post a short biography.

zipporah

Thu, Jan 13 2011, 5:34 pm

The first time I remember thinking about Judaism was when my dad pointed out a synagogue to me that we passed on the way to school. My dad is a Jehovah's Witness, and he wanted me to know where to go when the end times came if he couldn't get off of work to pick me up. He never gave details about the secret password I was supposed to use that would make them take me in, though... I've never quite forgiven him for that.

On another trip (this time from school back home) he decided we should investigate the stately white building that loomed over the freeway and had the word Maccabees carved into the granite roof over the steep stairs leading up to the entryway. Our footsteps echoed on the polished marble floor as we approached the receptionist.

"Is this some sort of history museum," my father asked in hushed tones?

"Ummm..." She chewed on the end of her ballpoint thoughtfully. "We sell insurance..."

Crestfallen, we returned back to the car. But my dad the hebephile was only mildly discouraged and merely bided his time til the next opportunity.

Even though I was adopted in infancy, I sometimes wonder if through some weird set of circumstances I had managed to inherit my love of Judaism from my dad. As I grew into adolescence , I soon learned that any mention of a bar or bat mitzvah from one of my classmates would begin the same lengthy preparations: my father would call my friend's parents asking about the time of the ceremony and whether it was OK if he came with me, each time clarifying into the shocked silence that he did mean the actual service at shul, not just the expected appearance at the after party. We would arrive when the shul doors opened and stay til the final amen... and considering that most of my friends were reform and conservative, this often meant I heard more of the service than the actual bar mitzvah boy. I was only saved from this by the aging-out process, though my dad did point out nice young Jewish girls he thought I should befriend in the grades below me for a few more years.

- to be continued