FROM MEMORY TO MEMOIR
A One Day Writing Workshop for Women
With Judy Belsky and Varda Branfman
What is the subject?
Ourselves.
How do we honor the events we experience? How do we treasure
our perceptions? How do we cherish memory?
Our all-day workshop will consist of:
Selected readings of memoirs, discussion of techniques and
hands-on exercises designed to help you turn your Memories
into Memoir.
WHEN: August 18 / Elul 10
WHERE: 33 Jabotinksy (corner Jabotinsky and Alkalay),
Jerusalem
WORKSHOP: 9 a.m. - 4 p.m. Open reading by participants: 2:30 -
4:00
Bring three photos and 3 memoirs to be used in writing
exercises.
(Fee of 100 N.S. includes Eida Chareidis lunch, tea/coffee,
writing material. For further information: 02-5711895; email
Varda: yaakovb@netvision.net.il
*)
Dear Editor,
Thank you for your recent article on Noise Pollution.
Not every teenager is interested in becoming deaf. At
sixteen, I started to notice that the noise level at
simchas, social gatherings and concerts was hurting my
ears. I didn't want to entirely miss out on the social scene
so I kept going, even if the sound was so high it was
impossible to talk to the person next to me. But I started to
stuff cotton balls in my ears to help muffle the sound.
One Sunday evening, I went swimming. As I dove underwater, I
heard a loud pop in my left ear. As I surfaced from under the
water, my ear started to ache terribly. A few days went by
before I complained to my mother, who took me right away to
see an ear specialist.
The doctor peered inside and said he thought he saw an
obstruction. Using a tiny hose, he gently flushed out my ear
with water and out popped a wad of cotton ball that I'd
entirely forgotten to remove from my ear.
I changed my lifestyle considerably after that and stopped
attending deafeningly loud events!
Our ability to hear is a precious gift worth guarding. And
even young people can realize that our bodies are worth
taking care of, even at the risk of some social sacrifice!
Chava Dumas
*
After reading "Shimshi" by R' Zvi Zobin (Sivan 13) [about
(not) pushing children to excellence], I would like to make a
few points:
Why is it that we are so tempted to push our kids into
certain schools? Often this may be because of the parents'
desire for status, which is surely a poor choice of reason to
pick a particular school. However, I also feel that a lot of
it comes from wanting what our children deserve. How often do
we see our grown children classed and categorized, as adults,
because of the school they attended?
How often do we see kids not accepted to a school that fits
them because the parents are not of a certain type or clique,
irrespective of what the child himself is? How often do we
see children not suited for a certain school who are
accepted due to Protectzia?
The only solution to the problem of parents sending their
children to schools based on status, rather than ability, is
to make our society believe and not just say, that all
children are valuable, no matter how smart they are.
One of the benefits of inclusion is that our children can
learn that the boy in the wheelchair is a whizz at math, the
boy with a hearing problem is great at decorating and
organizing the class of a siyum, and the girl with
Down's syndrome has the patience and humor needed to collect
class dues. Also, when a school district has worked on
integration of special needs children, the school's teachers
gain in expertise, recognizing problems in `normal' student,
earlier and learning to promote acceptance of different
kids.
Inclusion saves money in the long run. In correct inclusion,
a child is not simply thrown into a class to try and handle
the material at the same level, but his work will be tailored
to his abilities. The son of a friend of mine, for example,
receives a different, easier test than his classmates.
As for the disadvantages expressed concerning inclusion,
these can be present in special ed. settings where often, the
expectations of the staff are too low and I hear of so many
children not progressing over several years.
As regards to `rude awakenings,' our special ed. children
usually reach this realization: they notice it when their
siblings go to different schools, they notice it on Shabbos
etc. So rather than shield them, let's expose them to the
real world so they can be taught to deal with it. And let's
expose our other children to the real world where everyone
has worth and is a person, not a condition.
Ruth Palatnik
P.S. My daughter Rina, a Down's syndrome child, is currently
in Gan Chova. When she misbehaves, the teacher and I work out
a plan to tackle the problem, and Rina learns that normal
society will not countenance bad behavior. Academically, she
enjoys her studies. We hope to find a first grade to accept
her for next year.
[Ed. We would appreciate feedback on mainstreaming special
children, successes / suggestions.]
