Sarah and Larry’s eldest son had his bar mitzvah yesterday, which is one reason why it’s been extremely quiet on this blog this weekend. He did a wonderful job. After the service, he and I were discussing how he did, and I asked how he’d grade himself. “Eight out of ten,” he said, which comes out to about an A-minus. I agreed with him then, but a little later I thought he was wrong, and that he deserves an A. Nine out of ten. I think he did an excellent job.
Sarah used Yossi, the man who catered my bat mitzvah, and who did a wonderful job with the food. There was bourekas, of course, and all kinds of good things to eat. I got to meet Sarah and Larry’s family and friends, who are all very nice people. And I was talked into one game of Laser Tag at the evening party. It’s fun, but boy, it’s tiring. I was sitting at the table afterward talking with a couple of the girls and explaining to them that I didn’t do as well as I used to because I’m old and tired, and the bright little pre-teen said, “Well, yeah!”
Sigh.
Then again, I think I made a friend for life in another girl, who was reading a book of horror stories and who told me she really liked vampires. “Have you seen Buffy?” I asked. She said yes, but not much. I offered her my DVD collection, so she and her brother and mom came over to my house (all of three minutes from Laser Tag) to pick them up. I gave them the nickel tour, and Hannah was absolutely overwhelmed by my DVDs, choice of reading material, and finally, the fact that I have a comic book collection in my guest room.
I received the ultimate compliment from a twelve-year-old: “If you have kids, they will NOT be embarrassed about you.”
Heh. Yeah, I’m the cool aunt. I’ve known that for a while now. But it’s nice to get credit for it now and again.
That was my third bar or bat mitzvah in the last month. They were coming about two weeks apart, and now I get a break until my next class starts having their b’nai mitzvot. Which will be this fall.
I think I’ll offer my services as a substitute at the Reform synagogue down the road from me. I really do miss being around kids every week.
Mazel tov/Yasher Koach to Jake, and you do indeed sound like the ‘cool aunt’ but I have to tell you, that the well-meaning twelve year old who said “If you have kids, they will NOT be embarrassed about you†is ignorant of the psychology of children. Starting from about age 9 or 10, any kids you have WILL be embarrassed about you no matter how cool you are — and as teenagers, part of their definition of cool will be the opposite of whatever you like.
TMA [who does share his manga with his children]
I think I have a recipe for those somewhere.