L'Chaim April 2015 by L'Chaim San Diego Magazine

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L’CHAIM SAN DIEGO MAGAZINE • APRIL 2015

April 2015 www.lchaimmagazine.com

Features 12 A Thousand Words Nancy Retter, Educator RENAISSANCE VILLAGE ACADEMY

16 YOM HASHOAH: REMEMBERANCE READINGS: Commemorate the Holocaust with Jewish Theatre

19 Tradition: Laying Stones on Graves 20 Healing the Broken-Hearted 22 FOOD: Jewish Mexico It’s Not an Oxymoron

24 EDUCATION: Part-Time Jewish Education

26 Saving Informal Jewish Education 30 The Jewish Comic Book King 32 Feeling Blue, in the Biblical Sense

Headlines 36 News to Know Now Columns

6 My Comic Relief 8 What Jew Mean 10 Of the Book 28 Salon Shalom 34 Mazel & Mishagoss

PUBLISHERS Diane Benaroya & Laurie Miller

L’CHAIM SAN DIEGO, LLC (858) 776-0550 San Diego, CA 92127

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Alanna Maya

EDITORIAL editor@lchaimmagazine.com

CREATIVE DIRECTOR Laurie Miller

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CONTRIBUTORS Yigal Adato, Daniel Bortz, Aimee Greenberg, Sofie Kinnefors, Stephanie Lewis, Rita Mailheau, Salomon Maya, Sharon Rapoport

ADVERTISING & SALES Diane Benaroya (dianeb@ lchaimmagazine.com), Ally Ginzberg (chub1@sbcglobal.net), Sharon Rapoport (sharonbux@gmail.com)

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SUBSCRIBE ONLINE: www.lchaimmagazine.com/shop Copyright ©2015 L’Chaim San Diego LLC. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permission requests, write to the publisher, addressed “Attention: Permissions Coordinator” to: publisher@lchaimmagazine.com Published in San Diego, CA • www.lchaimmagazine.com lchaimmagazine

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RANDOM RANTS l BY SALOMON MAYA

comic relief I’m playing the Kardashian game

s I was getting ready for work today, I noticed I had numerous updates available on my iPhone. As I was waiting for all of the apps to refresh, I started perusing the AppStore, and found the brand new Kim Kardashian game by Glu Games. Now, I have not (and will not) indulge in the reality show, so I truly only know Mrs. Kardashian-West in name/image alone. So I decided to download this game just to see how this “starlette” (and I use that title lightly) is trying to market herself. As soon as the download was complete, Kim welcomed lil’ ol’ me to her game. After some pleasantries, I found myself on a start menu. Typical “club like” techno music blared from my phone and the start screen showed (who I believe to be) a Kim avatar, sans her voluptuous curves, standing on a red carpet as paparazzi take endless pictures of her. The other thing that jumped out at me was I had an option to customize the game,

L’CHAIM SAN DIEGO MAGAZINE • APRIL 2015

but the geniuses at the Kimye camp decided to spell the word “kustomize.” (I should stop now, throw my phone into the nearest lake and move to Amish country but I press on.) I have the option of choosing a male or female avatar, and as this game, I would believe, is marketed to young girls I decided to play as a female. The screen turned black and the following phrase was seen: “before you were famous…you were new to Hollywood.” Oy. On the next screen, I was suddenly in a store with three mannequins and another avatar waiting for me to interact with him. I couldn’t wait any longer and pressed the yellow exclamation point coming out of his mouth. His name is Luther Alexander and he quickly tells me I’m new (so looks like I’m working at the store) and he has a prior appointment in Beverly Hills and needs me to lock up before I leave. I only had one choice, “okay.” Before he leaves though, he tells me

he wants me to straighten up the shirt on the mannequin; it’s crooked. Again, all I can say is “okay.” An option to “straighten shirt” popped up, and I clicked “yes.” Boom! Just like that, I have straightened the shirt and receive money! I straightened one more shirt, locked the register and got more money. Level passed. Upon leaving the store, I met the one and only KIM KARDASHIAN, who asked (in her real voice mind you) if my store was still open. I now had three options to respond: “Still Open,” “Just closing” or “Kim Kardashian!” (I kid you not that is the third option). Of course I chose the latter, Kim apologized for not introducing herself and I got money. I just got paid for recognizing Kim Kardashian on her own game. At this point, I shut the game down and quietly locked myself in my office. I turned on some Beethoven as I read Immanuel Kant, desperately trying to regenerate the millions of neurons I most definitely destroyed in the past two minutes. I don’t know if I’ll return to the game. It’ll be there, looking at me, waiting for me to return. I might come back…see what happens to my relationship with Kim as she obviously tries to come into a closed store. Because c’mon, she’s Kim Kardashian, and no one closes a store on Kimye. Maybe more adventures are in store for my nameless protagonist; maybe we’ll get a Kanye West cameo. One can only hope as I bravely play the Kim Kardashian game. SALOMON MAYA IS A LOCAL ACTOR AND PLAYWRIGHT. FOLLOW HIM ON TWITTER @SALOMAYA

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SPIRITUAL l BY YIGAL ADATO

what

jew mean

How to stop being a lousy listener have at this moment are there and will go away when they decide; not when you do. 3. ASK QUESTIONS

When talking with someone either in a heated discussion or just during the course of a friendly conversation, make sure to ask questions and repeat what they said so that you fully understand what they are trying to convey. Don’t assume you know, and worse, don’t tell them what they are trying to get across. Ask questions so that both parties can come to an agreement that fits their needs.

y journey to learning the art of good listening started when I got married. I knew I wasn’t good at it and everyone always told me that communication is key in a relationship so I decided to polish up on my skills. I took course after course, read books and many taught the same concepts, but it was easier said than done. I would go out into the real world and think I had mastered the art of listening, but would still get confused or even get into arguments with loved ones and friends. You see; listening is an art form that one has to continuously work on. It’s like going to the gym or eating healthy; you have to do it repeatedly to achieve your goals. You have to learn new methods and ways to listen so that you don’t break the cycle and ensure that you continue your good habits. If you think you are a good listener, ask around and find out what others think. We tend to grade ourselves better than others in these instances. Here are four tips on what not to do when listening.

L’CHAIM SAN DIEGO MAGAZINE • APRIL 2015

4. TAKE A MOMENT 1. STOP ASSUMING

Day in and day out we communicate with the same people over and over—our spouses, families, coworkers and even the same hairdresser. Because we speak with these people so often, we unconsciously create a preconceived notion of the message they are going to try to communicate to us. This is a huge mistake. Do not think you already know what someone is going to say or better yet—what they “mean.” I am sure you have heard a friend complain that their spouse or loved one said one thing but really meant another. Listen openly and authentically and that way you will actually hear the other person’s message. 2. DON’T USE YOUR FEELINGS TO DEFEND

When a person comes to speak to us, they often will tell us how they are feeling or how we made them feel. In defense, we tell them our side to assert our importance to the conversation. Remember one important thing: You have the ability to impact someone’s future feelings, but the ones they

In the heat of the moment people are known to say things they will regret. So when listening, pause and really soak in what is being said. Concentrate on how it makes you feel and how your response might make this a better or worse situation. If it makes it better then go for it, if not; maybe ask the person for some time to come back with an answer. We all want to be heard and this way the other person knows you are taking their comments seriously and want to do the best to listen and resolve whatever the situation is. My journey into listening still continues because every person I meet communicates differently, but the goal of mastering my listening skills still stands. I may not reach full mastery, but what’s important is that we work to improve on ourselves daily. Take this opportunity to listen to others, but most importantly, don’t forget to listen to yourself. CONNECT WITH YIGAL ON TWITTER @YIGALADATO.

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TORAH l BY RABBI DANIEL BORTZ

of the

book

Two thoughts on Passover

nce, just before Passover, a lady approached the great Rabbi Yosef Dov Soloveitchik with a strange question. She asked to know whether one could use milk instead of wine for the four cups of the Seder, since she simply could not afford the wine. He responded by giving her a large sum of money. One of the Rabbi’s students asked him, “I understand that you gave her money because she can’t afford the wine, but why so much?” The Rabbi explained, “If she wants to drink milk at the Seder, it is obvious she has no meat for Passover” (since the laws of kashrut forbid the mixing of milk and meat). “So I gave her enough to buy both wine and meat for the entire holiday.” At the core of the Passover Seder is the Haggadah, which focuses on a discussion of four sons, opening with the question of the wise son. Every aspect of the Haggadah and Seder has deep meaning. What does it mean to be wise? As we see with the Rabbi in the story, it’s not enough to be smart; we have to be perceptive. In yeshiva, I was always taught: “If you want to answer someone, to teach them, don’t focus on only answering their question. That may not be the real issue 10

L’CHAIM SAN DIEGO MAGAZINE • APRIL 2015

bothering them. Answer the questioner.” We have to have a sensitive ear to hear what people are saying behind their words. This enables us to perceive the speaker’s true needs and respond accordingly with compassion. This is true wisdom. Why is there such an emphasis in Judaism on the exodus form Egypt? We mention it throughout our prayers, three times a day, as well as on Kiddush Friday night. What was so momentous and relevant about it that causes us to recount it every day? When the Jewish people left Egypt, this wasn’t only a people leaving a physical location in North Africa. The Mystics explain that the leaving of Egypt effected an eternal spiritual change that forever gave us the ability to leave our inner Egypt. “Egypt” in Hebrew is Mitzrayim; “limitations” in Hebrew is Maytzarim, spelled the same and thus intertwined. Each of us has areas of Egypt—of limitation—that stop us from being the best we can be. For some, it’s sadness, anger and laziness. For others, it’s self esteem, impatience, addiction or a spiritual numbness. The goal is to transcend our internal Egypt every day.

