Yay for Girl Power!

One of the benefits of feeling better is that I have much more energy to do the things I haven't been able to do over the past few years. One of these is to attend events of our "Rosh Hodesh" girls' group at the synagogue. We have many different youth groups at our synagogue, but one that really stands out is one that is set aside for Junior High School-aged girls. The program is based on one created by Moving Traditions. According to their website:

Rosh Hodesh: It’s a Girl Thing! is the first proactive, informal education program that uses Judaism to enrich the lives of girls. It draws on Jewish tradition to give girls a place to feel safe, articulate their questions and concerns, have fun, and be ‘real’ with their peers.

Small groups of girls meet monthly with a carefully trained adult leader who uses our step-by-step manual. Through discussion, arts & crafts, and drama, the girls integrate core Jewish values as they focus on the things they care about most, such as body image, friendship, relationships, competition, stress, and family.

We had a program today, held at "Make" - one of those pottery places that allows you to create your own ceramic items. We painted our very own menorahs for the upcoming holiday of Chanukah.

As a young, female rabbi, I really treasure the opportunity to spend time every month with pre-teen girls, and I show them that a woman can do whatever she wants when she grows up. I can chat with the dozen girls who are there, I can be accessible to them, and maybe, just maybe, one of them will want to be a rabbi when she grows up. That would truly be incredible. The feeling of sisterhood, and the sense that I am passing on the tradition, is so special.