Lindheimer B’Not Mitzvah: The Photos!

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Sophie’s Bat Mitzvah D’Var Torah Speech

Sophie delivered a reflective and emotional D’Var Torah speech during the Bat Mitzvah.  Here it is:

These past few months I have spent many hours studying my Torah portion, B’hukkotai which is Leviticus Chapter 27. Learning how to chant or sing it correctly and studying the content of the biblical passage.  At this point in the biblical story, the Hebrews have left enslavement in Egypt and are wandering in the desert on their way to Israel.  When they arrive at Mt Sinai, Moses receives instructions from God about many laws regarding: The Shabbat and Holidays and how to treat other people. In my Torah portion, God instructs Moses about the peoples’ obligation to pay taxes.  These taxes will go towards the sanctuary – to help keep the temple operating and establish a better Jewish community.

The laws about taxes are interesting because it takes into consideration each person’s age and gender.   For example, if you were a male aged from 20-60 you had to pay 50 shekels.  A shekel is the currency of the time. A female of the same age would pay 30 shekels.  A baby male between 1 month and 5 years old, would be responsible for 5 shekels (and that’s a lot for a one month old! These were shekels of silver!).  A baby girl between the same ages is responsible for 3 shekels.

Taxes are laws, right? If you don’t follow them you will get punished. I’ve been thinking “What would the world be like if there were no laws?” It would be complete chaos. [PAUSE] There would be lots of crime and murder.  People wouldn’t be safe.  People would be running around and scavenging for food.  So in way, laws, that we might not like at all, are saving the world. They are actually keeping this world sane.

God is keeping us sane by making these laws.

I also thought what it would look like if there were too many laws. We would be stuck in a world with little creativity and personality.  People wouldn’t be able to be themselves – they would be robots.  There would be little choice.  The world would lack fun and new ideas.  Imagination wouldn’t be encouraged so nothing new would happen.

What would a compromise be? Balance. Laws, but not too many of them. Have a life that has rules that will keep us safe, but still have your little adventures. Balance is important in everything, eating, exercising, playing, and learning. You name it.

Now that I am a Bat-Mitzvah I will try to keep balance in my life. One way to help keep balance in the world is to donate money to people in need. There are people in Africa who are desperately poor and suffering from AIDS.  For my Bat- mitzvah I decided to donate to a charitable organization called RED. This organization helps people with AIDS in Africa live a better, healthier life.

I first learned about Red when I was in fifth grade and doing a project on Bono from U2. I read that he was using his fame to draw attention to AIDS in Africa through RED. So, I decided to follow in his footsteps and use the occasion of my Bat-Mitzvah to draw attention to AIDS. My donation to RED will go towards medical supplies and assistance for people who desperately need it. For example, it costs only 40 cents or a little less than 3 RMB for two pills. This medication taken daily will keep AIDS patients alive and healthy.

As you can see, having my Bat Mitzvah has helped me realize that becoming an adult is about gaining responsibility and maturity. I also realized that through studying the Torah portion about taxes, that balance in life is important. I honestly never thought that an ancient discussion of taxes would help me understand the sense of responsibility to one’s community – whether the Jewish community in Beijing or to AIDS patients in Africa! In the end I figured out that when you start paying taxes you gain responsibility and maturity, as you do when you become a Bat-Mitzvah. 

Finally, I would like to say some THANK YOU’S to some important people in my life:

• Mom and Dad-being there for me and teaching me what it means to gain responsibility
• Mia-for being my sister and sharing this amazing achievement in life with me.
• Ada, Alison, Rebecca, Stacy- tutoring me and helping me achieve this feat
• Harold- for coming all the way here from Philadelphia to bat-mitzvah me
• Family that came from US- for spending the time and money that it took for you all to get her, just to witness my coming of age
• Kehillat Members- for giving me the space and support needed for me to achieve this important milestone.

Mia’s Bat Mitzvah D’Var Torah Speech

At her Bat Mitzvah, Mia delivered a heartfelt D’Var Torah speech, with poise and confidence.  Here’s the text of that speech :

I was once told that when you become a Bat Mitzvah, you take complete control over your actions. Well, apparently that’s not the correct way to look at it. Your parents still look after you, and there are always consequences for your actions. My mom and dad explained to me that Bat Mitzvah is “Responsibility over your actions.”

A Bat Mitzvah is a responsibility, and it’s one that comes with age. As I read over my parsha, I noticed that it was all about paying taxes to the synagogue and to the rest of the community. Since taxes and Bat Mitzvot are responsibilities that come with age, we can form a connection between the two. I bet you’re wondering: What responsibilities are included in a Bat Mitzvah? I think that there are three main categories: Community, education and actions.  

The first category, community, is all about participation –  going to services, events, and volunteering. Not just the Jewish community, but the other communities that I belong to: my Beijing friends, Mercer Island friends, Florida friends, and my class. It’s also about the joy of having a community.  Sometimes you have to pitch in to make a community work. For example, the Kehilat Beijing Friday night services are congregation-run. Once when Alison volunteered, but couldn’t make it, my dad jumped in to help. When my dad ended up running late, my mom started the service, but since she didn’t know all of the prayers, I helped her out. This is the responsibility of a community.