But on Passover, especially during the Seder, a unique energy exists, one that empowers us more than ever before to transcend our personal limitations, leaping over our internal obstacles to reach our incredible potential. Every year we leave our Egypt further behind than before. This is made easier on Passover because of the hametz (leaven) that we have eliminated from our lives, and replaced with matzah. Like bread that is puffed up, hametz represents ego and arrogance. The flat matzah represents humility. What is G-d’s reaction to a self centered, egotistical person? “He and I cannot dwell together in the world” (Talmud Sotah 5a based on Psalms 101:5). We need to make room for G-d and others. Through this elimination of ego and openness to change, let us take advantage of this time to grow spiritually, as we leap to greater levels than ever before. Chag Sameach! RABBI DANIEL BORTZ IS THE DIRECTOR OF JTEEN SAN DIEGO, JTEENSD.COM. FOR INFORMATION ON CLASSES, CONTACT HIM AT DANIELBORTZ@GMAIL.COM.

L’CHAIM l BY ALANNA MAYA

L’CHAIM SAN DIEGO MAGAZINE • APRIL 2015

L’CHAIM

A THOUSAND

WORDS Nancy Retter, Renaissance Village Academy

A teacher at RVA works with students in the garden, just one of the learning opportunities at Renaissance Village Academy

ancy Retter seems to have been destined to become an educator. “Being a teacher seems to be a genetic disorder in my family. On my mother’s side, all of my grand aunts were teachers, my mother was a teacher, and of my five brothers and sisters … we all taught somewhere even if it wasn’t in an academic setting. My father was a teacher, and on his side of the family there are quite a few more teachers, so there seems to be a gene for it, and I haven’t found a cure,” she says, jokingly. The founder and director of Renaissance Village Academy, Retter has spent most of her life in education. She taught in the public school system for nearly 20 years, all the while dreaming up her version of the perfect school. She opened the doors

of RVA in the summer of 2010. The name, Renaissance Village Academy, took her about three years to come up with; and she says each word has meaning to her and to the concept of her school, designed “for the gifted and profoundly gifted.” Her pattern of success is evident in the numerous testimonials she has received from grateful parents who have seen their children blossom in her classroom and beg for more time at school. “What I am good at is figuring out why the kids [in my classes] don’t understand something, and tracing it back to its root, or origin to find why they are having this trouble,” she says. L’CHAIM MAGAZINE: DO YOU FIND PATTERNS IN THE STUDENTS YOU TEACH

THAT TEND TO HAVE TROUBLE WITH DIFFERENT SUBJECTS? NANCY RETTER: There are a few overall

themes. One is the real emphasis on how something should be done; for instance in math, many teachers are really big on having kids recite things like multiplication; but they don’t teach the why. And because students are not taught the why, if they forget the pattern or mix up things, they can’t re-create it themselves. One of my mantras is “the rules don’t change in math;” which isn’t true at the higher levels, but at the levels I teach, it is. So, say in 2nd grade, they introduce one digit by one digit multiplication, and then two digits multiplied by two digits, and the kids get it and then they move on. The problem is, in the next level, when they start WWW.LCHAIMMAGAZINE.COM

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Check it out RVASchool.org

with multiplying one digit by three digits, and the child, not unreasonably, assumes that this must be different than what they learned previously. This is the problem with a spiraling curriculum, where teachers spend four weeks on a subject and never return to it that year, when the same subject comes up the next year, students feel like the rules must be different, or they would have been taught about it the previous year. L’CHAIM: WHAT MAKES RVA DIFFERENT FROM OTHER SCHOOLS? NR: My school now is all about teaching

the kids that I have in front of me; not necessarily teaching based on grade or age level; or in a particular, prescribed order of concepts. There are never more than 12 students in one of my classrooms, to ensure that each student gets the attention they deserve. The closest we have come to that is nine students. Originally, we were 4th through eighth grade, but I couldn’t get enough students at that level, and they kept graduating! So we expanded the school downwards, and now we are Kindergarten through eighth grade. People who are looking for something different come to RVA because the traditional school model is missing something for them. L’CHAIM: WHAT DOES A TYPICAL CLASSROOM, OR SCHOOL DAY LOOK 14

L’CHAIM SAN DIEGO MAGAZINE • APRIL 2015

LIKE AT RVA? NR: We group our students by ability, so

we have multi-age classes. One thing that this does, outside of the academic sense, is it helps with student behavior. For instance, the older kids in the classroom are better behaved when they realize that they are the role models for the younger kids who are now mimicking them; and the younger kids behave better because they don’t want to look like babies to the older kids. Our school is designed to have no homework, and the way that we do that is we run longer. Monday, Tuesday and Thursday, we run 9:15 a.m.-5:15 p.m. and every other Friday. Wednesday and the opposite Friday, we run 9:15 a.m.-3:15 p.m. And when we are on our short days, the kids complain that those days are too short.

RENAISSANCE VILLAGE ACADEMY is part of THE EDUCATIONAL FORUM IN SAN DIEGO, 9:15 a.m.-4 p.m. April 25 at La Jolla Country Day School, 9490 Genesee Ave., La Jolla, CA 92037

L’CHAIM: WHAT ABOUT EXTRACURRICULAR ACTIVITIES? NR: All of our students take two hours of

“How did Yakov become Jacques in French, James in English, and Diego in Spanish? Are such language changes random or predictable? Using a diagram of the mouth, you’ll learn where and how each sound is made, from bilabials to glottal stops, from plosives to fricatives. After discovering the minimal consonant pairs, you’ll explore how those pairs allow linguists to work backwards to determine when languages split from one another. Finally, you’ll compare passages in Old English, Middle English, and Modern English, as well as learn the linguistic basis for tongue twisters.”

RENAISSANCE VILLAGE ACADEMY IS LOCATED AT 9988 HIBERT ST., #301, SAN DIEGO, CA 92131-2480. FOR QUESTIONS OR MORE INFORMATION, CALL (858) 564-9622, VISIT RVASCHOOL.ORG, OR EMAIL DIRECTOR@RVASCHOOL.ORG.

The Educational Forum is a free event open to all families and students wishing to explore pertinent educational issues & opportunities. Experts in a variety of educational areas will present & answer questions. To learn more and to register, visit www.scholarsearchassoc.com/index. php/coming-events/2015-events-u/ san-diego-2015.

art a week, an hour of piano a week, and we have karate and soccer. We also have a garden that our students work in every week; so there are a lot of things happening at the school.

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YOM HASHOAH l BY ALANNA BERMAN

REMEMBRANCE READINGS

Commemorating Yom HaShoah through Jewish theater This Yom HaShoah, various theaters and cultural institutions across the country will commemorate the events of the Holocaust in a different way. On April 13, Remembrance Readings for Holocaust Remembrance Day will bring Jewish theater into the conversation about the Holocaust, and San Diego theaters are leading the way, participating in droves for the inaugural national event. The La Jolla Playhouse, Old Globe, North Coast Repertory and San Diego Repertory theaters had all signed on to participate in the program as of press time, with more expected to be added to the list in the coming days.

