Saving the best for last has a tinge of sadness for me as I write my final column as HHAI Principal. An opportunity to reflect back on my highest priorities over the last 16 years, I am proud to have consistently touted our students above and beyond the numbers game whether in enrollment demographics or our financial balance sheet/dinei nifashot above dinei mamanot. I have quipped that those problems in life that money can solve, let it solve for true problems cannot be solved with money thrown at them.

Prospection, the term for imagining the future, helps our lives become more generous and meaningful while also allowing us to more robustly and prudently consider the multiple paths we might take in said future. At a time when we are living in an ‘imagination emergency’, when our collective imagination muscles have atrophied to the point where we are unable to offer solutions to our myriad of compounding problems, imagining the future triggers anxiety and a sense of foreboding overwhelming angst.

Children, however, provide the anchor for an aspirational future and are the lens by which we might make decisions amidst this ubiquitous uncertainty and complexity. If we embrace the idea of imagination as a strategy, then the collective imaginings of our students play an inextricable role in helping us write the plan which moves their education forward.  In Judaism, they are regarded as the collateral, the guarantors on the Divine loan of the Torah gifted to us at Sinai thousands of years ago / baneinu orvim otanu. 

Significantly, I have endeavored to make someone’s day be it a student or staff member daily for each of the 180 days of the school year, believing that sincere compliments cost nothing but reap enormous dividends. People's weaknesses and vulnerabilities glare at us while often their unique strengths, their best qualities, are latent and need to be honed to be best appreciated. Compliments make others feel valued, appreciated and respected; they are small actions that brighten others' day and simultaneously enrich our own.

My top ten ‘will sorely miss’ aspects of principalship include the nachat of student empowerment and the thrill of their growth trajectories, the creative and innovative programming and electives buzzing throughout the building, the integration of the arts and technology into Humanities, STEM and Judaics, the Design Thinking process (projects yielding the Holocaust Museum and Tefilla room), the joy of holiday celebrations and traditions with gleeful Middle Schoolers as well as toddlers, early morning arrival time and games with smiling energetic kids, character development through Jewish values, leading and learning from some of the most acclaimed teachers in the state and the incredible parent support and appreciation even as I joke that the best place to be principal is in an orphanage! 

Someday I will write a book …. for now, I will simply thank you for the privilege of leadership of this fine institution for 16 years.

The weekly pressure of writing Shabbat Shalom articles will not be something I will miss doing in my upcoming retirement. Suffice it to say, it will be among the top ten things I won’t miss about being principal of HHAI along with the icy parking lot, finding subs for subs, and from the ridiculous to the sublime, having the awesome responsibility for the safety and onus of the educational mandate for all of the students upon me. Having written over 600 articles over my tenure here, I have depleted my muses of critical and creative thinking inspiration on trending educational Jewish topics. While 16 years ago, it took me so much longer to keyboard an article than to actually compose it, I am at the finish line stage of serious writer’s block now such that just thinking of original and interesting topics to write about is a significant challenge!

Writer’s block is defined as ’the inability to begin or continue writing for reasons other than a lack of basic skill or commitment.’ The syndrome is measured in intervals in which writers unsuccessfully attempt to put something on paper while experiencing little or no meaningful engagement in the process due to internal or external distraction, a lack of motivation or trouble articulating or organizing the argument thesis.  Suggested antidotes include just getting anything down on paper including freewriting lists, mind mapping, webbing, or even doodling, as well as taking a breather and going for fresh air as walking outdoors generates semantic and automatic memory. Truth be told, we all experience life ’blocks’ at some point professionally as well as personally in avoidance of or becoming stymied by tasks and obligations where we are indeed ‘stuck’ mired in anxiety, perfectionism and lack of motivation, simply unable to move forward. 

Being compelled to do something versus freely opting for it exacerbates the onerous attitude towards its fulfillment. In fact, the Talmud opines that delivering on one’s expectations is greater than voluntary acts of service-gadol hamitzuveh vioseh misheaino mitzuveh vioseh. Yet, autonomy is a basic human need and an arena in which children thrive. Academically and socioemotionally, independence is a rich motivator for children empowering them to choose how to depict their knowledge as well as boosting their confidence and self-image to try new things and resiliently grapple with new experiences and change. Psychologists contend that one of the reasons for the uptick in childhood anxieties over the recent years is not only Covid trauma based but importantly a byproduct of our harried digital lives, safety concerns and scheduled extra curriculars such that children rarely have opportunities for choice and independence to walk to a park, store or complete errands on their own, insufficiently building their self-images as capable and successful to fly solo.

