L'shanah Tova

This picture was taken at a Jewish Community Center around the 90’s. It was one out of the many pictures taken and saved by the Jewish Historical Society of the Upper Midwest. The only information known about this picture is that it was taken during Rosh Hashanah. It depicts two children blowing into a shofar during Rosh Hashanah, the New Year in the Judaic calendar. A shofar is made out of a ram’s horn and it is blown during Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. The shofar is usually blown one hundred times by the rabbi during Rosh Hashanah service. The sounds that a shofar makes are called Tekiah, Shevarim, and Teruah. Each sound has a different meaning and altogether reminds us about starting anew and to avoid making the same mistakes over again in the year to come.

            During the late 1800’s, Jews in Europe migrated to America to flee from poverty and persecution and a larger number migrated to America again after World War II. They came to America for a chance at a new life and beginning. These children are most likely descendants of these Jews and did not face the same issues as their grandparents did. They, themselves, would consider themselves as locals while their grandparents would consider themselves as exiles. To them, America is thought to be home and the land that their grandparents are from is now just a part of their ancestral history. These Jewish Community Centers are a way of ensuring that these children do not forget their past and pass their knowledge down to their own children.

I chose to analyze this picture because of the connection I have from Judaism, being immersed in the religion throughout elementary school. This picture reminds me mainly of my own childhood and makes me feel reminiscent. Although I am not Jewish myself, I went to a Jewish elementary school and grew up learning all the prayers and Hebrew. It was an integral part of my life and is the foundation to who I am. In the picture, the first thing I noticed was the face of these children blowing the shofar. At first glance, it seems like these children are making the typical noises that the shofar makes but the looks on their faces is a clear sign to me that there is in fact no noise coming out. The determined look in their eyes and the way they are holding the shofar was exactly the same as my classmates’ expressions when they tried to blow the shofar when we learned about it. These children are probably learning about Rosh Hashanah and the traditions of it in a way that can keep a child’s attention. Every Jewish holiday I learned about was in an entertaining interactive way. Where these children are shows that it has been set up for children to go around and learn about Rosh Hashanah. The cut off sign probably indicates that area to be where children can blow a shofar. The bottle behind is also likely to be grape juice as a replacement for wine. Every service is done in a child friendly manner as a way of assimilating and teaching Judaism at a young age. These services are not only a way teaching Judaism but it also is a way of remembering the past.