i was going to write about last night's discovery that my sister had opened (not opened, burned the candle to find out what was inside of) the root beer bottle full of notes from my fellow cabin 10-ers at GUCI four summers ago. i was going to say how she "accidentally" threw away all of the notes because she didnt realize how important they were. i was going to mention the metaphorical significance of someone else throwing away these memories and how i had been waiting for years to open them and hadn't found the right time. i was going to acknowledge that this led me to find that my journal from middle school was REALLY easily accessible and that she probably could have read that too. i was going to then explain that i spent the half hour after the bottle incident reading my old journal and finding it to be absolutely hilarious, such as the fact that under "my perfect perfect perfect perfect guy" was "doesnt talk during the good parts of movies, even if he's seen them." yep, i actually wrote that.
but then i realized that it wasnt all that interesting, and i just summed up everything that happened anyway.
in other news, im going to be in israel right now in a week.
Thursday, December 27, 2007
Saturday, December 22, 2007
hey lookie! i wrote this!
Parashat Sh’mot (Exodus 1:1 to 6:1): The Importance of Names: Who do we create a future based on history?
By Emily Harry
E-M-I-L-Y. The five letters that my parents thought would most accurately represent my personality. The subject of songs by Simon & Garfunkel, Bowling for Soup and Keller Williams. The name of fifteen other Emily’s in Clark University’s (580 member) Class of 2011.
By now, after having the most popular girl’s name in America every year since 1995, I’m used to my unoriginal label. I’ve already been in and out of the stage since 6th grade when I started spelling my name with a backwards “E” because I was bored with the ordinary way. When I was 3 and my parents asked me what my sister’s name should be, I replied, “Mrs. Butterworth,” in what I’d like to think was a fit of rebellion from my boring and conventional title.
However, sometime in between my acknowledgement that my new sister was named Katherine as opposed to a breakfast condiment and now, my feelings about my name have changed. Learning the history behind why my parents chose this collection of syllables for me has changed my perspective completely.
As Jews of eastern European descent, it is traditional to name a child after someone close to us, either a relative or a friend, who has passed away. In my case, I’m honored to be named after both. My great-great grandmother on my father’s side was named Ellen. Her best friend was named Tess. I, Emily Tess Harry, am named after a friendship—a connection between two people so moving that every time I write my name on the top of my homework, I’m strengthening a multi-generational bond.
That last statement may seem a little melodramatic, but in this week’s Parashat Sh’mot, the importance of names is abundantly clear. In Exodus 1:21, Pharaoh punishes the Israelites by instructing that every son shall be killed and every daughter shall live. By wiping out the name of the father, not only is the Pharaoh damaging the population of the Jewish people in terms of numbers, but he’s damaging the population based on a fundamental principle concerning the importance of names.
The rest of this story has to do with the upbringing of Moses. In the epic burning bush scene, Moses asks God for God’s name and God replies, “ Ehyeh-Asher-Ehyeh,” generally translated as, “I am that I am.” (Exodus 3:14) This is one of the most famous scenes in the Torah, and has provoked a huge assortment of interesting commentary from multiple religions.
It’s incredibly eye opening to look back every once in a while and acknowledge the significance of this concept not only within your family tree, but also within the context of the entire Jewish people.
R E L A T E D Q U E S T I O N S
Why does God reply with “I am that I am” instead of a specific name?
We all learned in Sunday School that there are several acceptable names for God. So why at this time, in the presence of Moses, does God not use any of those names that we have heard before? I tend to believe that this new name creates a state of an eternal being, of timelessness. There has been a lot of debate throughout history as to the tense of the phrase, whether it’s present, present perfect, all that fun stuff. God’s conversation with Moses in this instance is overwhelming with importance, which is reflected in the way the name is stated.
What if my name isn’t based on something biblical or historical?