As one of the suggestions to combat writer’s block is to compose one paragraph at a time as clearly evidenced by the stream of consciousness drivel you are reading, I will conclude this article leaning into next week’s column of the top ten things I will sorely miss about being principal at HHAI and not surprisingly, they center around the positive gifts and blessings I have been afforded in interacting with supportive parents, superlative staff and dearest of all, hundreds of students. That article will write itself. No writer’s block to contend with!

On a recent trip, I had occasion to travel from JFK airport to a family event in an Uber. When sliding into the back seat, I noticed a rather large guitar strewn across the seat and inquired about its presence to the driver, who promptly explained that indeed passengers often leave valuables in the trunk or back seat, even hard to miss bulky items to his amazement! The driver shared Uber fun facts with me including that most lost items are left between 9:00-10:00 pm and that Miami passengers are notorious for leaving belongings behind.  Amongst the weirdest items left behind were a hair toupee, police grade handcuffs, a tub of surgical implants, live turtles, oysters, spiders, a fake tooth, a candle that read ‘See You in Court’ and incredulously a Jeep Liberty car engine! The conversation riveted the fifteen-minute ride and left me pondering the sociological significance of this modern transportation phenomenon as well as the intensely personal nature of our ‘disposable’ wealth and discretionary spending. One man’s junk is literally another’s treasure.

We vacillate between hedonic adaptation on the one hand, building larger and more luxurious homes, careers and communities (ironically preferring spending money on leisure experiences rather than material ‘stuff’, as we constantly seek the how of happiness) and affective forecasting on the other, predicting our future emotions and mental wellbeing by building ourselves and our intrinsic personal set points. Mimetic desire wreaks havoc with our goals and aspirations, as we often desire others’ definition of success rather than our own, collectively wanting something which ultimately won’t bring us personal satisfaction.

Essayist Anais Nin penned the following quote which resonates strongly in the world of education, especially with the asynchronous high ability students who may present with emotional intensity and meltdowns parallel to their academic giftedness and cognitive passion: “We do not grow absolutely chronologically. We grow sometimes in one dimension and not in another, unevenly. We grow partially. We are relative- mature in one realm, childish in another. The past, present and future pull us backward, forward or fix us in the moment.” 

Nationally, yesteryear’s life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness are being called into question with college campus protest takeovers unseen since the Vietnam War and the overt spewing of vile antisemitism across the country. We grapple with our deeply held values, our identities as Jews and as Americans. What is truly meaningful and what is fleeting and illusionary. We wonder if we are reliving the Germany of the 1930’s…

We have begun the seasonal studying of Ethics of the Fathers on the longer summer Shabbat afternoons, a treasure trove of pithy aphorisms, character insights and life lessons written by the authors of the Mishna, the Oral Law. Despite their intellectual prowess, these were tradesmen and artisans rather than high powered professionals and yet their words penned nearly two thousand years ago reverberate clearly in our modern society particularly in the ‘artificial intelligence’ milieu.

Ben Zoma (4;1) queried: Azehu ashir/ who  is wealthy, and responded  hasameach  bichelko, the one who has achieved personal satisfaction. Similarly, the Mishna (4;21) states that hakina, hataava vihakavod / jealousy, pursuit of honor and material indulgence motzeim et haadam min haolam/remove a person from the world, from what we truly want. We are enjoined to challenge ourselves and our children to pursue genuine personal satisfaction and inculcate our own spiritual set points rather than pursuing societal pressures if we are to even recognize the frightening world in which we live.

Speaking of being pulled backwards in time, I have had my fill of exotic animals and insects from alligators and lizards to palmetto bugs from growing up in Miami Beach and certainly hope that no careless Miamian leaves some Floridian fauna behind in an Uber!

My ‘happy time’ in school is 3:20 dismissal with the Oak classroom sitting in the front lobby. Young children are uninhibited and will tell all through their adorable conversations as well as their wiggly body language. My ‘happy place‘ in school draws me to the engineering acumen of toddlers and pre-kindergarteners observing their collaboration, planning, design and construction phases akin to the Biblical Tower of Babel in ambitious cope and communication miscues! There is a true metaphorical comparison to the ancient building debacle in that language incompatibility was their seeming downfall, the word bavel referencing G-d’s confusing the languages causing frustration and preventing the completion of the project.

