Brutiful...
Now that I have been back home for more than a week, I often get asked how do I feel about my trip.
There is one word to describe the experience. It is borrowed from a favorite blogger/author/activist, Glennon Doyle. She uses the word, "brutiful" to describe life. Doyle says life is both brutal and beautiful, therefore, "brutiful."
"Brutiful" is exactly how I view my experience in Lithuania and Poland. They are two countries filled with beautiful landscapes, culture, and architecture, but whose history was devastatingly brutal toward its Jewish people. Creating that brutality was a choice. A choice that the Jews fought hard to resist. Some survived, and some had no other choice but to perish. For those who survived, they chose not to accept brutality's attempt at erasing their beauty. They became succeeders and overcomers. It was very difficult to learn about the destruction of the Jews, but I was so moved and encouraged to see young Jewish people working hard to rebuild their communities. What incredible resilience and strength in the face of such historical adversity.
Again, just "brutiful."
The privilege of my educator fellowship was made possible by the generous support of the Konover Coppa Fund. I'm so grateful to The Jewish Hartford European Roots Project of the Thomas J. Dodd Research Center which is coordinated in partnership with the University of Hartford's Greenberg Center, the Jewish Historical Society of Greater Hartford, Trinity College, UConn's Center for Judaic Studies and Contemporary Life, Voices of Hope, and the Jewish Federation of Greater Hartford. Additionally, I am also thankful to the Jewish Federation of Western CT, which gave me a generous grant to cover expenses not covered by the Educator Fellowship. I am in awe of the magnanimity of all of these organizations that have created a legacy dedicated to inspiring and changing lives in the classroom. I encourage you to read the educator blogs from our trip by visiting https://jewishhartford.uconn.edu/ and click on travel blogs on the right panel under News & Events.
I am eager to share my experiences with my students and to reconnect with the Jewish students I had last year. I will have to be careful not to bombard future Jewish acquaintances with questions about their family history! I was so fortunate to have had the openness of my Jewish colleagues on this trip who answered all of my questions and provided me so much insight into their culture. I miss them so dearly. That was a unique experience that I will cherish for the rest of my life.
There is one word to describe the experience. It is borrowed from a favorite blogger/author/activist, Glennon Doyle. She uses the word, "brutiful" to describe life. Doyle says life is both brutal and beautiful, therefore, "brutiful."
"Brutiful" is exactly how I view my experience in Lithuania and Poland. They are two countries filled with beautiful landscapes, culture, and architecture, but whose history was devastatingly brutal toward its Jewish people. Creating that brutality was a choice. A choice that the Jews fought hard to resist. Some survived, and some had no other choice but to perish. For those who survived, they chose not to accept brutality's attempt at erasing their beauty. They became succeeders and overcomers. It was very difficult to learn about the destruction of the Jews, but I was so moved and encouraged to see young Jewish people working hard to rebuild their communities. What incredible resilience and strength in the face of such historical adversity.
Again, just "brutiful."
The privilege of my educator fellowship was made possible by the generous support of the Konover Coppa Fund. I'm so grateful to The Jewish Hartford European Roots Project of the Thomas J. Dodd Research Center which is coordinated in partnership with the University of Hartford's Greenberg Center, the Jewish Historical Society of Greater Hartford, Trinity College, UConn's Center for Judaic Studies and Contemporary Life, Voices of Hope, and the Jewish Federation of Greater Hartford. Additionally, I am also thankful to the Jewish Federation of Western CT, which gave me a generous grant to cover expenses not covered by the Educator Fellowship. I am in awe of the magnanimity of all of these organizations that have created a legacy dedicated to inspiring and changing lives in the classroom. I encourage you to read the educator blogs from our trip by visiting https://jewishhartford.uconn.edu/ and click on travel blogs on the right panel under News & Events.
Comments
Post a Comment