L’CHAIM SAN DIEGO MAGAZINE • APRIL 2015

YOM HASHOAH

Each participating theater will organize staged readings with a play of their choosing from the newly launched Holocaust Theater Catalog (HTC), created by the National Jewish Theater Foundation (NJTF), housed online at the University of Miami Miller Center for Contemporary Judaic Studies. Arnold Mittleman, an accomplished producer, director and theater educator founded NJTF in 2007, and in 2010 was approached by people who wanted to fill a void that they saw in Holocaust research; leading to the creation of the Catalog. “There was no Holocaust theater catalog that had ever been created that would allow people to go to one site to find all the plays that had ever been written about the Holocaust from 1933 through the present, in all languages,” Mittleman says of the mission of HTC. “I was shocked that this didn’t exist, but I willingly accepted the project.” Mittleman has spent his entire life in the

theater; from training in the high school performing arts and the NYU School of the Arts to the founding of the New York Free Theater to leading the Coconut Grove Playhouse to producing on Broadway and off-Broadway, and has worked on almost 300 productions. His passion for educating others about the Holocaust, however, has been a driving force for most of his life. It was in a conversation with other likeminded theater people that the idea of a home for Jewish theater, especially related to the subject of the Holocaust, came about. “What we were really talking about was the Holocaust Theater International Initiative, which was going to have three parts; the Holocaust Theater Catalog, Holocaust Theater Education, & Holocaust theater production. As a result, I became director of all three projects,” he says with a chuckle. “We started first and foremost to work on the research for the catalog, and as it developed, we were amazed at how

many people were wiling to work with us, cooperate and help us around the world.” Today, the catalog consists of over 600 titles, as well as relevant information and scholarly works associated with those plays. Almost all the worlds’ languages are represented in the works of the catalog. The challenge, Mittleman says, was to “make [these works] a relevant tool as the survivors pass away, and as people continue to struggle with anti-Semitism; and as many universities and theaters, memorials and museums search to find a unique and powerful way to make people aware and care about the events of the Holocaust.” A very successful production of “The Soap Myth,” a play written by Jeff Cohen, actually sparked the idea that led to the Remembrance Readings program. Mittleman says the incredible impact of that play made him realize that bringing other plays from the Catalog into the public eye was an important endeavor that he had to get started on. “The larger framework of this is the notion that Holocaust theater has to become an integral part of remembrance from now on. It has been sporadically, but it has not been done systemically. It struck me that one of the best ways to do this would be to see if, on a simple level, people would be willing to do a reading. So I settled on the Monday before Yom HaShoah, which is when theaters are dark and tend to do readings,” Mittleman says of the early work on the Remembrance Readings. Mittleman began to work first with colleagues at the La Jolla playhouse, including artistic director Christopher Ashley and director of new play development Gabe Green. Along with their help, word of the Remembrance Readings was spread to other local theaters, including the Old Globe and North Coast Repertory theater, who eagerly signed on to participate. The commitment of San Diego theaters to the readings was to Mittleman the effective endorsement of the idea that this could be done in places around the country and could be something that could continue to grow in the future. Playhouses in Chicago, Atlanta, New York and South Florida lined up on the WWW.LCHAIMMAGAZINE.COM

YOM HASHOAH heels of the news that San Diego theaters were signing up. “It began to become very exciting for all of us, that San Diego was embracing this idea so wholeheartedly, and that these other amazing theatres were willing to participate,” Mittleman says. “It really made me believe that this was not only a great group of people, but a great committed group of community citizens who understood the importance of what we were trying to do.” While most theaters will stick to the April 13 program date, some, including the San Diego Repertory Theater, will present readings later in the season because of previously booked programming at their locations on that date. “It is great to me that people are connecting with this date, but this is not a

one-time event, and it isn’t even associated with a particular date,” Mittleman says. “It is the concept that theatre can, should and must be utilized in remembrance of the Holocaust.” The Catalog is continuing to grow. What’s really great about it, says Mittleman, is its functionality. It can be used by a scholar, it can be used by a theatre artist, it can be used by a student, by an actor; it really has been designed to be used by the general public and audiences so that people from different points of view and backgrounds can go to the catalog and use it for themselves. Theater and acting, says Mittleman, have a unique power to teach the participants about another person’s experience in a very tangible way. “When you are engaged in learning a part or working in a play, it is a very unique

experience because you go into someone else’s shoes and develop an understanding of who that person is; so the thought is that theatre has this ability to both present ideas to an audience but also in a training process to allow people to empathize in another way, with these characters and people, to have a deeper understanding of what people have gone through or are a part of. So the notion of theatre being a tool in this way has many levels and possibilities,” he says. “Just the exploration of how theatre can interface with people’s lives is important; the survivors will soon be gone, but we need to maximize the opportunity we have.” This is the goal of the Remembrance Readings and the work of the Catalog. To learn more about the Remembrance Readings, visit NJTFoundation.org/in_ remembrance.

REMEMBRANCE READINGS AROUND THE COUNTY THE HISTORY OF INVULNERABILITY By David Bar Katz Monday, April 13, 7 p.m. North Coast Repertory Theatre In the early 1940s there was one Jew powerful enough to singlehandedly challenge the Nazis: Kal El, a.k.a. Superman. This is the story of Superman creator Jerry Siegel and his tumultuous relationship with his legendary comic-book character and the tale of a little boy in Birkenau who believes he will survive because Superman is on his way.

THE REVISIONIST

INTELLIGENCE-SLAVE By Kenneth Lin Monday, April 13, 2015 at 7:30 p.m. Seuss 1 space at La Jolla Playhouse Near the end of World War II, in an abandoned salt mine where the Nazis have moved the Buchenwald machine factory, Austrian industrialist and concentration camp prisoner Curt Herzstark tinkers with an amazing device. A small, black metal cylinder, no bigger than the palm of his hand, the device is a technical marvel... and until it’s finished, it’s the one thing keeping Curt alive. Based on a true story, Kenneth Lin’s play tells the story of the “intelligenceslave” charged with creating the world’s first hand-held fourfunction calculator, intended as a gift for Adolf Hitler. 18

L’CHAIM SAN DIEGO MAGAZINE • APRIL 2015

By Jesse Eisenberg Monday, April 13, 7 p.m. The Old Globe Struck with a terrible case of writer’s block, American novelist David reaches out to his 75-year-old, distant cousin Maria in Poland, hoping to find a quiet place to write and a little bit of inspiration abroad. But when David arrives in Maria’s tiny apartment, she bombards him with her desperate need to connect to her newly met relative. As tensions grow between them, Maria reveals details about her life during World War II and her experiences in the Holocaust. Soon David gains more than inspiration: he gains a family. Jesse Eisenberg’s moving new play explores kinship, identity, and the impact on a family of a long-ago trauma. Presented in Hattox Hall, located in the Karen and Donald Cohn Education Center, part of The Old Globe’s Conrad Prebys Theatre Center.

TITLE AND DATE TBA San Diego Repertory Theatre Due to scheduling conflicts the actual date of the reading is yet to be determined.

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YOM HASHOAH l BY MELINDA HALPERT

Tradition m Laying Stones on Graves

emetery visits loomed large in my father’s Depression-era childhood. Every Sunday, he accompanied his parents to visit his grandparents’ graves. His mother then would instruct him to find some small stones to place on the headstones. “What for?” he would ask. “So they’ll see we were here,” she’d say. “But if they can see the stones, can’t they see us, too?” “Shut up and find some stones,” replied my grandmother, unwilling to debate his logic. He would place his stones on the graves, but not without lasting bemusement for a custom he thought ridiculous. I retold this story to my husband and our almost-grown sons, as we were preparing to visit the cemetery outside Buffalo, where my father and mother now lay. We had not been there for several years, and I wanted to leave my own conspicuous evidence that these were the graves of people deeply

L’CHAIM SAN DIEGO MAGAZINE • APRIL 2015

loved, remembered, and missed. My older son thought stones were too mundane for his exuberant grandfather. “Circus peanuts!” he said. “If we really want to honor Grandpa, we should leave circus peanuts.” He had a point. My father loved those banana-flavored candies that resemble radioactive Styrofoam packing shells, and to us, tasted like them. But we couldn’t think of a more fitting tribute, so off we went in pursuit of circus peanuts, the unorthodox memorial treat. It turns out, and perhaps not surprising, that circus peanuts are hard to come by. Trolling the long candy aisle at CVS, we spotted the ubiquitous M&M’s, Snickers, Skittles, and those insufferable red and white peppermints that nobody likes. But no circus peanuts. My younger son piped up with an alternative. “Snow-Caps! Grandpa loved those, too,” he said. “They were his favorite movie

candy.” True enough. My father was fond of those chocolate disks with the tiny white granules. He called them “Nonpareils” which means “without equal,” “incomparable,” “not another like it.” How apropos. We bought a large box. It was hot and humid for a Buffalo July. We took a languid drive past the landmarks of my youth: my kindergarten with the same tetanus-laced jungle gym; the stifling apartment where my flute teacher lived; the nursing home where my friend Diane and I volunteered in high school; and my parents’ house; so poorly maintained by the new owners that the peeling paint on their once pristine yellow door made me want to cry. I did tear up as we passed Diane’s house, where I spent hundreds of sleepovers and where her mom, the vivacious Viv, presided over a pot of coffee that never ran empty. As we neared my family’s plots, I noticed newer gravestones with familiar names. My orthodontist. Our rabbi. A beloved high school drama teacher. And down the row from my parents, Diane’s mother, Viv. By the time we retrieved the Snow-Caps, they had melted into a slab of granular chocolate. Quiet and resigned, my sons, my husband and I set off to find small stones to place on their graves. I hoped my parents saw we were there.

MELINDA HALPERT IS A MARKETING PROFESSIONAL BY DAY, A FREELANCE WRITER THE REST OF THE TIME. BASED IN WASHINGTON, DC, SHE IS PROUD TO HAIL FROM BUFFALO, NY. SHE CREDITS HER LATE FATHER, A NEWSPAPER EDITOR, WITH HER ABIDING LOVE OF GRAMMAR AND HER THIRD-GRADE AWARD FOR BEST USE OF A SEMI-COLON.