Obviously not all of us have a popular name that was picked out based on specific people or for specific reasons. Maybe our parents just liked the way it sounded. Any way you look at it though, there’s going to be a background story. There’s no less validity in a name that was picked at random, and if anything, it allows you the opportunity to create your own history from scratch.
T A K I N G A C T I O N
Do some research!
Don’t just sit there; find out something interesting about yourself. Next to your inevitably open Facebook window, create a new tab and type your name into Google. If you’re someone like me who generally gets something unrelated (“…Emily says, “Harry Potter…”), try some of the websites in the resources section to find out about your ancestry.
If you’re feeling really experimental, sit down at breakfast or dinner with your parents and talk about your names. Since they are the ones that chose them, they’re likely to have the answers and anecdotes that you’re looking for. Don’t be afraid to let that information lead to a longer conversation about where their names came from, where your siblings’ names came from, where their pets’ names came from. The possibilities are endless.
Create a name for yourself!
Although it’s common for us to focus on the history of a name, don’t forget about the future. Your name and signature are something that are specifically yours and identify you as an individual. Take pride in that! One of my favorite parts of Judaism is the incredible importance that we place on what our families and our people will take from us after we are no longer here. Exodus 3:16 states, “This is My name forever, and this is My memorial unto all generations.” I’m a carpe diem kind of girl, but I also try to keep in mind that I want to be someone whose great-great granddaughter would be proud to share my name.
i T O R A H L I S H M A H
Which is more important, the name that your parents give you or the name that you earn yourself?
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Emily Harry, currently serving as NFTY MCVP, is a freshman at Clark University where she is studying Communication and Culture. Last year she served as Ohio Valley's North MVP, engaging the region in academically significant activities such as a monster truck rally in Cincinnati, Ohio. She has attended Goldman Union Camp Institute, been an enthusiastic member of the Kutz Camp community as both participant and staff and spent 4 months in Israel on the Eisendrath International Exchange. Emily is excited to have worn her too-big-for-her-face sunglasses in San Diego for the NFTY Leaders Assembly at the URJ Biennial and enjoyed seeing some of you there!
By Emily Harry
E-M-I-L-Y. The five letters that my parents thought would most accurately represent my personality. The subject of songs by Simon & Garfunkel, Bowling for Soup and Keller Williams. The name of fifteen other Emily’s in Clark University’s (580 member) Class of 2011.
By now, after having the most popular girl’s name in America every year since 1995, I’m used to my unoriginal label. I’ve already been in and out of the stage since 6th grade when I started spelling my name with a backwards “E” because I was bored with the ordinary way. When I was 3 and my parents asked me what my sister’s name should be, I replied, “Mrs. Butterworth,” in what I’d like to think was a fit of rebellion from my boring and conventional title.
However, sometime in between my acknowledgement that my new sister was named Katherine as opposed to a breakfast condiment and now, my feelings about my name have changed. Learning the history behind why my parents chose this collection of syllables for me has changed my perspective completely.
As Jews of eastern European descent, it is traditional to name a child after someone close to us, either a relative or a friend, who has passed away. In my case, I’m honored to be named after both. My great-great grandmother on my father’s side was named Ellen. Her best friend was named Tess. I, Emily Tess Harry, am named after a friendship—a connection between two people so moving that every time I write my name on the top of my homework, I’m strengthening a multi-generational bond.
That last statement may seem a little melodramatic, but in this week’s Parashat Sh’mot, the importance of names is abundantly clear. In Exodus 1:21, Pharaoh punishes the Israelites by instructing that every son shall be killed and every daughter shall live. By wiping out the name of the father, not only is the Pharaoh damaging the population of the Jewish people in terms of numbers, but he’s damaging the population based on a fundamental principle concerning the importance of names.
The rest of this story has to do with the upbringing of Moses. In the epic burning bush scene, Moses asks God for God’s name and God replies, “ Ehyeh-Asher-Ehyeh,” generally translated as, “I am that I am.” (Exodus 3:14) This is one of the most famous scenes in the Torah, and has provoked a huge assortment of interesting commentary from multiple religions.
