough that it allows you to put in your own thoughts,鈥� she says.

In moral decision-making, 鈥渙ne question people often find helpful to ask themselves is, 鈥楾o what extent is your religious journey and your faith perspective affecting your ordinary life?鈥欌�� says Rabbi David Teutsch, professor emeritus of contemporary Jewish civilization at the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College in Wyncote, Pennsylvania. Dr. Teutsch, a longtime friend and colleague of Ms. Price, says that, of all the laws and commands governing Jewish practice, 鈥渢he most central commandment is 鈥榊ou shall love your neighbor as yourself.鈥� Marilyn is the embodiment of that kind of commitment. She has made a serious commitment to directly impacting for good the lives of people that she can reach.鈥�

Ms. Price dislikes even the mention of violence. If you say, 鈥淚鈥檇 kill for those shoes,鈥� you鈥檒l likely rub her the wrong way. But using her Jewish tradition, as well as her own experience and reflections, she modifies and expands on the Ten Commandments to add dimension to her moral reasoning. When it comes to issues like self-defense, abortion, and end-of-life decisions, 鈥渢here鈥檚 a lot of 鈥榠fs鈥� there,鈥� she says, adding that she may have more ifs than others, a result of her tendency to overthink things.

鈥淓verything I do is based on these precepts,鈥� she says of her Jewish faith tradition. That tradition takes center stage in her current project, a children鈥檚 edition of 鈥淔rom Gratitude to Blessings and Back,鈥� a book she co-wrote with Dr. Teutsch. The book wraps personal reflections and stories in with ancient Jewish blessings that highlight the presence of God in virtually every aspect of life, from eating and drinking to resolving conflict. She is especially fond of the awakening blessing: 鈥淏lessed are you, Eternal One our God ... who removes sleep from my eyes and slumber from my eyelids.鈥�

Her favorite blessing, though, is prayed during times of gratitude, which she believes is the first step in passing good fortune forward:

鈥淏lessed are you, Eternal One our God, the sovereign of all worlds whose name is Good and to whom it is good to give thanks.鈥�

Part 1: The Commandments as a moral source code in modern life

Part 2: How does the First Commandment fit in today?

Part 3: 鈥業 have to have humility鈥�: How Second Commandment helped man find freedom

Part听4:听One woman embraces Third Commandment in feeding 1,600 at Thanksgiving

Part 5: 鈥楻emember the sabbath鈥�: How one family lives the Fourth Commandment

Part 6: 鈥楪rowing up is hard鈥�: How Fifth Commandment guided a child during divorce

Part 7: Is saying 鈥業鈥檇 kill for those shoes鈥� OK? One woman and Sixth Commandment.

Part 8: Is chastity old-fashioned? An NFL veteran鈥檚 take on Seventh Commandment.

Part 9: 鈥楾hou shalt not steal鈥�: Even someone else鈥檚 joy, says one educator

Part 10: 鈥楾hou shalt not bear false witness鈥�: Ninth Commandment goes to Princeton

Part 11: Jealousy at Ivy League level: How a law professor views Tenth Commandment