Smith Magazine has teamed up with Reboot (the people who brought you the National Day of Unplugging and Sukkah City) to bring you “Six Words on Jewish life.” Submit your six-word memoir (www.smithmag.net/jewish) by January 4th for a shot at being included in the book and a guarantee at being on the website.

Not sure where to start? We’re so glad you asked.  Some of the staff at NEXT have teamed up to provide you a list of their own six-word memoirs:

Ruvym ~ Russian family, still fears nonexistent KGB

Terissa ~ Single?! You should meet my son!

Emily ~ Once Kosher-style Texan loves pulled pork.

We’ve asked Jewish educators and organizations all over North America to add a fifth question to the Seder – one that will inspire us to make Passover meaningful for today’s Jewish world.  Find out more about our 5th Question project.

This 5th Question comes from DAVAI -

The mass emigration of Soviet Jews from the Former Soviet Union is symbolic of the Passover story. In fact, it is considered the modern day Exodus. This incredible event was achieved with tremendous effort and help by the American Jewry. However, after coming to the United States and establishing itself in the new home, the Russian Jewish Community seemingly split from the American community, separating itself and not taking active role in the Greater American Jewry.

Why did this happen? Is it important to try to bridge the gap between the two communities? And if so, what is the best way to do it?

DAVAI is a community based, not for profit organization whose goal it is to build strong Jewish identity and leadership skills within the Russian-speaking Jewish community by providing appropriate social and educational programs that appeal to a variety of interests.

Photo by WordRidden, licensed under Creative Commons.

I love a New Years Tree.  No, not the Christmas fir tree. The New Years fir tree.

What is a New Years Tree you may be wondering?  One of my favorite memories from my childhood is that every year, around the middle of December, my parents would get our family a yolka that would be in our living room, adorned with festive lights, decorations, and presents underneath to be opened by my family on the morning of the New Year.

WAIT A SECOND!  My family is Jewish, why on earth are we celebrating a holiday that sounds identical to Christmas?

I should clarify. When I was four years old, my family emigrated to the U.S from the former Soviet Union.  When I was in the first grade, in an effort to illustrate religious diversity, our teacher split the class up according to which religion was celebrated in the home.  Trying to determine where I fit, I explained to the class that my parents were Jewish but that we put up a decorated tree for the holidays.  My fellow first graders assured me I must be half Jewish and half Christian because a tree in my house must have meant that I celebrated Christmas.

That day I came home very confused – were my parents keeping something from me?  Not according to my mother.   She explained to me that because religious observance was discouraged under communism in the Soviet Union, people didn’t celebrate Hanukkah or Christmas.  The New Year was the holiday celebrated by all Soviets and at the heart of the celebration was the decorated yolka, which was introduced to imperial Russia by Peter the Great in the late 17th century.  To offer a little history — in 1916 the yolka was first banned by the state church council and thereafter by the Soviet officials, but in 1935 the ban was lifted and New Years became an official state-recognized holiday.  From 1935 until 1991, when the Soviet Union crumbled, New Years was one of the most beloved holidays in the land.

My parents stopped putting up a real New Years tree in our house around the time I was eight, when they figured out that, in America, Jews don’t have fir trees in their homes.  When I begged really hard, I managed to convince them to assemble a fake tree, but only succeeded in that a few times.  These days, the aroma of pine needles coming off of a Christmas tree makes me nostalgic and giddy.  If my apartment were big enough, I would probably get a New Years tree this holiday season.  It would be lovely right next to my menorah.

Photo by Ed Bierman, licensed under Creative Commons.