Fascinatingly, recent research from the University of California Berkley sheds light on the innate mechanical aptitude of toddlers possess in this Gen Alpha age totally ‘getting’ apps on phones and figuring out toys and gadgets long before the adults in their lives. Psychologists Lucas and Gopnik tested 100 preschoolers and a parallel group of collegiates to determine what goes on in the early childhood brain enabling them to speak the digital language of engineering. The children were brought into the lab and shown a music box that could be activated by placing clay shapes individually or in combination on top of the box. After being shown a series of shapes and combinations, the children were asked to make the machine turn independently. Surprisingly, they found that not only were the three year olds amazingly good at completing the task but that they were actually better than the adults in the study.

 The researchers hypothesized that inasmuch as abstract thinking including cause and effect relationships does not fully develop into later in child development, the success of the toddlers may have been based upon their flexible and fluid approach to problem solving. Exploratory learning including novel ideas and unusual stargazes comes naturally to young children while adults gravitate to the first and most obvious solution, and stick with it even if it is not working. When the solution is unconventional and unexpected, young children experimenting with divergent options were more successful. Significantly, the study concluded that this flexibility of problem solving disappears relatively quickly as even kindergarteners were less successful than toddlers at focusing upon the relationship between the objects rather than being distracted by the objects themselves.

In my other 'happy place’ in school, the Middle School Judaic classes, I was amazed at the dexterity and perseverant resilience of students assembling miniature musical instrument models, a project related to the study of the Biblical trumpets utilized in the desert by Moshe. Interestingly, all seemingly possessed the mechanical aptitude and engineering mindset required for the complex construction directions and only one or two were challenged to manipulate the tiny pieces. I, on the other hand, was stymied to complete even the first step of the design task, an important instructional perspective reverberating in my mind about students’ attitude and motivation toward the acquisition of new skills. Feeling inept and overwhelmed by unfamiliar material eviscerates confidence in risk taking and the requisite determined focus to persevere amidst challenge.

Pesach is upon us and Hagada illustration images of the Jewish slaves building the ancient Egyptian storehouse pyramids are proof positive that engineering is in our collective national DNA. As for the musical instruments, Miriam the Biblical prophetess inspired the women to take tambourines out of Egypt anticipating a future celebration while Miriam Gettinger has no visionary, musical nor engineering acumen in my DNA!

Wishing all a chag kasher vismaeach!

ILearn state tests are upon us. Importantly, scoring metrics and ratings are controversial in that we are challenged to quantitatively measure student performance without regard for the ‘soft skills’ better named ‘life skills’ component of students’ annual yearly progress. And if this is true of individual students, it is even truer of collective bodies and educational institutions. School climate, staff and student morale, service learning, parent satisfaction and community perception are “value added’ assessments which must be factored in alongside standardized test scores to glean an accurate snapshot of the school’s status.

Significantly, there is yet another measure of school success in longitudinal alumni tracking. Michael Chun of the University of Hawaii famously quipped: “Great schools are measured not by the accomplishments of their current students but by the lives led by their alumni. Are they active and involved in their communities; are they doing ‘good work ‘that is excellent in quality, socially responsible and meaningful to its practitioners?” Alumni reflection on how schooling prepared or failed to prepare them for occupations, relationships, collaborations, coping, agency, advocacy and leadership can be very telling even at the elementary /middle school level. 

One of the most rewarding aspects of principalship is the interaction with alumni both recent graduates adjusting to high schools both locally and outside of Indianapolis to continue their Jewish education, as well as older mature alums who graduated high school and college and are now working and raising their own families. To me is akin to the nachat one derives from spending time with grandchildren in that it allows one to see a future perspective beyond themselves. Funnily enough, I was principal for both Adin and Galit Sloman having the dubious distinction of having been principal in Indiana’s only two day schools –the South Bend Hebrew Day School and HHAI and shep nachat every day when I see their darling early childhooders☺   Their recent  generous efforts to beautify the front spaces of the school  are testimony to their warm  generational connection.  

At HHAI we enjoy a close relationship with former students who have gone on to a kaleidoscope of diverse institutions and who continue to make us proud with their academic accolades. The list is extensive and includes alumni participation in the drama and arts communally as well as their involvement in Jewish youth groups. synagogues and agencies. Our alumni come back to visit, volunteer, tutor and mentor. They have become doctors, lawyers, ‘Indiana chiefs’ along with engineers, film makers, scientists, rabbis and educators. Some have served in the IDF as lone soldiers and some have actually made Aliyah.  We eagerly look forward to honoring them at our June 10th celebration.