It’s incredibly eye opening to look back every once in a while and acknowledge the significance of this concept not only within your family tree, but also within the context of the entire Jewish people.
R E L A T E D Q U E S T I O N S
Why does God reply with “I am that I am” instead of a specific name?
We all learned in Sunday School that there are several acceptable names for God. So why at this time, in the presence of Moses, does God not use any of those names that we have heard before? I tend to believe that this new name creates a state of an eternal being, of timelessness. There has been a lot of debate throughout history as to the tense of the phrase, whether it’s present, present perfect, all that fun stuff. God’s conversation with Moses in this instance is overwhelming with importance, which is reflected in the way the name is stated.
What if my name isn’t based on something biblical or historical?
Obviously not all of us have a popular name that was picked out based on specific people or for specific reasons. Maybe our parents just liked the way it sounded. Any way you look at it though, there’s going to be a background story. There’s no less validity in a name that was picked at random, and if anything, it allows you the opportunity to create your own history from scratch.
T A K I N G A C T I O N
Do some research!
Don’t just sit there; find out something interesting about yourself. Next to your inevitably open Facebook window, create a new tab and type your name into Google. If you’re someone like me who generally gets something unrelated (“…Emily says, “Harry Potter…”), try some of the websites in the resources section to find out about your ancestry.
If you’re feeling really experimental, sit down at breakfast or dinner with your parents and talk about your names. Since they are the ones that chose them, they’re likely to have the answers and anecdotes that you’re looking for. Don’t be afraid to let that information lead to a longer conversation about where their names came from, where your siblings’ names came from, where their pets’ names came from. The possibilities are endless.
Create a name for yourself!
Although it’s common for us to focus on the history of a name, don’t forget about the future. Your name and signature are something that are specifically yours and identify you as an individual. Take pride in that! One of my favorite parts of Judaism is the incredible importance that we place on what our families and our people will take from us after we are no longer here. Exodus 3:16 states, “This is My name forever, and this is My memorial unto all generations.” I’m a carpe diem kind of girl, but I also try to keep in mind that I want to be someone whose great-great granddaughter would be proud to share my name.
i T O R A H L I S H M A H
Which is more important, the name that your parents give you or the name that you earn yourself?
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Emily Harry, currently serving as NFTY MCVP, is a freshman at Clark University where she is studying Communication and Culture. Last year she served as Ohio Valley's North MVP, engaging the region in academically significant activities such as a monster truck rally in Cincinnati, Ohio. She has attended Goldman Union Camp Institute, been an enthusiastic member of the Kutz Camp community as both participant and staff and spent 4 months in Israel on the Eisendrath International Exchange. Emily is excited to have worn her too-big-for-her-face sunglasses in San Diego for the NFTY Leaders Assembly at the URJ Biennial and enjoyed seeing some of you there!
Sunday, December 16, 2007
the things that i learned this week
1. that spitting off of a balcony and into the infinite abyss of the marriot moat is a bad idea. melanie will find you and hunt you down. so will juan. the colored goldfish crackers in the box do not need to be set free to make friends with the real life goldfish in the water. they just dont.
2. the U.S.S. Bunker Hill consists of a lovely group of people, most of whom have excellent taste in music, enjoy more alcoholic beverages than they can handle, and really, really like zach's jacket.
3. a venti java chip light frap consists of: 300 calories, 7 grams of fat, and 20% of the daily recommended dose of calcium. im going to die young, and im going to die happy. who'd have thought that love could be so caffinated?
4. if lunch is salmon, survey says: desert will be too.
5. knowing three minutes before you go on stage in front of 5,000 people is actually more fun than being prepared for it. especially when you arent wearing real pants.
6. isaac will eventually hug you. you dont think hes going to. but no, of course, you dont give up. you dont get discouraged. you keep trying. he WILL hug you.
7. the v of rj's love my outfit.
