Wonderings 6 Jewish Experiences Not in Shreveport
Have you had memorable Jewish experiences away from Shreveport? Whether you grew up elsewhere or visited elsewhere, I would love to hear about special Jewish experiences that were not in Shreveport. In fact, it would be ok to let me know about either unfavorable experiences or wonderful experiences - but they need to be from somewhere other than Shreveport. We can pretend to travel with you and create a little Jewish scrapbook of experiences.
This week's Wondering is: What Jewish experiences made an impact on you that were not in Shreveport?
Responses:
First thing that comes to mind for most memorable are all the conclave events I attended. Always a good time. :) [A]
One of my memorable experiences was celebrating Yom Kippur overseas with the military Jewish community. The Rabbi served several bases in-country and so we all met at one base to celebrate. It was fabulous. The Rabbi and his wife really went out of their way ensuring everyone (especially single troops) had a memorable holiday and that we were not alone. It was lovely and meaningful.
An unfavorable experience I had was when I was TDY (temporary duty) to Germany. This was during the 80s and Jewish military personnel were always cautioned when traveling in Europe. I was sitting at the train station waiting on my train. Two men approached me, sitting on either side of me. They kept saying Jude? Jude? I could not tell if they were Jewish or what nationality. They were dark complexioned, but did not look typically Arab. Terrorism was a real possibility at that time in Europe and train stations, airports, etc., were especially vulnerable. I just kept shaking my head, saying Nein Deutsch, Nein English. That is all I said. They finally got up and left, but I was very, very uncomfortable and I still have no idea what they wanted.
Another time was at the border of Germany, in Aachen. The train had just crossed over and was stopped in Aachen. I guess he was a policeman, but a tall gentleman in a green uniform entered. He had black boots up to his knees and he carried a little crop (?) like horse people carry for their horses. He walked up and down the train and at certain people would say "papers." I was one of the people. It unnerved me. I would have thought they would have tried to get away from that stereotype and would have had a friendlier, warmer person, not wearing those horrible boots checking passports, etc. [E]I remember going to a temple in Little Rock that was out in the woods and it was the most beautiful setting for something like a temple! Who would’ve thought? But I believe there was glass in back of the altar so you could see outside from your chair. I may have made that up but it was beautiful. And if I remember correctly, the interior was done so that it blended with the woods. It was beautiful and very meaningful. [J]