The second category, education, is all about studying torah, going to Sunday school, going to school, doing homework, etc. Education is important because it will have huge effects later in life and help determine which career I will have. Education also helps with other things. Education helps you understand how the world works from math to science, English and social studies.

The third category, actions, focuses on helping people. This may mean helping friends with their problems or making time to be there to listen. Action also includes doing Mitzvot, volunteer work, and helping the environment.For my Bat Mitzvah, I am donating to a charity called “Water is Life”. This is an organization that has developed reusable straws with filters. These straws save children in impoverished areas, such as Africa and Haiti from contracting waterborne disease. This charity really appeals to me because I realized I had taken for granted the convenience of on-demand, safe, drinking water.  Then one day I saw a video at my school about this issue. I watched as people from small villages in China drank out of bright red rivers.  Why were these rivers red? Nearby factories were dumping harmful waste into the rivers, and that was making the rivers so polluted that they were actually turning red. The citizens of these villages were getting cancer and dying.

I discussed the video with my mom and she mentioned she had just read about a charity called “Water is Life” that helps address this issue.  I found the organization’s website and learned that they produce “magic straws” which only cost 10 USD, or 68 RMB.  Water, when sipped through these straws, is much cleaner and healthier.  I will be donating 10% of my Bat Mitzvah money to this charity.  If you are interested in learning more about this organization, please talk to me. (PAUSE) So, all in all, both Bat Mitzvah and taxes are responsibilities that come with age, there are three main part of Bat Mitzvah responsibility: Community, Education, and Actions.

Lastly, I would really like to thank everyone who came, for making today so special (well, I might also need to thank China for that). Next, I want to thank my family, Mom for organizing this, Dad for helping with extra Hebrew practice and Sophie for studying with me. I also really appreciate Harold, for coming all this way to Bat Mitzvah my sister and I.  I would also like to thank all my teachers, Alison Klayman, Rebecca Belkin, Bat-Sheva, Ada Keren, Mr. Brown, and Mrs. Hearn, who have really supported me throughout the process of preparing for this moment. I would also like to thank my friends (you know who you are) who are always there to help. Another big thank-you goes to Brocha and the Bat Mitzvah club, for making my Bat Mitzvah study fun. Finally, I would like to thank everyone who traveled so far to come and celebrate this important occasion with me. It is really a pleasure to have you here.

THANK YOU TO EVERYONE FOR COMING! SHABAT SHALOM!!!!!!!!

Beijing B’Not Mitzvah: Cocktail Edition

We have been getting overwhelming interest in the cocktails from the B’Not Mitzvah.  Custom created for the event, with creative styling input from Tomer ("Baron Von”) Rothschild, Bronwen Casper, and Scott & Cherie Emigh, they were quite a hit.  Beware:  These are large party sized recipes.  Enjoy!

Signature Cocktail 1:  Beijing Bellini

Ingredients

• 2 bottles Vodka
• 2 bottles Lychee Liqueur
• 2 cartons (1 liter each) strawberry juice
• 4 cartons (1 liter each) lemonade
• 2 bottles of Champagne

Preparation

1. Mix all ingredients together except champagne and keep chilled
2. Just before serving ad bottle of champagne and ice
3. Shake well
4. Strain into a chilled champagne flute
5. Garnish with purple orchid and a strawberry

Lauren is drinking a Beijing Bellini

Signature Cocktail 2: Peking Pimm’s Cup

Ingredients

• 6 bottles Pimm’s No. 1 Cup
• 2 bottles dry gin
• 4 boxes (1 liter each) lemonade
• 12 cans of Ginger Ale
• Slices of lemon, limes, & cucumbers
• 2 cups chopped fresh mint

Preparation:

1. Mix all ingredients together except ginger ale and keep chilled
2. Just before serving add ginger ale
3. Mix well and pour into old fashioned glass over ice cubes
4. Garnish with a sprig of mint and a long spear of cucumber

Marty is drinking the Peking Pimm’s Cup

School Bus Controversy

This morning we had some minor excitement as the kids were heading off to school.  They went downstairs at 7:10 AM as usual, but Sophie called me at about 7:25 AM and told me that they bus hadn’t left yet due to some dispute with the police.

The issue:  The bus had nicked the edge of the fountain in the driveway of our building, and a tile was broken.  According to the kids, it was broken already, but the crack Park Apartments staff was having none of it.  They prevented the bus from leaving until the bus driver signed a form admitting guilt.  He refused, and a standoff ensued.

I bundled all seven kids from the bus into the car with Mr. Ma and sent them off to school.  Meanwhile the police arrived and coerced encouraged the driver to sign a handwritten paper.  I took the opportunity to let the staff know that they made a big deal out of a small one, leading the kids to be late to school and me to lose my ride to work.  Unfortunately, I tried to do this in Chinese and instead said something like “the monkey is in the grotto”, but they seemed to get the point.

