Just for fun:
This Chanukkah, Temple Isaiah spread Chanukkah cheer by dancing in a flash mob at Walnut Creek's Broadway Plaza. It was a blast to dance in front of everybody in the Plaza!
This week we learned about the Ashkenazi Jews in Europe in the 18th and early 19th century. The Jews were offered political equality and citizenship in the nations of Europe. Before the Industrial and French Revolutions, the Jews considered themselves a separate nation. They lived in ghettos, but could finally become professionals, manufacturers, and sometimes (in France, and eventually other countries) become citizens. The Rothschilds were a dramatic symbol of Jewish success in the new era in Europe. In Italy, Germany, Austria and Hungary, Jews were given political rights. There was a new social class, the industrial working class. Jews became merchants, manufacturers and professionals.
Today, we learned about the blues, and how klezmer music is often thought of as the "blues" of the Ashkenazi Jews. Borne of hard times, both musical genres express sadness and hope. We even wrote some verses to a 12 bar call and response blues song based upon the difficult life of Jews in the ghettos of Europe. Here are the first two verses, and a link to the song "Stormy Monday," which is the basis for the lyrics that we wrote today. Try to sing along, or write a verse of your own!
The Jewish Ghetto Blues
By Shira
My life here in the ghetto is hard as it can be
My life here in the ghetto is hard as it can be.
Because I'm Jewish, my destiny is misery.
With sadness on my shoulders, I bench (pray) four times a day.
With sadness on my shoulders, I bench (pray) four times a day.
With all this praying, they still don't treat me the same way.
We also had the opportunity to see and hold some really old Hebrew prayer books, with Yiddish and English.
In Hebrew through movement, we are learning our directions (left, right, front and back) and how to count in Hebrew.
Also, we are also learning how to dance to Mayim Mayim:
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