YOM HASHOAH

Healing the Broken-Hearted

Jewish Bereavement Support Groups at Jewish Family Service

e don’t plan the death of a loved one. When the inevitable happens, it is important to know that there is somewhere you can go to get the support you need to begin healing from your grief. Each of us may have our own way to grieve. I have found that there are two important approaches that can make a profound difference in the way we heal from loss. Following the loss of a loved one, it is important to turn inward and allow yourself to experience the depths of your pain and despair. By allowing the pain to be experienced, the tears to flow, healing can become a reality. By exploring our guilt, our fears, and uncertainty, the pain can slowly dissipate. It takes By RABBI personal courage to engage in this mourner’s path; however, it can lead you to personal healing and renewal. Many people choose to keep busy and avoid experiencing their pain. Unfortunately, if we don’t deal with the pain, it inevitable catches up with us and causes even greater despair. The spiritual task of mourning is to face one’s fears, painful memories and guilt and ultimately welcome the “new normal,” our new sense of our self which incorporates the death of our loved one in the fabric of our life. The path of healing may lead to a new sense of oneself, with a greater sense of purpose and a feeling of connection to family, loved ones, and God. It is also important to find a circle of friends who understand the pain, confusion and uncertainty that you are feeling. Family and friends can be sources of love and understanding throughout the mourning period. However, many mourners choose to withhold the depths of their inner sorrow from family members who are also grieving their own loss. A bereavement support group offers participants a safe place to

share with others who truly understand how you feel. Group participants tell the story of their loved one’s life and death. I have found that it can heal the soul to share one’s pain with others who truly listen and empathize with your pain. In a recent support group, a mother and daughter came to mourn the death of their husband/father. A few weeks after the conclusion of the group, the mother unexpectedly lay dying in the hospital. Several of the group members sat at the bedside, bringing comfort to the distraught daughter. When I officiated at the funeral, I was so moved by the way the support group members surrounded the bereaved daughter with their love and support. In a Jewish bereavement group, participants ALIZA BERK discuss their experiences with the Jewish stages of loss – aveilut, shiva, shloshim and yahrzeit. Questions that are discussed include: what happens after we die? Do you believe in an Afterlife – Olam Haba? Is there a way to communicate on a spiritual level with our loved one who has died? These and other topics serve for lively discussions during our weekly meetings. By turning both inward and outward to others who have suffered similar losses, it is possible to connect with God, with our sacred truth, and find greater healing and eventual wholeness. RABBI ALIZA BERK, LMFT, IS THE RABBI AT JEWISH FAMILY SERVICE, THE PRESIDENT OF SDRA: THE SAN DIEGO RABBINIC ASSOCIATION, AND A LICENSED MARRIAGE AND FAMILY THERAPIST IN PRIVATE PRACTICE. SHE WILL OFFER THREE BEREAVEMENT GROUPS IN THE SPRING AT CHABAD IN UNIVERSITY CITY, CONGREGATION BETH EL AND SEACREST VILLAGE IN ENCINITAS. FOR MORE INFORMATION GO TO JFSSD.ORG/JHC.

“...HEAL THE SOUL TO

SHARE ONE’S PAIN”

WWW.LCHAIMMAGAZINE.COM

BADASS KOSHER l BY MICHAEL GARDINER

Jewish Mexico:

It’s not an Oxymoron BIRRIA OF LAMB SHANKS

he long list of famed Kosher Mexican dishes is a short one. It’s not because Mexican cuisine is inherently incompatible with the laws of kashrut. Rather, its because, for the most part, what Americans think of as “Mexican” cuisine is really just antijitos (essentially snack or street food) often pairing meat and cheese. Perhaps, more importantly, most American Jews know little about the history of Jews in Mexico. Jews have been in Mexico since the day 22

L’CHAIM SAN DIEGO MAGAZINE • APRIL 2015

Cortez landed. While Cortez’s mission did not include any openly practicing Jews, it did include quite a number of Spanish conversos – individuals who, when faced with the Royal edict to convert, die or be exiled chose to convert to Catholicism. Many, if not most, continued to practice Judaism under cover. Indeed Spain’s first Viceroy over Nuevo España was Antonio de Mendoza. Because Mendoza was a common name among Spanish Jews, some historians suggest he himself had a Jewish or converso

background. It would be 50 years after Cortez’s landing before the violence of Spain’s inquisition made it to Mexican shores. Within a decade, King Philip II of Spain established the Kingdom of Nuevo Leon (stretching from the northern reaches of Mexico into South Texas), a colony north of Nueva España to be governed by Luis de Carvajal, a Portuguese-Spanish nobleman born in 1539 to Jewish converts. Both conversos and practicing Jews were

BADASS KOSHER

welcomed to the new colony. It was a point for which Caravajal would subsequently have to pay with his life. There would be many subsequent waves of Jewish immigration to Mexico. In 1865, Emperor Maximilian I (there would never be a second as the Empire would only last two years) – a younger brother of Austrian Emperor Franz Joseph – came to power and issued an edict of religious tolerance, inviting German Jews to settle in Mexico. His successor, President Benito Juarez enforced a separation of Church and State, underlining the point. In 1882, after the assassination of the Czar Alexander II, a significant number of practicing Jews from Russia entered Mexico. Additional waves of Eastern European Jews arrived in Mexico after World War I and after World War II. Amongst those were members of my extended family. And Carvajal’s legacy—both cultural and culinary—continues to this day. Caravajal’s fate notwithstanding, Jews and conversos had a definite impact on the food of Mexico (and, in particular, Northeastern Mexico). Dishes such as Pan de Semita (an unleavened bread) and Capirotada (a bread pudding) have distinct Jewish or Crypto-Jewish origin as does Cabrito (roast suckling goat). The later is a significant regional specialty in and around Monterrey, Mexico. Many other dishes that are considered typically Mexican—such as Albondigas Soup and Buñuelos—have arguable Jewish origin. But regardless of whether particular dishes are Jewish in origin, many—if not most—Mexican dishes are susceptible to Kosher interpretation. One such dish—and one I’ve come to love—is birria de chivo. It is a dish that is nearly ubiquitous at roadside stands and restaurants throughout the north and west of Mexico. Goat meat is slow braised in a rich broth spiked with cinnamon, clove and vinegar, yielding a thick, rich and utterly exhilarating stew. Birria can be made with just about any red meat. While goat is the most classic meat for birria in Jalisco— from whence the dish originates—beef is also common. While goat may be a little bit challenging for the American palate, lamb is less so and is an excellent—and readily available—substitute with a similar flavor profile.

Birria of Lamb Shanks Serves 4-6

INGREDIENTS

For the lamb shank “birria”: 5 guajillo chiles 2 pasilla/ancho chiles 1/3 cup red wine vinegar 1 white onion, chopped 1 bulb fennel, chopped 1 carrot, chopped Kosher salt Freshly ground pepper 1 stick cinnamon (canella) 8 whole cloves 4 whole allspice ¼ inch piece dried ginger 4 lamb shanks 1 tablespoon light soy sauce (optional) 1 shallot, minced 2 tablespoons, grapeseed oil For the garnish: 1 onion, finely chopped 1 bunch cilantro, stemmed and chopped At least 12 tortillas ¼ cup dried Mexican oregano 2-3 arbol chiles

DIRECTIONS

1. Make the chile paste. Preheat a frying pan over medium heat. Cut the ends off the chiles, removing the seeds as you do so. Toast the chiles in the pan until they “brown” slightly, flip them and toast the other side. Place the chilies in a deep bowl and cover with hot water. Soak the chilies for half an hour until they are tender. Remove the chilies from the soaking water and place in a Vitamix or other high speed blender with the vinegar and process to a smooth paste. 2. Cook the “birria.” Add the onions, fennel and carrot to a large heavy pot, season them with Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper. Cover the pot and sweat the aromatics for five minutes. Meanwhile grind the remaining spices thoroughly. Season the lamb shanks with kosher salt and freshly ground pepper and add them to the pot. Strain the ground spices and sprinkle them over the shanks. Cover the shanks with water and turn the heat up to high. Bring

