Today...

Today was hard. I cried a lot. My Dad mentioned to me in passing that this Friday will be his last Shabbos in Bakersfield... I won't be here. I'll be in Seattle visiting my best friend before I leave.

My Dad. My Dad is the most unique and wonderful man I know. He is smart, funny (at least to him, he is) and deeply spiritual and religious. It's amazing to me how being Jewish... spiritual and religious is like a plague here. My Mom said it for the years she lived here, and I truly didn't feel that pain until I went to Israel and saw what it was like on "the other side". My own family and loved ones don't even see the love of Judaism and our heritage that my Dad and his beautiful wife has. So I'm going to say it...

We... are... Jewish. We have been Jewish for generations, for eternity, and beyond. We have a deep seeded history in this world and this plane of existence. Why would we not explore and learn about ourselves. We live in a society that preaches equality and coexistence (which I whole hearted believe in), but does that mean that we have to deny who we are as a people and what we believe?

I have learned so much living with my Dad and Netty Rae since October. I have learned the true meaning of love, patience, resilience, determination, and integrity. I have learned who I want to be and how I want to live through the example and relationship that they have with each other and their community. My father gives of himself as a man, a person, a father, and a Rabbi. He is a teacher and a leader. He is wildly unique and completely real. A real person with real life experiences. Only trying to broaden people horizons and show the deeper meaning to what he believes in.

Is this comfortable or easy? No. Doing the right thing isn't always easy. Having inner strength and integrity can be heartbreaking and painstaking. What's the final reward? Who knows. It's within our capabilities as individuals with free will to be the best people we can be here and now. It is our duty as human beings to love each other unconditionally and without hesitations.

I have learned to do that from the example they (Dad & Danette) have set for me. I have learned to be a better Jew without compromising myself or beliefs, but instead with the support I needed. I look forward to attending Jewel this summer and learning more about myself as a Jewish woman... not just a woman, but a Jewish woman and all that encompasses.

I feel like this has been a very therapeutic stream of consciousness for me, so I'm not going to go back to re read or proof read.

Dad... Danette... thank you for being so wonderfully you. Thank you for helping me to remember how to pray and to realize that there was truly someone listening. I believe in a Divine Presence again. Thank you.