In the traditional spiritual blessings recited by the kindling of Shabbat candles Friday evening, there is a poignant prayer recited for family, particularly for children and grandchildren;” Vizakeini ligadel banim uvinei banim chachamim..zereh kodesh anshei emet..umeirim et haolam baTorah ubichul milechet avodat haboereh’ May I merit raising children and grandchildren who are honest and holy people, who light up the world with Torah and all of G-d’s unique handiwork.’ I feel so blessed to have had this prayer answered in my own personal life as well as in my communal realm!

With Indianapolis being in the direct path of totality for Monday's upcoming full solar eclipse, we are excited to witness an incredible natural light show! The rare positioning of the moon between the earth and sun is not expected in the United States for another two decades and then only in the Dakotas and Montana unlike the April 8th event to be viewed in urban areas from Texas to Maine. Aptly, the following day will be Rosh Chodesh Nissan, the annual starting point of the Jewish lunar calendar and our connection to its monthly renewal and rejuvenation in consecrating time.

The children's classic bedtime book, Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown, has been shelved repeatedly as the most popular in its genre by Goodreads. The anthropomorphic depiction of a bunny's bedtime ritual of saying goodnight to the phenomena in his world, both concrete and abstract, provides reassurance to toddlers embarking upon nighttime separation from their parents. Similarly, the moon is the sailors' best friend, illuminating the endless vastness of the sea and impacting the tides through its gravitational forces. Yet most of all, the moon is inextricably bound with Jewish identity and destiny, symbolic of the waxing and waning of our people throughout the millennia. Hachodesh hazeh lachem/ this month(Nissan) is for you in the establishment of the lunar calendar as the first and paradigmatic of all the Biblical national commandments.

Significantly, the lore surrounding the mitzvah of the Kiddush Hachodesh, the sanctification of the moon, presents ethical character messages especially relevant to the education of children. The Midrash points out that originally the sun and the moon were created as equal in size and stature, the two great luminaries of the heavens. The moon, however, ‘complained, to G-d about this arrangement of two kings and hence G-d seemingly lessened her size and yet gave her the galaxy of stars to appease her. This metaphoric instruction implies that we can overcome pettiness and territorialism in sharing the limelight with others as their brilliance and shine does not detract from our own, a lesson we struggle with from toddlerhood all the way through to adulthood.

Interestingly, the Goodnight Moon story structurally employs rhyme and familiar repetition for the child to best absorb its message and yet it veers into the world of the unfamiliar and atypical with its ‘goodnight mush, goodnight nobody or goodnight air, noises everywhere’ lines. Importantly, tweens between the ages of 9-15 are most impacted by peer pressure and are far more concerned with what their peers think and believe than what values are imparted by their parents and teachers, unwilling to be different than the group or prevailing culture around them in veering off to the familiar beaten path to one uniquely their own. We all struggle with being the cheese that stands alone.

Is the moon really made of green cheese?! Mazel tov to our first graders who will receive their siddurim on Thursday next week and enjoy colorfully sprinkled cupcakes afterward.

March showers bring April flowers. Spring has sprung, a glorious time of the year with warmer temperatures, awakening buds and beautifully captivating flowers around us. Ironically, crowds recently lined up in San Francisco to see and smell the blooming of an endangered tropical flower that releases an awful pungent odor when it opens once in several years. At the California Academy of Sciences, the Amorphophallus Titanium, dubbed ‘the corpse flower’ bloomed for three days, a uniquely rare occurrence as it happens only once every seven to ten years.   In fact, it was the first bloom for this flower since it was donated to the research institute in 2017. Native to Sumatra, an Indonesian island, it is one of less than 1000 such plants in the world nicknamed for its classic stench of rotting meat or fish which it mimics in order to attract pollinators. 

Fascinatingly, in Judaism, the sense of smell is associated with spirituality, deep seeded emotional memories and restorative mental serenity. The ketoret, incense blend offered twice daily in the Temple and the highlight of the dramatic Yom Kippur service in the Holy of Holies, was concocted as a secret recipe reminiscent of the Garden of Eden, G-d infusing life into Adam through his nostrils. Interestingly, though, one of its 11 ingredients, the chelbona galbanum, was actually putrid in its scent, its intensity included to pique the sweetness. Metaphorically, the Talmud suggests a character message of unity through the counterintuitive inclusion of galbanum; all types of people even those with sin and odorous demeanor create a potent social dynamic. Educationally, we are all enriched through diverse perspectives and the devil’s advocate challenge in the classroom or within our own mindset sharpens rather than detracts from the learning process.