the pot to a boil and immediately reduce the heat to a simmer. Simmer the shanks for three hours, until the meat is falling off the bone. 3. Make the birria reduction sauce. Combine the shallots and 2 cups of the birria braising liquid in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil, lower heat to a simmer and reduce by half. 4. Deflame the onion. Either boil water or run the water in your faucet until it is as hot as it can get. Place the chopped onion in a strainer. Pour boiling water (or hold it under the faucet) for several seconds in order to remove the sulfurous compounds that from the chopped onions. 5. Warm the tortillas. Heat a comal or heavy frying pan on the stove over high heat. Using tongs place two to three tortillas on the pan for a few seconds until they soften and just start to char, flip the tortillas and do the same on the other side. Place the tortillas in a tortilla warmer or wrap in a clean dish towel and repeat for the remaining tortillas. 6. Plate the dish. Place the onions, cilantro and the oregano in separate garnish bowls. Add the arbol chiles to the oregano. Using tongs, divide the lamb into four to six soup bowls, ladling the broth over the meat. Garnish each bowl with the onions, cilantro and oregano. Serve with the warmed tortillas. MICHAEL AARON GARDINER IS A FREELANCE WRITER AND LICENSED CALIFORNIA ATTORNEY LIVING IN SAN DIEGO. A GRADUATE OF AMHERST COLLEGE AND THE UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN SCHOOL OF LAW, GARDINER PRACTICES BUSINESS LAW AND LITIGATION DURING THE DAY AND COOKS AND WRITES BY NIGHT. HE IS ALSO THE AUTHOR OF “KOSHER FUSION: THE REBIRTH OF A TRADITION FOR THE MODERN KITCHEN,” A BOOK APPLYING THE LESSONS OF CONTEMPORARY, HIGHEND FUSION CUISINE TO TRADITIONAL JEWISH DIETARY LAWS IN ORDER TO FORGE A NEW KOSHER TRADITION IN THE MODERN JEWISH HOME KITCHEN. GARDINER IS CURRENTLY LOOKING FOR A PUBLISHER FOR THE BOOK.

WWW.LCHAIMMAGAZINE.COM

Riding the Wave of Change PART-TIME JEWISH EDUCATION By Rabbi Phil Warmflash & Anna Marx l jns.org

The Rimon Initiative at Philadelphia’s Temple Sholom offers students project-based chugim (electives), an example cited by Rabbi Phil Warmflash and Anna Marx for an innovative new model in Jewish education.

mid the numerous studies and analyses regarding Jewish American life, a simple fact remains: part-time Jewish education is the most popular vehicle for Jewish education in North America. Whenever and wherever parents choose Jewish education for their children, we have a communal responsibility to devote the necessary time and resources to deliver dynamic, effective learning experiences. The only way we can do this is by creating space for conversations and knowledgesharing around innovative new education models. That also means making the necessary investments to further models that already have proved successful. On the ground, these new models resonate with today’s learners and their families. Such educational approaches build relationships between families, integrate

L’CHAIM SAN DIEGO MAGAZINE • APRIL 2015

technology, and move the learning outside of classroom walls. This is big change we’re talking about, and big change takes partnerships and collaboration across the Jewish community—partnerships with synagogue professionals and lay leaders, educational agencies, funders, and most importantly, parents. Nancy Parkes, director of congregational learning at the Temple Israel Center in White Plains, N.Y., recently offered important recommendations to advance the congregational educational experience. We would like to call attention to two of her suggestions: “stop the negative narrative” and “be our partners.” Opting for parttime “supplementary” Jewish education has been a very good choice—indeed, the right choice—for thousands of families. But it’s time to tell a new story. One of experience, of

possibility, of real impact. It’s time to work together. Five Jewish education agencies from around the country—including New York, Cleveland, Houston, Philadelphia, and San Francisco—are engaged in these important efforts through Shinui: the Network for Innovation in Part-Time Education, created with the support of the Covenant Foundation. The stories coming out of our communities are inspiring real change that other communities can model and adapt. One example of an innovative model is the Rimon Initiative at Philadelphia’s Temple Sholom, whose premise is to offer students project-based chugim (electives). One parent comments, “My son retains so much more because teachers now focus on a few core areas for a longer period of time. And the fact that he can choose a chug makes for

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a more personal experience and gives him a chance to explore a subject that he wants to.” In San Francisco, Shalom Explorers is a vehicle for families to form neighborhood learning groups and customize individual lesson plans. Now in its second year, the initiative has expanded to multiple sites in the Bay Area. An Explorer parent says, “Shalom Explorers provides parents with an amazing toolkit of resources to bring great lesson plans to life. We were able to select the activities and content that worked for our group of families, and the children were able to learn in fun and exciting ways—through drama, art projects, outdoor activities, and more.” These stories show that part-time Jewish education presents one of the greatest opportunities to engage, inspire, and connect with families. No longer are students learning prayers and stories simply to “check them off the list.” Instead, educators across the country are wrestling with how the learning experiences they offer can best support children and their families, and make a true difference in their lives. In those precious few hours of part-time programs, teachers are parents’ partners in raising children to become mensches. With this understanding, more and more congregations around the country are trying new models to invigorate the educational experiences they offer. The Jewish community still must do more to help this change happen in a serious, sustainable manner. Fortunately, many are answering this call, and important changes are happening in Jewish education: learning experiences that involve the entire family, deepen connections to Israel, teach Hebrew in more meaningful and relevant ways, and bring the summer camp experience into our schools. We see these changes in the Shinui-affiliated communities, and we invite others to be a part of this change—to help build today’s narrative of part-time Jewish education. Together, we can create and sustain major changes across the country.

Andrea (Andi) K. Frimmer, M. Ed. The “Get Your Kid into College” Lady

andi@Prep4CollegeNow.com • 760.877.7200 www.Prep4CollegeNow.com

RABBI PHIL WARMFLASH IS EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE JEWISH LEARNING VENTURE IN PHILADELPHIA. ANNA MARX IS PROJECT DIRECTOR OF SHINUI.

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EDUCATION l BY ALAN SILVERMAN l jns.org

SAVING INFORMAL JEWISH EDUCATION TO SAVE OURSELVES TRANSFORMATION AT CAMP MOSHAVA

s the director of Camp Moshava, a religious Zionist camp in the Bnei Akiva network, I take great pride in the camper transformations that I witness every summer. The sheepish boys and girls who arrive at the beginning of the summer blossom into confident young men and women over the course of just a few short weeks. Without question, the boost in self-esteem is due to a wide array of fun summertime experiences laced with important life skills. But it’s the way we teach them about Torah and Israel—the core components of their Jewish identities—that really makes the difference. Our campers attend some of the country’s top Jewish educational institutions. They have all studied Torah for years, are quite familiar with Israeli history and culture, and relate to Israel as our Jewish homeland and the center of global Jewish life. It is precisely for this reason that that our job as informal educators is so difficult. Every summer, it is our challenge to introduce new elements of “old” concepts and themes to students who already have

L’CHAIM SAN DIEGO MAGAZINE • APRIL 2015

an excellent foundational understanding of Judaism and Zionism. Time and time again, we discover that the solution is experiential education. For example, instead of simply delving into the rabbinic commentaries when presenting the story of the Jews crossing the Jordan River, we simulate the event itself. We mimic what it was like for Joshua to lead the entire Jewish nation across the river and to take those exciting first steps into Israel. In that moment, the story that our campers have heard so many times before takes on an entirely different meaning, prompting a newfound appreciation for the challenges that Joshua faced, and his achievements. When teaching about the importance of a united Jerusalem, our campers are immersed in activities that stimulate all of their senses. They trek through the sites of the capital, making their way from the Old City to the bustling city center. They relive the wars and the struggles of the Israel Defense Forces in recapturing the holy sites of Jerusalem. They hear the sounds of Jews praying at the Kotel, feel the water of the Gihon Spring from the City of David, see the

majestic expanse of the Bridge of Strings at the entrance to modern-day Jerusalem, and smell the delicious aroma of freshly baked bread from the Machane Yehuda market. Through these non-traditional methods, our campers gain a deeper understanding of our national connection to and reliance on Jerusalem, and access thoughts and feelings that could not have been awakened in any other way. As a Jewish educator, I recognize the importance of informal education in connecting Jewish youth to their history and heritage. Instead of grappling with dry facts, campers connect to experiences that help them retain the information in their hearts and minds. Informal education helps students make an important leap— from knowing that an event took place, to understanding how the event unfolded and how those who experienced it felt in that moment. I also recognize that even the most effective teaching techniques and Jewish identity-building tools can all but vanish if not funded properly. In Jewish education, it is not just the technique and the talent that

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matter. The financial backing is equally as important, sometimes even more so. It is for this reason that I support the Religious Zionist Slate (VoteTorah.org), a party in the upcoming elections for the World Zionist Congress whose core values include a strong emphasis on Torah and Zionist education. With more than $1 billion dollars in funding for Jewish educational programming up for grabs, it is essential that we support the only party that will ensure continued support for religious youth programs like Bnei Akiva and the growth and continuity of religious Zionist education in our schools, Jewish community centers, and summer camps. It is thrilling to watch Jewish history and contemporary Israeli issues come alive for Jewish children, and it is inspiring to witness their transformations into prouder and more committed members of the Jewish community. This is the power of informal Jewish education. This is the transformation that occurs at summer camp. But we must come to terms with the reality that the kinds of Jewish educational techniques that truly make a difference are not self-sustaining. We owe it to our children and ourselves to make sure that informal Jewish education always receives the funding it warrants and deserves. After all, the future of religious Zionism and Torah Judaism may very well depend on it. ALAN SILVERMAN HAS SERVED AS THE DIRECTOR OF CAMP MOSHAVA FOR 30 YEARS. HE PREVIOUSLY SERVED AS THE ASSOCIATE PRINCIPAL OF GENERAL STUDIES FOR THE ELEMENTARY AND MIDDLE SCHOOLS OF S.A.R. ACADEMY IN RIVERDALE, NY, AND THE DIRECTOR OF EDUCATION, DEVELOPMENT AND TRAINING FOR BNEI AKIVA OF THE U.S. & CANADA. HE LIVES WITH HIS WIFE AND FIVE CHILDREN IN GUSH ETZION. WWW.LCHAIMMAGAZINE.COM

