First in a series
By Eileen Wingard
LA JOLLA, California — Twelve student poets shared their original poetry for an audience of proud and beaming parents, teachers and friends at the opening program of Jewish Poets—Jewish Voices in the Astor Judaica Library of the Lawrence Family JCC, Tuesday evening, October 16.
The audience included Rabbi Lenore Bohm, Director of Jewish Education at the JCC; Rabbi Scott Meltzer, spiritual leader of Congregation Ohr Shalom and parent of San Diego Jewish Academy Middle School student Maital Meltzer; Ellen Fox, Director of Temple Solel’s Religious School, who brought two students; Sara Hansen, San Diego Jewish Academy High School English Teacher with four students; and Stacey Goldblatt , Jewish Academy Middle School Creative Writing Teacher with five students. In addition, Don and Nancy Harrison, publishers of the online newspaper, San Diego Jewish World, were present, proud grandparents of Shor Masori, a senior in high school and a student at the Community Jewish High School.
It was requested, although not required, that the students write about the Parshot of the Torah, to relate to the Parsha Poster Exhibit in the JCC’s Gotthelf Gallery. Several did, including Sammy Sisitsky and Lauren Mathios of Temple Solel and Maya Silberstein and Rena Novam of the San Diego Jewish Academy High School. Other poems were about diverse topics, such as Natalia Alchalel’s poem about her beloved pet, Liam Rosenberg’s reminiscences about his grandmother’s experiences in England during WWII, Bella Silberstein’s Feelings, and Masori’s poem about letters from an Oklahoma soldier, serving in Vietnam.
Melanie Rubin, JCC staff, welcomed the attendees. Joy Heitzmann served as moderator. During the half hour of open microphone, she shared a pair of her Haikus. Two other talented members of the Jewish Poets—Jewish Voices committee, Sara Appel-Lennon and Michael Horvitz, read their recent poems.
Following are four student poems on Jewish religious topics.
L’DOR V’DOR (inspired by Parsha Masei) by Sammy Sisitsky
(pre Bat Mitzvah, Temple Solel Religious School)
Life passing from generation to generation
Acquiring ideas and innovations
New ways of thinking
Progressing
Changing
Valuing differences
Aspiring for full equality
Societies building positive impacts
And hoping for a better world.
MATTOT-MASEI IN THE MODERN DAY by Lauren Mathios
(pre Bat Mitzvah, Temple Solel Religious School)
Excerpt
Equality an issue then, an issue now
In Mattot-Masei, we call it a vow
A step forward, a step back
Women today are empowered, but we need to stay on track
It starts today, tomorrow and everyday
Ready to speak, when it’s our time to have a say
It stands with me and my generation
Then, our voice spreads across the nation
GENESIS by Rena Novom
(9th grade, SD Jewish Academy High School)
Excerpt
In the beginning,
There was nothing.
A dark infinity of absolute nothingness
That was devoid of color and life.
It was a yawning void,
Dark,
Empty,
Silent.
Then,
Out of that vacant darkness,
Came a light.
There came a light bright and beautiful,
Filling the infinite dark void
With a shining light.
It was luminescent,
Bright,
Full,
Twinkling.
Again,
Life came to the earth,
Animals roamed the land,
Surviving in their regions.
And we were created,
The Creator’s most treasured creatures.
Mankind roamed the earth,
Alongside the animals.
Everything was full of life,
Breathing,
Dreaming,
Being.
TO BE A GOOD JEW (inspired by Vayikra) by Maya Silberstein
(10th grade, SD Jewish Academy High School)
Excerpt
oh what to do, to be a good jew
in my blue dress on
a warm spring day in 2015,
i promised in front of the torah to
perform the deeds that
would make me a responsible
jewish adult
i made a promise to keep milk and meat plates
separate, come to youth
group, know the words to
hatikva, and study hard in
hebrew class
that’s all that I thought I
needed to do, in order
to be a good jew
what more could I have needed to do?
but this year, I thought
to myself: what is the
meaning of all of it?
there has, just has to
Be more to this
What to do, to be a good jew?
And there it was,
On the wall, printed on
A green piece of construction
Paper in purple ink
“lo ta’amod al dam rei’echa,” (vayikra 16:19)
do not stand on the blood of your neighbor,
or as more commonly interpreted,
do not stand idly by
like a jammed tape finally
unwinding, like the last
puzzle piece clicking into
it’s spot, in that moment somehow I knew
that there is more
on the ninth of av while
our temple, the holiest
place in the world to us
was destroyed, the world
watched
when six million of our people
and seven million others were
forced into gas chambers for
sheerly existing, the world stood
by and watched silently
what to do, to be a good jew?
the thorns that are
genocide, racism and sexism
still continue to pollute the roses
of society, and yet people
still stand idly by and watch
so, what to do to be a good jew?
Why did you email buzzfeed after they published that article that was biased against israel, maya? it’s not that big of a deal
LO
Why did you give that homeless man a dollar, maya, he’ll probably just use it for drugs.
TA’AMOD
Oh come on, why do you want to invite them, maya? they’re weird
AL
You seriously don’t eat any meat, maya, not even a little? it’s already dead
DAM
Why do you want to enlist after high school, maya? everyone else just goes to college
REAiCH
What to do to be a good jew:
Lo ta’amod al dam reaich
Do not stand idly by
*
Wingard is a freelance writer specializing in coverage of the arts. She may be contacted via eileen.wingard@sdjewishworld.com