8. it wasnt really charlie's fault. nameless british older brother totally was asking for it. asshole.
9. ballet fairy tales are real. except, they dont tell you the whole story. they dont tell you that clara didnt actually find the nutcracker under her christmas tree. oh no. they dont tell you that he actually showed up in an elevator, a sign from yoffie himself, telling us all to have a happy and healthy holiday season.
10. that even though there were times when i thought "why me? how could anyone have possibly wanted me to be the one standing here, pantsless, among these amazing and inspiring people? what were they thinking?" and even though i wasnt as prepared as i wished i was in terms of knowing the schedule or getting people's attention or being as good as i can be, i still consider this a success.
i know that my cheeks hurt from laughing so hard.
2. the U.S.S. Bunker Hill consists of a lovely group of people, most of whom have excellent taste in music, enjoy more alcoholic beverages than they can handle, and really, really like zach's jacket.
3. a venti java chip light frap consists of: 300 calories, 7 grams of fat, and 20% of the daily recommended dose of calcium. im going to die young, and im going to die happy. who'd have thought that love could be so caffinated?
4. if lunch is salmon, survey says: desert will be too.
5. knowing three minutes before you go on stage in front of 5,000 people is actually more fun than being prepared for it. especially when you arent wearing real pants.
6. isaac will eventually hug you. you dont think hes going to. but no, of course, you dont give up. you dont get discouraged. you keep trying. he WILL hug you.
7. the v of rj's love my outfit.
8. it wasnt really charlie's fault. nameless british older brother totally was asking for it. asshole.
9. ballet fairy tales are real. except, they dont tell you the whole story. they dont tell you that clara didnt actually find the nutcracker under her christmas tree. oh no. they dont tell you that he actually showed up in an elevator, a sign from yoffie himself, telling us all to have a happy and healthy holiday season.
10. that even though there were times when i thought "why me? how could anyone have possibly wanted me to be the one standing here, pantsless, among these amazing and inspiring people? what were they thinking?" and even though i wasnt as prepared as i wished i was in terms of knowing the schedule or getting people's attention or being as good as i can be, i still consider this a success.
i know that my cheeks hurt from laughing so hard.
Sunday, December 9, 2007
there are no leaves on these trees.
i've always been one for anticipation. i cant help it. and instead of trying to convey the reasons why in my own words--i'll just steal Jonathan Safran Foer's again:
“I like to see people reunited, maybe that’s a silly thing, but what can I say, I like to see peole run to each other, I like the kissing and the crying, I like the impatience, the stories that the mouths cant tell fast enough, the ears that arent big enough, the eyes that cant take in all of the change, I like the hugging, the bringing together, the end of missing someone”
i'll never be the kind of person who could have everyone i love in one room, all together. not that im saying im this super popular person, but so far ive lead my life in small doses. i'm committed to the things that i do, and the people i do them with. but. you know those dreams where people from different parts of your life all come together and you dont question why your middle school boyfriend and your best friend from israel are suddenly sharing gossip? or when you start laughing at something but, oh wait, none of the people you are with are the people who were there when it happened? yeah. well. welcome to my life.
anyway--the only reason these thoughts are relevant right now is because in the small duffel bag sitting in my dorm room is everything im bringing with me over the course of the next month. im excited. i love knowing that such good things are so soon.
“I like to see people reunited, maybe that’s a silly thing, but what can I say, I like to see peole run to each other, I like the kissing and the crying, I like the impatience, the stories that the mouths cant tell fast enough, the ears that arent big enough, the eyes that cant take in all of the change, I like the hugging, the bringing together, the end of missing someone”
i'll never be the kind of person who could have everyone i love in one room, all together. not that im saying im this super popular person, but so far ive lead my life in small doses. i'm committed to the things that i do, and the people i do them with. but. you know those dreams where people from different parts of your life all come together and you dont question why your middle school boyfriend and your best friend from israel are suddenly sharing gossip? or when you start laughing at something but, oh wait, none of the people you are with are the people who were there when it happened? yeah. well. welcome to my life.
anyway--the only reason these thoughts are relevant right now is because in the small duffel bag sitting in my dorm room is everything im bringing with me over the course of the next month. im excited. i love knowing that such good things are so soon.
