Alef: The NEXT Conversation
What’s in a Name?
by Zahara Schara
A rose by any other name is still as sweet…yeah I don’t buy it. For as long as I can remember I never liked my name, I blame it on the fact I was not named for almost a week, believe it or not I was difficult from the beginning I nearly killed both my mother and myself. Then as a child I proudly declared that I was going to change my name to Zipporah, to which my father replied since I am named after him he would have to change his name to Zippy. I still think this plan would work…Zippy has a nice ring to it.
So on twitter the past couple of weeks a couple of people I follow have been examining Hebrew names, for those of you who don’t know we have a first name, a middle name, a last name and sometimes a Hebrew name, excessive I know. It can be that your first or middle name is also your Hebrew name…it is a bit confusing but I have a point here.
Zahara is my Hebrew name, Lauren my legal name. But what does that mean? Is it simply some sort of quarter life crisis …no. When I moved to Israel partly because their chronic mispronunciation of Lauren, I went solely by Zahara, or Zaza for short. Here is where the important part of the story is, as Zahara I feel creative, curious and more the person I want to be. As Lauren I feel older, cautious and worrisome. I don’t have multiple personalities, even though I am sure this sounds a bit crazy! I swear this isn’t like All About
Eve!
But why is the idea of actually or legally changing our name so scary to us? Will we forget who we are? Jacob became Israel, married women take their husbands last name, sometimes hyphenating it, ’cause hyphens are sexy. As a way to shed the past or create a new future. Changing names is not only for mobsters hiding out in suburbia. So Hebrew name, middle name, name from a book or TV, who are you? Who would you be with a different name? Who do you want to be? I might always be Lauren on paper, but I will always be Zahara in my heart, or until 2012 when my passport expires and who knows I might make it legal…
Zahara is a member of the NEXT Shabbat Advisory Committee – to learn how to join the NEXT Shabbat movement here. You can also read more from Zahara’s blog here.
Photo by Milica Sekulic.
Weekly Pita 11/18/11
It’s almost Thanksgiving! Here at Alef we are thankful for our readers, our writers, and the fabulous reporters and journalists who bring you the links that we collect and share every Friday.
1. If you haven’t already heard about the Hazon Israel (bike) Ride, then this is your chance to learn more. One of the riders has been traveling with a helmet-cam and reporting from the road (literally!).
Israel Ride 2011 – Highlights from day 1 from Elahn Zetlin on Vimeo.
2. This Rabbi has a radical suggestion — push back the Bar Mitzvah age to 25. Thoughts?
3. The Jewish Daily Forward sits down with funny Sarah Silverman and her Rabbi Sister, Susan.
Birthright In My Own Words…
by Adam Wolfthal
We arrived to Tel Aviv by Plan
e
The freezing cabin drove us half insane
Got our luggage, exchanged our money
Stepped outside, it was hot and sunny
Drove north to Golan, admired the hills
Some slept soundly, rest prepared for the thrills
Got to the Kibbutz after a roundabout
Icebreakers, dinner then a few caught a stout
Time at the bar, couldn’t be better spent
Woke up early and off to a hike we went
Bottom of the mountain, temple of pan
The top held panoramic views of this beautiful land
Bunker on mount BenTal had interesting karma
And then our group got its first taste of schwarma
Visited an olive oil production facility
Where they discovered olive wastes utility
Kayaked the rapids of the Jordan river
All that’s expected and more was delivered
Learned about Israel through its musical stars
Two hours later, flaming shots almost burnt down the bar
Rose for a trek up the mountain Herten
As a group we grew closer that is certain
Made our way to Tzfat, best falafel in the world
And learned about how Kabbalah’s story unfurled
Wandered the district of Israeli artists
Then headed to the place where it all started
Yerushalim, we arrived at Caesers
And a trip to the clubs, was a crowd pleaser
Our first view of the dome of the rock could make you cry
We picked up the soldiers, Amir Alon, Eyal and Guy
Two Gals, Odil, Aviv, so pretty
We intro’d and B-line straight for the old city
Each left our note in the Wailing wall
While few wrapped Tefillin, G-d was felt by all
With our soldier groups we strolled the market for lunching
And found some yummies for oneg shabbot munching
For oneg we shared food, stories, and song
Each day made our groups bond more strong
Up nice and early to practice yoga with britty
Before heading to a small park in the city
Spoke with soldiers about scenes that can’t be rehearsed
Then some enjoyed Frisbee while many conversed
Climbed to the rooftop, for the pool, in our sandals
Before we celebrated with the Havdalah candles
Caught a great lecture from Gil, from the news
Before we spoke about what makes us Jews
Stories of our past had our emotions tossed
Continued into the visit of the museum of the Holocaust
Exhibits and pictures of Yad Vashem
Left most of us floored and מחמם (mekhamem- v. stunned)
Visited Her Hertzel, saw leaders graves as expected
But the ages on the headstones put it all in perspective
Its easy to sit back and wonder why
When G-d told Avrahim his kids would be like stars in the sky
Plentiful, phrases learned so we could say them
Soldiers taught us quick, next day we rose at 4 A.M.
