Liana Hitts
April 26, 2015
To be honest, the journey towards becoming a Bat Mitzvah was a difficult one. I’m not going to sugar coat it and say it was awesome and amazing and I recommend it to everyone. It was hard. There were times when I wanted to give up and quit but I knew that if I kept going I’d end up being proud of myself later on. And I must say I am proud. I made many sacrifices throughout to make time for writing and I can now see the payoff.
I really do not like writing. I know, I know I’ll wait for the jaws to drop. Most of you know that my father is a journalist. Writing is the basis of his life but… not so for me. However, this process has helped me become a better writer. Writing all these essays has built up my stamina for writing long papers. I also became a better speaker thanks to the countless hours of rehearsing the essays where my mouth got dry from reading so much. Especially the major project!
I have been attending KidSchool at the congregation for the past two years. When we joined the congregation, one of the major factors was the Bar/Bat Mitzvah program. Although many times there were other things I’d rather be doing, I knew it was important to my parents and I knew it was important to my Bat Mitzvah to attend school. Both of my parents felt it was important for me to connect with my Jewish culture and heritage. It is nice to belong to a Jewish community.
Going through with this process was a huge commitment. I might have been at my friend’s house, just then to get a phone call from my mother saying I had to finish editing my major project. Oh great! Stop killing my fun! But I knew that I had to make time and complete my assignments. Much like school actually. So this process has enhanced my abilities at school as well, which will help me in the future.
In conclusion, I knew from the beginning that the process would be difficult. I wasn’t aware of all the time and effort that would be required but in the end I think it was worth it. I know that if I had dropped out of the program I would’ve deeply regretted it. I am proud of my heritage and of myself for completing the journey to become a Bat Mitzvah.
I would like to give a thank you to my parents for helping me with the difficult process. I would also like to thank my mentor, Renee for leading me through and answering my questions. Also thank you to Rabbi Peter and Isabel for assisting me and my family with much of the process. And thank you to our wonderful musicians Aram and Eric for performing all of my musical choices. Thank you everyone for joining me on such a big day. Thank you for being a part of my life.