Tuesday, December 4, 2007
hey remember that time
i was talking to someone recently, Reading Rainbow style, about how they should read Everything is Illuminated by Jonathan Safran Foer. I've read it at least five times, the pages are starting to get torn and dog-eared. After I showed him the cover via-skype, before I put it back on the shelf, I flipped through it yet again. I always forget certain parts and re-discover them each time I open it. For instance:
Jews Have Six Senses
Touch, taste, sight, smell, hearing...memory. While Gentiles experience and process the world through the traditional senses, and use memory only as a second-order means of interpreting events, for Jews memory is no less primary than the prick of a pin, or its silver glimmer, or the taste of the blood it pulls from the finger. The Jew is pricked by a pin and remembers other pins. It is only by tracing the pinprick back to other pinpricks--when his mother tried to fix his sleeve while his arm was still in it, when his grandfather's fingers fell asleep from strocking his great-grandfather's damp forehead, when Abraham tested the knife point to be sure Isaac would feel no pain--that the Jew is able to know why it hurts.
When a Jew encounters a pin, he asks: What does it remember like?
Its funny, because I remember the exact instance when I heard this passage outside the context of me with a hot cup of tea reading this on my bed. In the banquet hall-type room at the Top Hotel, prepping ourselves for our trip to the various concentration camps and museums and synagogues in the area. Of course the Top Hotel reminds me of Aaron Stern and I telling each other our life stories on the plane on the way to Prague, "The Top Hotel makes me want to cry," he told me. Which reminds me of my most recent plane ride which reminds me of the one im going to be taking next week which reminds me of last Biennial which reminds me of Leslie saying the Mourner's Kaddish instead of the Mishebarach and how she called me, bawling, to apologize which reminds me of how, at GUCI, we used to make fun of the counselor who said "Kaddish" with a really weird emphasis on the wrong part of the word which reminds me of Shabbat walk dates which reminds me of the application sitting on my desk which reminds me of the to-do list thats sitting beside it which...
my own web of pinpricks.
Jews Have Six Senses
Touch, taste, sight, smell, hearing...memory. While Gentiles experience and process the world through the traditional senses, and use memory only as a second-order means of interpreting events, for Jews memory is no less primary than the prick of a pin, or its silver glimmer, or the taste of the blood it pulls from the finger. The Jew is pricked by a pin and remembers other pins. It is only by tracing the pinprick back to other pinpricks--when his mother tried to fix his sleeve while his arm was still in it, when his grandfather's fingers fell asleep from strocking his great-grandfather's damp forehead, when Abraham tested the knife point to be sure Isaac would feel no pain--that the Jew is able to know why it hurts.
When a Jew encounters a pin, he asks: What does it remember like?
Its funny, because I remember the exact instance when I heard this passage outside the context of me with a hot cup of tea reading this on my bed. In the banquet hall-type room at the Top Hotel, prepping ourselves for our trip to the various concentration camps and museums and synagogues in the area. Of course the Top Hotel reminds me of Aaron Stern and I telling each other our life stories on the plane on the way to Prague, "The Top Hotel makes me want to cry," he told me. Which reminds me of my most recent plane ride which reminds me of the one im going to be taking next week which reminds me of last Biennial which reminds me of Leslie saying the Mourner's Kaddish instead of the Mishebarach and how she called me, bawling, to apologize which reminds me of how, at GUCI, we used to make fun of the counselor who said "Kaddish" with a really weird emphasis on the wrong part of the word which reminds me of Shabbat walk dates which reminds me of the application sitting on my desk which reminds me of the to-do list thats sitting beside it which...
my own web of pinpricks.
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