On the Beth Jacob Tour for EREL 300

My trip to the Synagogue was a very edifying experience. First, it is a Conservative Egalitarian synagogue-it is not Orthodox. That means you won't see the black garments that ultra-orthodox Jews will wear and there is no separation between men and women (except, of course, for the bathrooms). The building itself is a renovated school with learning areas, two kosher kitchens, a small shop where one can purchase menoras, skull caps, wine, prayer shawls and mezuzahs, walls adorned with framed art and even walls that are visually and spatially dedicated to deceased members of their Jewish community. The sense of community that I felt from just visiting there was quite profound.

It is one thing to learn about another religion; and it is an entirely different thing to see it for yourself. The synagogue at Beth Jacob is architecturally similar to the original temple that was destroyed in 70 AD. The Torah scrolls they have are over 100 years old. We were allowed to look at a section from Genesis...dark brown wooden scrolls with parchment paper, Hebrew lettering handwritten with black ink by a learned Rabbinical Scribe, smudges from the oils left behind by many fingertips over time. All this, I know, is only a small inkling of the sense of history and community that they cherish so much. I have such a deep respect for the Jewish people, their sense of community and their history-and it is a respect I hope to view more closely by one day visiting Israel.

May God bless me with that opportunity someday.

Coffee & Homework

There is a chill to the air in my town home this morning.

It's not quite cold enough to turn on the heat.

I've made a pot of coffee,

listened to the gurgling of the machine,

the drips of dark liquid filling the glass carafe,

the silence when the pot is filled,

and think of hand-written notes

jotted down on lined paper

while listening to professors lecture on our dreams

in the silence of student-filled classrooms.

A New Thing

This fall I started the first semester of a two year after-degree program in Education. I consider this the start of a new thing and I welcome it with open arms. Two years, after all, isn't that long. I've had three children and have been pregnant for a combined total of 27 months. If I can endure that, I can surely make it through the next two years of life as an Education student.

And, so, I will start filling the pages of my blog again--this time with renewed purpose and vision. I plan to chronicle my journey towards becoming a teacher. It will be the story of me. I will strive to be brutally honest in this story, no matter how hard it is to be so. Why? Because, I think, if I can at least know my truth, won't that set me free?