Sadly, the national Israeli flower memorializing the death of her fallen heroes is the red anemone/kalanit.  Its brilliant red color bursts forth with intensity in Southern Israel along the Gaza border annually while poignantly this year the red wildflowers now bloom among the ashes of the October 7^th massacre. What an eerie mixed metaphor for the blood and death fertilizing the future hallowed ground of security and prosperity for this Negev region. Normally, there had been a flower festival, Dorom Adom spawning its own nature tourism industry held there at this time of the year; now it has been canceled as yet another casualty of the Gaza war with tanks churning across the fields in place of revelers. Seeing the dramatic red blooms return after so much loss pierces the heart of festival organizer Vered Libman, who initiated the festival 19 years ago after Palestinian terrorists began their rocket barrages from Gaza, as a way to build pride and attract visitors to the region. Tragically, Libman who lost her husband, mother, son and nephew on that fateful October day commented;” On the one hand it’s hard, on the other, it just proves to us that life is stronger than everything and that it renews itself. We will need to find the strength to renew ourselves as well.” 

Yellow daffodils symbolic of the 134 remaining hostages bloom alongside the red anemones... the beauty and the ongoing conflict tug at our heartstrings. May the corpse flower yet bloom and thrive even as an endangered species.

Purim is coming to a theater near you! Purim is celebrated this year on Saturday night and Sunday while exciting pre-festivities were held today in school including the costume parade, carnival and tzedakah chance auctions. Dubbed the ‘reverse Halloween’ as we give rather than request food treats packages in display of communal unity, the focus on costumes, both individual and or family themed enhances the joyous celebration of our salvation from Haman’s diabolical plot to annihilate the Jewish nation, an antecedent of the current global rise of overt anti-Semitism.

The origin of the costume tradition stems from the Midrash regarding King Achasveirosh’ s lavish ball where he donned the vestments of the kohain gadol/ High Priest while utilizing the ancient goblets of the destroyed First Temple, mistakenly proclaiming Daniel’s prophecy of the Temple being rebuilt after 70 years to be defunct. In fact, miniature bigdei keuna vestments are a popular costume in some traditional circles while still others feature sports, cartoon, animal and celebratory icons. Additionally, the theme of masquerade and hidden identity underscores the Megilla narrative where G-d’s name and divine role in directing the miraculous turnabout events is seemingly ‘masked.’   

Costumes are an integral part of performance skills, allowing children to break out of their normal persona mold and ‘be in character’ with whomever they are depicting be it whimsical or historical. ‘Playing the part’ aptly metaphors perspective taking and cognitive /emotional flexibility to imagine the situation from another’s viewpoint and behave accordingly with the requisite empathy, patience and rehearsal. The term “acting out” implies the child is behaving inappropriately for the context and often connotes the difference between the way a child behaves at home with family versus the way they behave in the school structure. Fortunately for us, the latter with its routine and structure is generally where children do not put on a show although we have all witnessed some Oscar performances!

This year’s teacher costume theme was ironically movie characters and I literally and proverbially rolled out the red carpet for them shouting them out as the true stars of HHAI, daily modeling the imperative life skills of flexibility, problem solving and perspective taking for our students. In fact, one of the most insightful quips I heard from a Middle Schooler recently was how hard it is to be a leader when no one follows as they were challenged with a position of responsibility for a program.    G-d’s ultimate sense of humor yoshev bashamiyim yischak (Psalms 2;4) plays out when children grow up and became parents or when students mature and become teachers themselves. That is the epitome of the Purim’ turnabout’ motif of Vinahapoch Hu!  

Layehudim hayta ora visimcha visason../May we merit light, gladness and discovery

Happy Purim☺

Do nice guys really finish last? Today celebrated the second trimester Middle School honor roll recognizing student conduct, work habits and grade point average of 3.5 on a 4-point scale. Not surprisingly, there is significant overlap between the students qualifying in both the academic and work ethic categories suggesting that effort and perseverance are valued attributes correlating with cognitive achievement.  Ironically though, the term ‘grit’ popularized by educational psychologist Angela Duckworth a decade ago has been called into question in future college and career arenas where how hard one works is secondary to how well the assigned task is executed, ’sweat equity’ in areas of interest or aptitude is replaced with measuring resilience and determination to bear down and plod along in areas of challenge.

