Practicing birthday inclusion; inspiring world peace

Happy peace day to the world!
Here are my worlds colliding...

It’s not that I try to be inclusive, it’s just who I am. So when it came to the auspicious occasion of my 10th birthday, the celebration inadvertently became the party of all birthday parties.

Let’s be real, Thursday was a historic day, bringing together unlikely sides to sign a groundbreaking peace agreement. But that was coming on the heels of my pwn party where my worlds collided with aplomb …and fun. A true enactment of “the table of brotherhood.” 

Speaking of brotherhood, Lucas is always
hard-pressed to not be the center of attention

And it all started with me celebrating my first in-country birthday since I was 1. We decided to coincide the timing and location of the party with a farewell to my group leaders at Shalva. Thanks to coronavirus, Shalva was suddenly shut down two weeks ago and we never had a proper group goodbye.

My guest list expanded from the Shalva girls, who fearlessly led our group this disjointed year, to include other volunteers from Shalva, some of my friends in our group and then expanded exponentially with an invitation to my second grade (going on third) at school.

We pulled this off in less than 24 hours. Mommy and Daddy worried about things like kosher and gluten-free food. We threw some picnic blankets on the grass at Shalva’s inclusive park (in keeping with the theme of my party). 

We broke bread together. Or cake.

No I'm not smoking a peace pipe

Bringing together people from different backgrounds shouldn’t be that hard. Here we were —kids with and without extra chromosomes; Jews, Muslims, Christians and even atheists — singing Happy Birthday in Hebrew and Arabic to a Christian and an Orthodox Jew respectively.

My Shalva leaders cried buckets of tears watching me interact with the neuro-typical friends from school while the parents gazed in amazement at these teenagers who have dedicated years of their lives to volunteer with kids like me. It was a mutual admiration society.

And then, minutes later, clearly taking a queue from my playbook, Pres. Donald Trump announced a historic peace treaty, the first between Israel and a Muslim state in a quarter of a decade!

I am so proud and elated that my friends and I were the inspiration for world peace! 

Leaders of the world, next time you’re looking for a peace treaty, you might want to call us.

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Shabbat Shiluv! Er, Shalom...

I put my own spin on a few of the Sabbath customs...

Every Friday, as we leave school on Friday for the weekend we say, "Shabbat shalom!" Peaceful Saturday, Day of Rest.

All very nice, but none of which applies to a house full of babies. "Day of rest" is better known as "wishful thinking" for parents of small children. The Ten Commandments of Babies address the day thus: "Remember the Sabbath to wake up even earlier than normal and be more stir crazy than usual and prevent your parents from resting." This is our way of keeping it holy. Can I get an amen??

But this week at school was a little bit different as I was Yeled Shel Shabbat (the Sabbath Child) for our own pre-Shabbat ceremony. This means that the proper greeting today was Shabbat Shiluv - Shabbat of Integration!

Integration works best when things, well, integrate. Like a great recipe where all the ingredients meld together for a single flavorful dish. Or an orchestra where various instruments, all different, make beautiful music together.

Definition of integration in education: "To bring people or groups with particular characteristics or needs into equal participation in or membership of a social group or institution: ex. integrating children with special needs into ordinary schools" thereby making those ordinary schools extraordinary. (I may have added the last part.)

Yes, a high calling rests upon our shoulders to bring these schools up to "extra."

Each week, one of us students gets to lead the Shabbat ceremony: blessing the bread and the wine/grape juice, lighting the candles (playing with fire!) and showing and telling what our families do on the weekend.

Here I am showing and telling along with Avi, my teacher

This week was my turn in the starring role. I donned a spiffy sweater, brushed my swirl into control and prepared my show and tell. I also introduced my own spin on certain traditions. For example, I symbolically cover my mouth instead of my eyes when praying. "Guard your steps as you go to the house of God ...  let your words be few." (Ecclesiastes 5:1)

Thankfully I am surrounded by a team that encourages me to thrive, starting from the principal Udi (who considers himself more 'pal' and less 'prince' and, to me, very much 'advocate'); my teacher Avi (who is actually a musician whose daily gig is to enthrall us preschoolers with music, Zumba and the most obscure facts such as what snails eat); teacher assistant Shula (who doubles as my life and acting coach and is the best hallah bread baker, who did a superb job today with mommy's whole wheat flour, by the way); and, last but never least, my personal assistant Talia (who doubles as my girlfriend, taking me on dates and caring for my intellectual and social well being during the day).

And then there is my fan base, better known as my friends - all the students in the class.

We all work together to create a better society. After each day of creation, God observed the enthralling things he had made and "he saw that it was good." And then, after six days of goodness, he rested.

May we too rest in the fact that all creation is good, if not great. And thanks to such camaraderie that creates a better society and a better me, we can have a Shabbat of shalom and shiluv.

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