REFLECTION l BY AIMEE GREENBERG

salon

shalom

La Jolla lets in a little darkness

othing today appears to be a laughing matter. Now, more than ever we need to send in the clowns. Oddly enough, clowns or comics often tickle our funny bone by exposing their own. Behind the white faces and red noses stands a selfeffacing, self-loathing, vulnerable, cynical, depressed, and often tormented individual whose true brilliance emerges at the cost of a pound of their own flesh. When Emmett Kelly, Sr. gave up white face for “Weary Willie,” the downtrodden hobo clown, he was personifying the trampled spirit of the American people during the Great Depression. Merged with his powerful appearance was his trademark routine of sweeping his own off-center spotlight into nothingness; a poignant metaphor depicting the darkness that swept the nation during the dustbowl, with Kelly himself having stated about both the clown and himself: “he knows he will go no further; the cards are stacked against him.” Eight decades later, Tammy Rae Carland, a performative photographer, (surely under the influence of Cindy Sherman) is featured at the La Jolla Museum of Contemporary Art, San Diego’s exhibit: Laugh-In Art, Comedy, Performance. In her series entitled: I’m Dying Up Here, the artist as faceless comedian offers the viewer a peek

L’CHAIM SAN DIEGO MAGAZINE • APRIL 2015

behind the curtain where the comedian is awkward and debased. Whether covered by a blanket, on all fours or in a precarious handstand, Carland depicts vulnerability as an occupational hazard. In Mop Face (2011), the comic leans precariously forward, enveloping her head into a mop head. The result is comedian as stilted rag doll, the mop handle in microphone stand, the performer falling on her face as it were, washed up and ready for her exit. Here, the mop figures as a stand-in for Emmett Kelly’s broom. Laugh-In sets the stage for viewer as voyeur into the world of a cadre of artists working across digital platforms and social media to spread their message. Jayson Musson as Hennessy Youngman creates instructional videos labeled Art Thoughtz (2010-2012). In How to Be A Black Artist (2011) Musson as a militant in sheep’s clothing delivers a knock-down dead pan punch of social commentary as he tells his listeners to be angry, not too angry, assimilate but remain aloof and exotic and capitalize on slavery, the mother lode for black people. Chan & Mann refer to their work as “relational text based performance art.” References to Jewish humor and Chinese wisdom form the backdrop in their Fantasy Video. They employ a Brechtian

style of representational theatre mixed with vaudeville with their faces behind a cutout flat. The two struggle to carve out a new cultural identity and broader definition of feminism despite the nagging voice of their mothers, embedded in the animated props of Dora the Menorah and a Chinese food take out box. And now, for something completely different. Yours truly will be performing Occupy the Rice Fields, a winding comedic tale about the trials and tribulations of solo travel on the island of Bali. In search of the sacred and last of the trance dancers, this writer/performer encounters faux shamans, hawkers and hustlers. Truly the Jew in the lotus. Not quite Emmett Kelly, Darrell Hammond or a stone’s throw from the Comedy Store, my old stomping grounds in LA. My homage to Spalding Gray. Spoiler alert: a Jew on a small Muslim island off the coast of a large Hindu island during Ramadan? Occupy The Rice Fields comes to North Coast Rep, May 5, at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are at NorthCoastRep.org AIMEE GREENBERG IS A DIRECTOR, WRITER, PERFORMER, DRAMA THERAPIST AND TEACHER BASED IN SAN DIEGO. EMAIL HER AT TOPCAT8787@AOL.COM.

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FEATURE l BY ROBERT GLUCK l jns.org

Jack Kirby

L’CHAIM SAN DIEGO MAGAZINE • APRIL 2015

PHOTO CREDIT: SUSAN SKAAR

Forthcoming major action movies inspired by Jewish comic artist Jack Kirby

FEATURE

ith the Oscars in the rearview mirror, Hollywood’s attention now shifts to the rest of this year’s bigscreen lineup. Two of the major action films coming up in 2015—“Avengers: Age of Ultron,” which hits theaters in May, and the third film in the “Fantastic Four” series, slated for an August release—have Jewish roots that the average moviegoer might be unaware of. As it turns out, it took a tough Jewish kid from New York City’s Lower East Side to create the superheroes in “Fantastic Four” and “Captain America.” (The “Captain America” protagonist appears in “The Avengers.”) Born Jacob Kurtzberg to Austrian Jewish immigrants, Jack Kirby became an iconic American comic book artist and writer. But his road to the throne of comics wasn’t an easy one. Kirby played a major role in shaping the superhero genre through his collaboration with Stan Lee (also Jewish) in co-creating classic Marvel Comics characters like the “Fantastic Four,” “The Incredible Hulk,” and the “X-Men.” Kirby died in 1994 at age 76. “He was the only person to ever get a long rousing standing ovation at ComicCon and he got that every year he attended,” Mark Evanier, an assistant to Kirby and author of the book “Kirby: King of Comics,” says. Those close to Kirby say that his Jewish upbringing in New York—including his parents’ work ethic, a love for storytelling, and the instincts of self-motivation and selfpreservation—propelled him to great heights in the world of comics despite a career that frequently saw him struggle to support his family. “Jack grew up in a crummy part of New York in near poverty,” says Evanier, who first met Kirby in 1969. “His father was in the garment business and was out of work a lot. He had seasonal work. At an early age, Jack had to go to work to help feed the family because they were very poor. Certainly, there were Jews in that area who were very underprivileged, and that instilled in Jack a very strong work ethic about providing for one’s family. Every Jewish person I know, including my father, who is of that age, had that work ethic and that devotion. It seems to be a Jewish trait—not that it was

exclusive to Jews, but that was Jack.” The rough-and-tumble environment of the Lower East Side streets would later appear in a number of Kirby’s comics, illustrated through kids’ games and fight scenes. “He drew upon his own background for settings and characterizations,” Evanier says. “‘The Thing’ from the ‘Fantastic Four’ battles street gangs in the Lower East Side. It’s welldisguised autobiography, but Jack disliked his villains.” As a youngster, Kirby sold vegetables from a pushcart to help his family. “He decorated his pushcart with drawings and pictures, and soon other pushcart owners wanted him to decorate their carts,” Evanier says. Kirby also sold newspapers on the street, and while reading them, he was inspired by the comic strips of Milton Caniff, Hal Foster, Alex Raymond, and Chester Gould (the “Dick Tracy” creator). Kirby later paid tribute to his childhood when he created a strip titled “Newsboy Legion,” in which newsboys encounter Nazi spies. A veteran of World War II, Kirby used that experience to shape his comics. “Captain America,” which Kirby co-created with fellow Jewish artist Joe Simon, was on newsstands prior to the U.S. entrance into World War II—with the protagonist taking a bold stand against Hitler before the American government itself did so. Kirby was also “a fairly devout Jew” who “went to synagogue, but not necessarily all the time,” says Evanier. Temple Etz Chaim, a Conservative synagogue in Thousands Oaks, Calif., set up a scholarship in memory of Kirby. Evanier says that Kirby never felt fairly compensated for his work. Now, comics have become a billion-dollar industry. More than 20 years after his death, Kirby’s estate and Marvel Comics finally settled a copyright dispute. While he was alive, Kirby was insufficiently appreciated by “clueless corporate executives and close-minded comics professionals,” says Evanier. Randolph Hoppe—the treasurer of the Jack Kirby Museum and Research Center non-profit, which encourages the study, understanding, preservation, and appreciation

of Kirby’s work— tells JNS.org that Kirby fans usually have one particular question regarding his work: Which was more important to him, illustrations or stories? Hoppe says that is a challenging question to answer because Kirby was “such a visual creator, and the visuals tend to dominate the conversation about him.” Yet Kirby’s Jewish heritage directly influenced his love for storytelling, according to Hoppe. “Both his parents were from [the Eastern European region of] Galicia, and there were lots of not just generic folk tales being told, but lots of other stories being told that had a big affect on Jack as a storyteller and the stories he liked to tell,” Hoppe says. What makes Kirby iconic, Evanier explains, is how “his [comic] strips are filled with action, but not dependent on it.” “Jack was very honest and he could jump around mentally,” says Evanier. “He was not the first to do superheroes, but he was the first to do superheroes with action on the page that brought a dynamic energy.” Hoppe agrees that Kirby’s storytelling style is dynamic. “The way his style pulls us through the panels is the work of a maestro,” Hoppe says. “His visuals are exciting and very emotional.” The Jack Kirby Museum, which is in the process of raising money to establish a brickand-mortar location in the future, presents Kirby “as an artist who didn’t just draw superheroes, but contributed to our culture,” says Hoppe. When “The Avengers” and “Fantastic Four” hit theaters later this year, will moviegoers recognize the films’ connections to the determined Jewish boy from the Lower East Side who created the characters? That remains to be seen, but either way, Evanier stresses the importance of Kirby’s legacy. “His legacy is an entire industry that bleeds into movies and television,” Evanier says. “Many artists, including film directors and painters, were influenced by Jack. He was very proud of those making a living in an industry he saved.”