Yet my professional manta regarding these honor roll programs has always prioritized the behavioral category (aligned with our simultaneous elementary Aspiring Higher program) in recognizing character growth.  In fact, 88% of the students qualified for this conduct category, far exceeding the work habit and grade point average metrics. At the program, 8^th grader Micky Fineman spoke about the pre Purim message of crediting one’s sources as the miraculous salvation of the Jews in Persia came about through the retelling of Mordechai’s heroics in saving the king from an assassination plot. Micky went on to speak about academic integrity and the high school preparatory skills he has learned regarding MLA citations crediting his teachers and parents for their guidance. 

I in turn must credit Dr. Allon Friedman for sharing a video clip with me years ago about this very topic of what we as parents want most from our children, identifying the ultimate source of the nachat they bring us. In the video, Dr. Dennis Prager challenges us to survey our children about their perceived metrics of our successful parenting; which do they think we most want them to be - smart, good or happy. Not surprisingly, most select the happiness followed by the intelligence options; we delude ourselves into believing that our children somehow know that we value character/ mentschlachkeit prioritizing being good kids above all else as we continuously praise them for their academic, athletic and artistic accolades.

While this year is a leap year in both the lunar and solar calendars and with the extra Adar month Passover seems far off in the distance, it is always timely to remind ourselves that the Seder night experience and Haggadah focusing on our children and their questions is the foundational pillar of Judaism. Importantly, the four sons chahcham, rasha, tam and sheano yodaiah lishol, the wise, the wicked, the naïve and the ignorant sons include these very personality caricatures. We may aspire for our children to be smart and or happy (the Tam depicts the child who wants his today and his tomorrow confused by the myriad of options in pursuit of elusive happiness and fulfillment) all while we shun the “bad boy” or ignoramus images. Yet in the end it is only the “goodness’ which we teach and model for our children which is the source for our spiritual freedom and the raison d’etre of our Jewish nation.  Nice guys finish first at HHAI!

Why do rich people leave their windows uncovered? While the Atlantic and New York Times magazines have recently opined sociological insights into this curious topic, I actually alluded to it in my Middle School Judaic teacher blogpost last week depicting integrated instruction of Torah textual study with arts and technology. Assuming that less people might click on that feature buried towards the bottom of the Weekly Five section than normally open the lead article I am unabashedly repeating a nuance from that blogpost!

Studies conducted globally over the past decade reveal that people earning over $150,000 are more likely to leave their windows bare or with curtains opened than those with lower incomes. Numerous factors are advanced as plausible explanations including safety and privacy concerns mitigated by the location of these more affluent homes in gated communities or large estates with security measures and already enhanced privacy design or in urban hotspots as luxurious condominiums and penthouse apartment buildings with armed doormen around the clock. Cultural differences may also be at play as well as the trend toward high quality and modern interior design and furnishings with clean lines and unobstructed views.  Moreover, the architecture and design of these high end homes might prioritize openness and aesthetics, letting in natural light and providing breathtaking scenic views over traditional window coverings. While all concur on the mental well-being correlation to natural light, for city dwellers the connection to nature is at an even higher premium with Manhattan apartments with a view of the Hudson River or Central Park commanding over $10,000 a month in rental fees. 

The kindling protocol of the Menorah candelabra in the Mishkan Tabernacle was intentionally designed to ‘cup’ the flames towards the center lamp so as not to produce abundant light; the spiritual essence outshining literally and proverbially the physical light source. Similarly, the windows in the Beit Hamikdash/ Temples were ‘shikufim atumim’ wider on the outside and narrowing inward so as not to convey the diffusion of exterior light as the primary purpose of those wall openings. To the contrary, the spiritual light from the Temple was designed to radiate outward underscoring our metaphoric role of being ‘a light unto the nations.’  Students engaged in architectural study of Frank Lloyd Wright homes and engineered some Lego models of the Temple window design before designing their own mini stained -glass Judaic themed windows.

Our school is blessed with beautiful wide windows and an interior courtyard on its campus facilitating abundant natural light streaming into the classrooms and Cultural Arts Center lobby.  Upper class students actually enjoy no glaring or jarring artificial light in their instruction, preferring only the natural suffused light coming in from the windows. Natural light and fresh air with the windows cracked open a bit even in the heated atmospheres awaken their minds and spirits and are the harbingers of spring. More significantly, they depict our hope for the complete release of all the remaining hostages from the dark dismal tunnels of captivity.  May HaShem answer our daily recitation of the prayer of ‘Acheinu’ on their behalf as we poignantly yearn for their salvation ‘Mafeila Liora’ from dark despair to the light of freedom.