When Wendy went to Kinnus

When I joined Kadima six years ago, it wasn’t because of the Jewish community, or the Jewish teens, it was because I had friends there. It was something “cool” to do on Saturday nights and I got to hang out with High School students. When I went to Kadima Kinnus as an 8th grader and Kinnus Freshman year, it wasn’t to enhance my Judaism or spend a Jewish weekend. In fact I thought the prayers were long and boring. But three weeks ago, as Kinnus was approaching and I was getting excited to see my friends, I found myself just as excited to spend the weekend praying, saying the blessings before meals, and discussing Judaism. I looked forward to the spirited traditional USY service and the less traditional options like Shabbas friendly Arts and Crafts Schacharit where my friends and I made play-dough sculptures of passages from the Siddur.  I looked forward to a restful Shabbas of eating, praying, eating, napping, praying and eating. I was excited to fuse my Jewish and my Secular identities.
Being a Jewish public school student is tough. In many situations, I am forced to make a choice between the two. I allow my Shabbat to be taken away from me for four months every year so I can participate in my other passion, playing the marimba in marching band. You don’t realize what you have until its taken away. Those four months without Shabbat family dinner are hard, but so quickly it becomes routine to skip Shabbat, and I start doing it when I don’t have to. I forget what Shabbat is like, I forget how much I like having a day to sit in my house, relax and reflect. I become caught up in my American life, and the social circuit, and life becomes more stressful.

Kinnus is a place where I am forced to “act Jewish” and I do so gladly. I like praying three times a day and saying the birkat, something I don’t, but wish I did, at home. I liked not separating my Jewish and my regular life. I liked using Jewish terms in my regular conversations and I liked speaking holy Hebrew words with a temporary Jewish community of my peers from across the country and then thirty minutes later going to a typical American dance where we party to Miley Cyrus, the Beatles, and Jay-Z. Where else could something as ridiculous as that happen? The weekend reminded me how much I missed my friends, but also how much I missed my Judaism.

Just like the Maccabees, I fight to practice my Judasim. Is giving up a day a week too hard for me or for anyone else in this room? Like everyone else, I struggle with my Jewish identity, although I am not religiously observant in my life now, I realize that Judaism is important to me, and something I don’t want to lose. Kinnus especially caused me to evaluate my identity even more so after a Dvar Torah by Mark Gulner, the Regional director, in which he asked us, Jewish youth, to try and become better Jewish adults. At Rosh Hashanah Rabbi Mueller asked every one of you here to do the same, and say the Shema morning and night. How many of you did that? Starting last week, I did.
Thank you so much for supporting BSKI’s USY, and allowing and helping my fellow BSKI USYERS and me attend these conventions. If your son/daughter/niece/ family friend has never attended a convention, I strongly urge you, to urge them to go.  If you or they have any questions about the amazing programming Kinnus, including Beatles themed shiurim (lessons), an Israeli-Arab conflict resolution simulation, Shtiky situation, an improv group, and a Northwoods concert, or any USY programming please ask me. I don’t know what you will be doing tonight, but I will be with my St. Louis USY friends at the Tri-Chapter Hanukkah Party, right here at BSKI thanks to your
continued support.

Hanukkah Sameach
and
Shabbat Shalom.

Wendy Low

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