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FEATURE l BY DEBORAH FINEBLUM SCHABB l jns.org

FEELING BLUE, IN THE BIBLICAL SENSE The return of tekhelet dye revives lost mitzvah

ne wouldn’t expect to find hundreds of snails in a landlocked town like Kfar Adumim, situated in the desert east of Jerusalem. Yet there they are, albeit mostly reduced to powder, having been shipped in from the Adriatic Sea for a purpose as old as the Torah itself. Millions of Jews throughout history have recited the line in the daily prayers in which God instructs Moses to tell the Israelites to “place upon the tzitzit of each corner a thread of tekhelet.” Translated as “turquoise wool,” the blue strings of tekhelet (or techeilis) were to be inserted among the white tzitzit strings to remind the garment’s wearer of two of God’s greatest—and bluest—creations: ocean and sky. Yet many Jews probably have no idea that, thanks to a unique fusion of scientific and religious passion, this commandment is once again available to the masses after a hiatus of nearly 1,400 years.

L’CHAIM SAN DIEGO MAGAZINE • APRIL 2015

“Techeiles is a quintessential example of science and Torah working hand in hand,” Baruch Sterman, a physicist and author (with his wife Judy) of “The Rarest Blue: The Remarkable Story of an Ancient Color Lost to History and Rediscovered,” says. “After 25 years of studying it, I’m still learning about both aspects.” The Talmud defines the tekhelet dye as derived from the “blood” of a rare amphibious snail known as the chilazon. The mitzvah to wear a thread of that dye on one’s tallit is mentioned multiple times in the Torah. But the tekhelet supply ground to a complete halt following the Muslim conquest of the land of Israel in 638 CE, when Jews were cut off from their local source of the chilazon. Though many theories surfaced over the years, even the most educated Jews had no concrete proof of which modern-day creature the Talmud’s chilazon actually was. Due to that mystery,

the mitzvah of tekhelet was largely lost, becoming a source of puzzlement for centuries. Now, thanks in large part to a few enterprising individuals and some enthusiastic rabbis, what appears to be original chilazon has been found—and tekhelet strings are being dyed in a fashion much like the process performed by our ancestors. More than 20 years ago, a rabbinical student named Eliyahu Tavger was conducting a search for the authentic dying process. In 1988, he succeeded in dying wool with the extract of the murex trunculus snail’s gland. At the same time, a young American-born immigrant to Israel named Joel Guberman—looking for some way to honor the memory of his brother, who was killed in a car accident—became fascinated with the ancient mitzvah. He recruited two friends who had scuba-dived in the past, and they met up with Tavger for an undersea hunt for murex specimens at the waterfront near Acre. They found a whopping 293. Before long, Tavger came up with a formula for releasing the dye into the woolen threads. After that initial dunk, the friends formed Ptil Tekhelet, a non-profit based in the Kfar Adumim tekhelet factory.

PHOTO CREDIT: SPUTNIKCCCP VIA WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

At the tekhelet factory in Kfar Adumim, Israel, a tour guide from the Ptil Tekhelet non-profit shows how a piece of wool, dipped into the solution for the Hexaplex (Murex) trunculus-based dye, turns into leek-like green in sunlight and eventually into blue with a purple hue.

PHOTO CREDIT: PTIL TEKHELET

FEATURE

Baruch Sterman (left) and Joel Guberman, two founders of the Ptil Tekhelet non-profit, at the tekhelet factory in Kfar Adumim, Israel.

Two decades later, more than 200,000 Jews from the liberal to the observant wear the blue thread on their tallit and tzitzit. What began the first year with 300 tekheletinfused garments is now at a production rate of 150,000 per year, a figure that grows 10-20 percent annually. The customers are primarily from the U.S. and Israel and typically buy the garments at Judaica stores or directly from the Israeli factory. All thanks to this one little snail. On a tour of the factory, visitors will meet several of the snails at the aquarium in the facility’s lobby, naturally camouflaged to resemble stones. Visitors dunk their own ball of combed wool into a beaker filled with powdered gland extract and chemicals, to bring out the brilliant blue. Once dyed, the thread’s color never fades. “If you hold water in your hand or look at the air around you, both look clear,” Guberman says. “You have to step back enough to see that the sea and the sky are blue. The techeilis reminds us that we need

to take the long view of life to really appreciate it.” Indeed, according to author and psychiatrist Rabbi Abraham Twerski, “White symbolizes purity and blue, the color of the heavens, represents holiness. The white combined with the blue techeilis conveys the message that a mortal can indeed achieve a state of holiness, and the techeilis string points the direction to a truly spiritual life.” Rabbi Berel Wein—a Jerusalem-based author, lawyer, historian, and tehkelet fan—adds, “Techeilis has become a living issue. It has left the exclusivity of the study hall and entered into the everyday life of tens of thousands of Jews the world over.” Baruch Sterman, who was on the 1988 diving mission to find the murex specimens and went on to co-found the Ptil Tekhelet

non-profit, says it’s no coincidence that this mitzvah was rediscovered by the Jewish people only after they had regained their homeland in 1948. “Just like we never stopped believing that we would someday be allowed to return home, we also never gave up on discovering the source of this beautiful mitzvah,” he says.

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HUMOR l BY STEPHANIE LEWIS

mazel &

mishagoss I inherited bad jeans!

s I schlepped through the mall looking for the perfect pair of pants, I debated which was more enjoyable, bathing suit shopping or trying on jeans? I chose option three—having my wisdom teeth removed. I don’t mean to kvetch, but surely Levi Strauss didn’t intend for this item of apparel to be so form-fitting that the outline of every chocolate-covered matzo you ingested during Passover can still be seen? Let’s examine trends. First came “BellBottom” jeans, then “Boot Cut” followed by “Boyfriend” jeans. Finally someone got smart and invented “Mom jeans” directly after “Not Your Daughter’s Jeans.” Now I’m proposing, “Not My Muffin-Top” jeans. If that sells well, my final contribution to denim heaven will be, “I Ate at DZ Akins and Still Got This Zipper Up” jeans. As I wandered in front of a display with an older, full-figured, wrinkled mannequin (oh wait, that was a mirror!) I came upon “Relaxed” jeans and “Distressed” jeans. 34

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Could “Plotz” and “Nudnik” jeans be far behind? But lest we lull ourselves into a false sense of comfort and security within the fashion industry, beware of “Yeast Infection” jeans, AKA “Skinny Jeans,” right ladies? I once circulated on the Internet that Skinny Jeans are a major fashion faux pas, but Snopes keeps declaring that’s an urban legend. Darn. It’s complicated where jeans should sit on your torso too. There’s low-rise, (which are supposed to make men’s temperature rise!) mid-rise, sunrise, but I’m still hoping for stock market-rise jeans. Oh! And you must never make the humiliating mistake of calling them “slacks,” or a salesgirl will raise her eyebrows and promptly march you over to “the girdle section,” instead of the Spanx. Like there’s a difference? Before I escaped Nordstrom, an overly helpful manager named Fran took my arm, offering a guided tour. She pointed out new colors in plum, turquoise, buttercup yellow, seafoam green, mustard, and burnt sienna.