To ascend the sight of the defensive
Admired the care put in like its intensive
Brought the sun up, like a bunch of rooster
Spirituality much more than we are used to
The dead sea, floating felt so divine
Mud left our skin felling smoother than this rhyme
Rode gamals, just one got bent (shoutout to Hubert)
Set up for our night in the desert tent
Gal told us all how Zeus did conspire
To burn his wife, the way we did the bonfire
We sang songs, showed off guitar skills
Amazing how 2 chords will make your heart spill
Many slept indoors, some were stargazing
The bond of this crew has become amazing
Next day started with a hike through desert sands
And we picked some carrots with our bare hands
Tomatoes too, passion fruit and some herbs
Making fresh pitas, absolutely superb
Aviv, she took us to her home base
Where we got to see this lands most conflicted place
Learned about pigeons and how they know where to fly
Then we got fa’klempt wishing the soldiers good bye
Felt like we were losing our siblings
But Shargil and Alon reminded us, its only the beginning
We thought about the future, Aliyah wishing
Mostly showed cameras, just reminiscing
Rose, packed went to Independence Hall
Israel’s state was formed there, Golda she bawled
Saw the site where Yitzak was shot
a plaque “murderer” sat right on the spot
Then at the market we all slipped off
And if you weren’t haggling then you got ripped off
The whole experience was more than we could conceive
Because next we spend the afternoon on a beach in Tel Aviv
We told the guy in Jaffa we thought we had found heaven
None of us could think of anywhere better then Birthright twenty eleven…
Read here for more of Adam’s poetry.
Photo of Masada by aguapoman, licensed under Creative Commons.
Once Upon a Time in Kiryat Shmone
by Emily Cornell
I’m getting married in nine weeks. If there’s a groom, that is.
The US consulate in Jerusalem is playing hard to get with my fiancé’s file.*
I’m trying to be all cool about the fact that I am supposed to be standing under a chuppah on November 22nd and there may not even be a hatan there with me thankyouverymuch, but “yiyeh b’seder” just doesn’t fall as easily from my lips as I wish it did.
It’s sometimes hard to believe that it’s already been two and a half years. It doesn’t seem so long ago that I fell in love with a soldier who boarded my Birthright bus in Kiryat Shmone. Thousands of conversations on Google chat and almost as many on the phone, seven FTD bouquets sent in an attempt to make up for the anniversaries, birthdays and no-good-very-bad-days spent apart; five transatlantic trips, three care packages filled with pop rock chocolate, cds of the latest hits getting playtime on Radio Galgalatz and random, quirky finds from the shuk; and two years after one very important promise: we will make it work.
I haven’t always believed that. Add to the count above at least thirty times that I’ve declared the situation utterly hopeless. Pure meshugas to think that two people who are so different – she an American WASP turned Nice Jewish Girl and he a Russian-born Israeli – and with so many obstacles in the way could ever even dream of getting to happily ever after.
But just as I raise my voice to argue the point yet again, I hear him say “Get real mami. When was the last time you heard a fairytale that started: Once upon a time in Kiryat Shmone?”
Again I’ve been outdone.
Of course I have. I’m marrying an Israeli. From a land where arguing is an official national sport. Where telling somebody “you can’t” is just some encouragement for them to continue on.
It doesn’t take long before I am laughing again – through the tears of frustration and longing to be in the same time zone as my best friend. I realize that this doesn’t have to be a fairytale. It just has to be the unlikely story of two people who made it work.
My name is Emily and I’m getting married on 26 Heshvan 5772. Maybe. Hopefully. Whatever happens: yiyeh b’seder.
*Update: It is early Friday morning and just a few days after I have written this. Igor waited hours to wake me up to tell me that the consulate has called. There’s not an exact date yet but “maybe in September or definitely in October,” he’ll have an appointment with a visa official. I think I’ll send the wedding invites out this week…
photo by jaaron, licensed under Creative Commons.
Tikkun Olam in Tel Aviv-Jaffa
by Vanessa Mieger
Coming home from Birthright is tough. You’ve spent the last 10 days meeting interesting people, learning much more than you expected, and seeing amazing places. And it’s not just a vacation — it makes you think. About everything. So when you get back to “real life”, carrying this new perspective over to reality can be tricky.
When I got back, processing everything that Birthright got me thinking about wasn’t easy. I was never the involved type in school, but suddenly I felt the urge to connect, to be a part of something. I can’t fully explain this, but I can say that Birthright has this effect; It makes you feel different, think different, see different. Maybe it’s something as simple as coming home and wanting to organize Shabbat dinners with your friends. For me, I wanted to go back to Israel. I wanted to keep this intellectual and spiritual stimulation going. But I didn’t want to go back to Israel and just be a tourist. I wanted to learn and teach and be inspired and challenged and to have a meaningful experience as a continuation of my Birthright experience. So I looked into Masa programs.
I did a lot of research and finally decided on a great program called Tikkun Olam in Tel Aviv-Jaffa. I lived and worked in the heart of Jaffa, working with underprivileged women and children. I had no teaching experience and very little experience volunteering but I just jumped in. The women and children I worked with were Arab, Ethiopian, Russian, Jewish, Christian, you name it. The Women’s Court, and incredible organization where I worked taught me so much about the power of human connections no matter what race or religion. It was a big challenge but equally rewarding.
As on my Birthright trip, I learned much about myself over the past year in Israel. I have learned that I need to constantly be learning and passing on the information I learn. I need to be challenged in order to be my most successful. And mostly I learned about the importance of human connections no matter what race, religion or social class. Most of the women and children that I worked with did not speak English, but this did not prevent us from connecting. With some time I formed friendships and an understanding with them that I will keep for the rest of my life. This is true coexistence, and this is what made my experience so rich and rewarding.
So coming back to “real life” again, I come back more confident and fulfilled but also feeling that I accomplished something over the past year. Birthright introduces you to the possibilities and it’s your job to translate that into action. The challenging part for me now is trying to carry over my experience there and incorporate it into my life here in San Francisco. I’m not sure what form this will take yet, but I do know that I am passionate about keeping this feeling and not leaving this past year in Israel as just a memory.
To learn more about programs like Vanessa’s, visit masaisrael.org.
Photo provided by the author.
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