The broken tile

Bus (not taking kids to school)

I confess!

The B’Not Mitzvah

Wow – the B’not Mitzvah of Mia and Sophie was a complete success.  Both girls handled themselves with poise and maturity, our guest Cantor Harold Messinger brought music and joy to the observance, and the party on the Great Wall of China completely rocked.  We are still all buzzing from the satisfaction and fun of the day.

Lots more – photos, observations, videos – are on their way.  In the meantime, take a look at the retrospective video we showed at the evening reception.  Unfortunately, Youtube has removed the fun music.

Home Travels, New Year 2010

We had an extended visit to US over late December and January this year, with 11 days in Seattle area plus 3 days in Los Angeles at the end.  It was a lot of moving around, but we had some fun times seeing old friends and relatives and some fun activities.

We arrived on Christmas eve and stayed in downtown Seattle at the great Hotel Andra, right above Lola and across from Dahlia Lounge, two of our favorite restaurants.  The kids got to visit with best friends; Mia hung out with Allie on Mercer Island and Sophie hung out with Marri, her best friend from year 1 in China who moved back to Seattle.  We also reconnected with great friends and caught up with shopping and movies (Christmas day was Chipmunks movie for the kids while we saw “Up in the Air” with George Clooney).

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Next stop was the Chez Muscott.  Our colleagues in China, Tim and Kristen, have moved back and we got to stay with them in Ronald, WA, east of the Cascades.  They introduced us to snowmobiling, which our kids took to like ducks to water.  Lauren and I enjoyed the relaxed cabin lifestyle of leisurely breakfasts, board games, and movies on DVD.  This is the kind of thing we simply don’t get to do in China.

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From there, it was up to Bellingham up to see Elinor and Shelly, my aunt and uncle.  We celebrated new year’s eve together with a nice bottle of champagne and some excellent Thai food.  Elinor’s recovering very well from her broken hip.  We even got Shelly to his first cinema movie in years, Sherlock Holmes. 

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Then, back out to the mountains to another cabin, Chez Zeldes with Darrel and Susan.  The drive there was made interesting by a winter storm that looked like lots of rain for the bulk of the 3 hour drive, but turned into heavy, wet snow over the Snoqualmie Pass.  Our rental Hyundai Sonata did well and we drafted behind a snow plow for the last few miles.  The girls enjoyed the snowbound hottub, while the parents cooked and ate great food.  The kids got to go snow tubing at Snoqualmie and, again, we enjoyed the relaxed mode of cabin lifestyle.

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We had a few more days left in Seattle which we spent with more visits for the kids and us with friends, and finishing some shopping and doctor’s visits.  Mia tried to visit Islander Middle School with Allie but was shut down by the principal (no visitors policy).

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Last, we jetted down to Los Angeles to see Lauren’s uncle Phil and aunt Iris. Lauren got some great shots of Mt. Rainier from our flight to LA. We also were craving the sunshine and warmth of southern California.  Iris and Phil were great hosts as always.  We stayed in a motel right at the center of Santa Monica which looked like it was out of LA Confidential, complete with the central swimming pool and 60s vibe.  We hit Universal Studios with the kids and strolled the Venice Beach boardwalk, where we saw a medical marijuana store.  Sophie even did some boogie boarding in the cold Pacific waters.   By the time we left, we had all come to the conclusion that it’s one more place we can put on our list of places we would like to live!

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We realized how spoiled we are when our flight home lacked the usual in-seat entertainment we so crave.  11.5 hours of utter boredom ensued. We got right back on the winter theme with a chair ride across frozen Houhai Lake in Beijing. Now we’re recovered from jetlag, already looking forward to our next trips!

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Cambodia/Laos – Lauren’s Photoessay

I could write a long boring blog about our trip to Cambodia and Laos over October break.  However, Lauren’s excellent captioning on the photos do a much better job.  Check out the slideshow.

Beyonce is Pretty

Tom Melcher and I chaperoned 8 Dulwich 8th and 9th graders plus Mia and Sophie to the Beyonce concert last Friday night at Wukesong Basketball Arena, where the Olympic basketball games were held.

Beyonce is very talented, and not too hard on the eyes either.  She did almost all her hits, but didn’t get to do “Halo”.  The highlight was definitely “Single Ladies”, which included a compilation of Youtube videos of people (such as President Obama) doing the dance.  Despite the cheers of the fans, she didn’t come out for an encore, probably due to time restrictions.  Tom and I were glad that the censors allowed her to do the full show, including the outfits.

Neither Tom or I were able to completely fulfill our mission of mortifying our kids.  Maybe we were too well-behaved!

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First Snow!

Sunday November 1, day after Halloween.  From Sophie’s bedroom window, you can see the Chaoyang Golf Course and Boya Garden apartment building, all with a thin layer of snow!

 

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