Because self-consciousness always looks better cloaked in Crayola colors! If I thought browsing was fun, I was in for the time of my life once coerced into the dressing room. “Ms. Lewis in fitting room 2…how’s that size 16 working out for you?” blared Fran, over the department store’s PA system. Fran repeatedly returned to harass, err—check on me, bringing new items (that she just knew I would simply adore) until I finally told her to pretend she worked in Walmart and disappear. I consoled myself thinking lots of things probably come between Brook Shields and her Calvins nowadays. As I shyly approached the cash register, I hid my item away from Fran’s prying eyes. “Baggy, saggy, craggy, shaggy, haggy trouser style” proclaimed my label. “With 88% Spandex.” Just as I wondered what the other 12% could be (Fran-dex?) she cheerily (but suspiciously) remarked, “I’ll be seeing you very shortly!” “Fat chance” I thought to myself (laughing at my pun) and drove home, where I immediately discovered the plastic store security tag firmly attached to the pocket of my new Trouble Shooter jeans. Grrrrrrr. Naturally. Fran works on commission! STEPHANIE D. LEWIS IS A REGULAR CONTRIBUTOR FOR THE HUFFINGTON POST AND HER HUMOR BLOG CAN BE FOUND ONLINE AT ONCEUPONYOURPRIME.COM HER BOOK, “LULLABIES & ALIBIS” IS AVAILABLE ON AMAZON. FOLLOW HER ON TWITTER @ MISSMENOPAUSE

MONTUBOX: A BOX FULL OF SURPRISES EVERY MONTH If you get dizzy just thinking about spending an afternoon looking at the shelves of a big box toy store, it might be that you are not at the right place, or looking for the right gift for your child. Most moms (and grandmas!) would prefer their children to engage in crafts and projects, puzzles and books, than to get another fad toy that will end up gathering dust. But high quality offerings for kids are hard to come by at national retailers, or even at the smaller boutique toy stores. Enter Montubox. Montubox is a monthly subscription service that delivers a box-full of creative activities for the child, every month. It´s gotten rave reviews by bloggers, and quickly become a favorite of busy working moms, and of “bubbes” who want to treat their grandkids (and remind them every month of their love!). Each box is curated personally by the founders of the company, who travel Toy Fairs and Trade Shows around the country to find fun, hands-on projects that foster creativity, learning and imagination. Geared towards 4 to 9 year old kids the box will feature a different theme every month: weather, transportation, space and planets- and will be specifically tailored for the child´s age range. “I love to see Sarah´s face when the delivery guy rings and we discover the box at our doorstep”, says Sophia, a subscriber. “And then as she opens the box and explores the surprises in it. They projects and books keep her busy for hours.” The Montubox subscription makes a great gift. It makes for a great way to bond with the kids working on the projects, or keep them entertained and away from the screens.

NOVELTY AND LEARNING According to research, novelty is one of the great stimulators for the learning process. The hippocampus - one of the main brain regions involved in discovering, processing and storing new sensory impressions, is more activated by novelty than familiar stimuli. That´s why it appears that children learn more quickly when presented with a new game or book. Novelty could actually improve memory and learning capability. “Receiving a box full of products each month is not only a delight for the kids, but a boost to their memory and learning skills” said Daniela Atri, co-founder of the company.

VISIT WWW.MONTUBOX.COM OR INFO@MONTUBOX.COM

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HEADLINES

NEWS

TO KNOW

NOW WHAT WE’RE TALKING ABOUT

NORTH COUNTY JEWISH SENIORS

The North County Jewish Seniors Club meets the third Thursday of each month at 12:30 p.m. at the Oceanside Senior Center, 455 Country Club Lane, Oceanside. The program includes speakers on current subjects and personal experiences. The speaker on April 16 is Linda Levier, a heart implant recipient. She will speak on her life-saving operation and how she overcame her condition successfully. Refreshments will be served. Call (760) 295-2564 for more information.

STAND WITH US PRESENTS “ORCHESTRA OF EXILES”

StandWithUs San Diego presents a screening of “Orchestra of Exiles” at the ArcLight Cinemas in La Jolla, May 21 at 7 p.m. Featuring Itzhak Perlman, Zubin Mehta, Pichas Zukerman, Joshua Bell and others, “Orchestra of Exiles” is the ramatic story of Bronislaw Huberman, the celebrated Polish violinist who rescued some of the world’s greatest musicians from Nazi Germany and then created the one of the world’s greatest orchestras, the Palestine Symphony Orchestra, which would become the Israeli Philharmonic. A VIP reception will be held one hour prior to the screening for $75 and include tickets to the screening. Tickets to the screening alone are $25, or $10 for students. Academy Award-nominated director Josh Aronson will be on hand for a Q&A session following the screening for all guests. Register online at StandWithUs.com/ OrchestraOfExilesSD or call (858) 598-8220.

BRANDEIS’ BOOK & AUTHOR LUNCHEON

The San Dieguito Chapter of the Brandeis National Committee will hold its annual Book and Author Luncheon at the Sheraton Carlsbad Resort on Wednesday, May 6 at 11:30 a.m. Of all the fund-raising events held by the BNC in support of Brandeis University, the Book and Author Luncheon is closest to our members’ hearts and interests. The organization was formed in 1948, the year the university was founded, to put books on the shelves of the library (which was originally housed in a stable building). Since then, BNC has raised funds for over 2 million books, endowed a Librarian’s Chair, provided work and scholarships, and outfitted a science lab. The current focus is on raising $3 million in three years for scholarships and research in the neurosciences and neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s Diseases. All proceeds from the luncheon will be designated for this Sustaining the Mind campaign, which ends this June. Three award-winning authors, all mystery writers from California will be present at the luncheon. Alan Russell is the bestselling author of eleven novels, from whodunits to comedy to suspense. Russell and his works have been nominated for most of the major awards in crime fiction. Aline Ohanesian’s great-grandmother was a survivor of the Armenian Genocide, which provides the background for her first novel, Orhan’s Inheritance. Taffy Cannon is the author of fourteen mysteries and wrote the “Booked for Travel” mystery series under the pseudonym Emily Toll. A moderator will soon be announced. For more information, to hear the lunch menu, or to make a reservation, contact bncfnp@aol.com or cfsbirnbaum@gmail.com. 36

L’CHAIM SAN DIEGO MAGAZINE • APRIL 2015

HEADLINES

ADOPT A FAMILY FOUNDATION EVENT Adopt a Family Foundation will host its annual fundraiser on Saturday, April 18. Music is the theme of the evening: Am Echad, Shir Echad–One People, One Song. The significance of the theme is to promote healing through music for Adopt a Family Foundation’s victims of terror and to strengthen bonds and harmony for all. A portion of the proceeds of the evening will sponsor music therapy for the children of Sderot who have been affected by PTSD. The event will be held at Green Acre, 10300 Campus Point Drive, San Diego, from 8-11 p.m. Sheryl Goodman and Doris Elihu are this years co-chairs. Dan Cohen, of local CBS News 8 will emcee the evening. The event will feature award-winning director Laura Bialis, a dinner, a silent auction and a musical performance by the widely acclaimed Todo Mundo. For tickets and more information, visit AdoptAFamilyFoundation.org.

22ND ANNUAL LIPINSKY FAMILY SAN DIEGO JEWISH ARTS FESTIVAL

The San Diego REPertory Theatre (San Diego REP) hosts the 22nd annual Lipinsky Family San Diego Jewish Arts Festival from May 21 to July 26, 2015. The festival is a celebration of artistic expressions of Jewish history, traditions and ideas. Along with a full slate of performances at San Diego and North County venues, the festival is rich in culture, talent and Jewish soul. Festival performances are staged at various venues throughout San Diego County including San Diego REPertory Theatre, the historic Balboa Theatre, Encinitas Library and the AVO Playhouse. For more information, visit SDRep.org.

JCC PRESENTS ADULT WELLNESS SUMMER CAMPS

Kids won’t be the only one’s having fun in La Jolla this summer. For the first time, the Lawrence Family JCC is giving San Diego adults the opportunity to start their summer with a focus on health and wellness through a series of exercise and educational camp sessions. These camps, designed by JCC Fitness Director Robyn Cohen and Wellness Instructor, Cathy Kohler, are broken down into three sessions per day with topics ranging from personal well-being and stress reduction to nutritional education and healthy cooking. Along with the traditional classes such as fitness, circuit and strength training, these sessions will also incorporate unique classes such as hula hoop, art and meditation. This camp will also include the introduction of the brand new Pound Workout, where participants combine strength training with simulated percussion drumming. Camps will be held in two formats to accommodate people with varied schedules and all sessions will take place at the Lawrence Family JCC Jacobs Family Campus. All fitness levels are welcome. Session One consists of nine total camp hours that runs on three Sundays; June 14, 28 and July 12, from 9:30 a.m. -12:30 p.m. Cost is $170. Session Two, held during the week, consists of 18 total camp hours that will run for a two-week period from June 15-June 26. Camp meets only on Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 9:30 a.m. -12:30 p.m. Cost is $380. JCC members will receive 20% off any session they choose. To registers contact Robyn Cohen at robync@lfjcc.org or call (858) 362-1340.

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L’CHAIM SAN DIEGO MAGAZINE • APRIL 2015

CHRISTOPHER ROUNTREE conducts LEONARD BERNSTEIN

SYMPHONY NO. 1 “JEREMIAH” HEATHER JOHNSON, mezzo-soprano CHARLES IVES

SYMPHONY NO. 2 WORLD PREMIERE

The Moon in La Jolla by Yeung-ping Chen Sat. May 2 at 7:30 pm • Sun. May 3 at 2:00 pm MANDEVILLE AUDITORIUM, UCSD Free pre-concert lecture by conductor one hour prior to concert times.

Tickets $15 - $29 858-534-4637 www.lajollasymphony.com WWW.LCHAIMMAGAZINE.COM