Class of 2025 Graduates
And with the turning of their tassels, Heschel's Class of 2025 are now officially alumni. Mazal tov to all of our graduates and their families!!
READ RABBI NOAM SILVERMAN’S GRADUATION REMARKS
By way of beginning, a few more thank yous:
The Executive Producer and Director of this beautiful graduation is Jessica Gribetz. Jessica: your attention to detail, your talent in working with adolescents and helping them grow, are such gifts, and we feel so lucky that you are able to share them with our community.
As many of you know, I suffered back to back concussions in early February, and my recovery has been slow and hard. I want to thank the entire community for your understanding and good wishes over these last few months. It has meant so much to me and my family. Thankfully, I am making good progress in my healing and am so grateful to be here this afternoon - I really did not want to miss this special milestone!
I especially want to acknowledge my beloved and dedicated colleagues who have stepped up and filled in for me, so that the school could go on running and thriving in my absence. Your generosity and patience are inspiring acts of chesed which reinforce one of our core strengths: the importance of supporting and caring for one another.
Ariela, Rabbi Dahlia, and Bonnie: I feel so lucky to have the opportunity to work so closely with you and learn from you each day. You, more than anyone, took on so much of my work and responsibilities and reassured me that you had my back and that all I needed to do was get better. And you did all of this in the same way that you lead: with kindness, compassion, and skill. From the bottom of my heart: thank you.
And now - Bogrim Yekarim - Beloved Graduates,
When they tell you to use your head, unless you're playing soccer, they don’t actually mean it. Unfortunately, I had to learn this the hard way.
So, to try to help ensure that you avoid this and other pitfalls, I thought I would use the next few minutes to reflect back three important lessons that I have learned from you over the last few years, which I hope you will hold on to as you begin the next chapter of your lives:
You can confront your worst nightmare and get through it:
You did this two years ago on our Israel trip. Having spent a beautiful Shabbat in Jerusalem, we travelled down to the Negev for a 2-day overnight. Some of you were somewhat excited, some of you had no idea what to expect, and many of you were downright terrified. That fear grew exponentially when we arrived at the campsite and you realized that Rabbi Dahlia wasn’t kidding when she had told us earlier that the campsite had no running water and only a few port-a-potties. We finally settled down for the night: sleeping under the stars, contemplating the vastness of the universe, and hearing the distant calls of jackals echoing off the mountains...
However, a few hours later those calls sounded much, much closer. In fact, they got so close that our Bedouin guard had to scare away a pack of Jackals. A thick fear fell over the campsite and eventually we all fell back into an uneasy sleep.
As if this weren’t bad enough, just as dawn was breaking, a loud voice pierced the silence singing Modeh Ani and early Zionist pioneer songs. It was me - your dedicated High School Head, singing at the top of my lungs and removing pillows from under your sleeping heads. In between songs I would add the following line: “Your worst nightmare has come true: Your high school principal is waking you up at dawn in the middle of the desert!”
And really, when you are in 10th grade, what could be worse than that!
And now look at you: Except for one of your shoes that did not survive the jackals, you faced down your worst nightmare and got through the rest of the day, and the trip, and your last two years of high school magnificently.
Just last week, many of you shared with Ariela and me in our feedback session that the Negev campout, despite your initial reservations, was the absolute best part of your high school experience. In life, you will undoubtedly face other challenges, some even harder than a Negev campout, but your hard work, resilience, and friends and family will undoubtedly get you through it.Context is Everything.
One more piece of advice from the Israel trip: After a long day that included, among other things, waking up at dawn in the desert, breaking camp, participating in a Yom Hazikaron tekes under the blazing sun in the southern town of Yerucham, we drove all the way up to Kibbutz Afik in the Golan and arrived later than we anticipated, tired, hungry and dirty. After unloading the bus, getting organized into our room groupings of 4 or so, one student from each room received the one and only room key. And here is the kernel of wisdom to hold onto:
Having received this key, maybe don’t throw it to your half asleep friend and roommate who is standing right in front of a dark and impenetrable row of thorny bushes. And even if you throw it, definitely don’t overthrow it. And especially don’t do this if the Kibbutz office is closed for the night and there is no one who can help you get a second set of keys.
Context matters. The very same action that can seem playful and innocent in one context can have very frustrating and challenging implications in another. Being able, sometimes on a dime, to take in the unique circumstances of the situation you are in can be the difference between getting to dinner clean and on time as opposed to searching for your key on your hands and knees with flashlights under the night sky.Don’t let uncertainty stop you from dreaming. But remember: dreaming requires that you wake up and work towards actualizing your dreams.
As you surely remember from 9 LQ, the Mishna, the 2nd century compilation of Rabbinic Law, is a 6 volume work. The 1st book of the Mishna is Seder Zeraim - the book of Seeds. This book lays out the unique agricultural laws related to farming in the Land of Israel. The Rabbis also refer to this book as Seder Emunah - the book of belief - because the farmer, not knowing if her efforts will yield a successful harvest, nevertheless plants her crops - Maamin be’Boreih Olam ve’zoreia - believe in the creator of the world, and plant. Confronted with uncertainty, the farmer doesn’t waver in her faith and still forges ahead and plants her field. It is this blending of faith or optimism with initiative that I think is worth considering and emulating.
Over the last few years, you have dreamed big dreams, kept your faith, and worked hard to actualize them.
Over 4 years ago, your 8th grade Israel trip could not proceed due to Covid restrictions. Rabbi Jack and Lori told you to stay optimistic and that the High School would take you as 10th graders. Thanks to Ariela and the Board of Directors’ commitment to Israel education, and to Rabbi Dahlia’s hard work, we did just that.
608 days ago, as we celebrated Simchat Torah, we were thrust into a nightmare that is still ongoing. I was so impressed with how this class responded in the days, weeks, and months that followed. You reached out to your loved ones in Israel, you wrote letters to strangers, and you listened carefully and befriended visitors from Israel who shared their stories with us. You marched, rallied and raised your voices. Each day you took time to dedicate your daily learning to the honor of those fallen and those still captive. You travelled to Israel when it was safe to do so and you volunteered countless hours in meaningful ways. You didn’t just wait for the war to end and for life to return to normal. You acted.
But also, with regards to more conventional goals and challenges for high school students, you set out to do what has never been done. Boys Heschel Varsity Soccer had never won a championship. Led by a battle-tested and determined group of seniors, the boys soccer team won the championship this year! Our baseball team, after a disappointing record last year, secured top place in their division this year and while last night was a tough way to end the season, your commitment to one another and your belief that your hard work will yield results was inspiring.
Last year, our Ultimate Frisbee team and two years ago, our Mock Trial team, were crowned NY state champions. Neither of these achievements had been accomplished in Heschel history. This year, both teams set out to reassert their dominance. Mock Trial fought hard but got stopped in a late round, while Ultimate Frisbee got knocked off in the finals in a very close game. And while you were disappointed with the results, we could not be more proud of the resolve and determination you showed in working so hard and accomplishing so much over the course of a long season.
And of course, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention our Math Kangaroo winners, Abe and Parker, who placed in the top three in the State. ANd our beloved Harmonizers who are in the middle of recording a new album, something that has not happened in nearly 10 years. We are indeed a community of athletes and mathletes, artists, and thinkers.
Our Jewish community here at home and in Israel, and in fact our world as a whole, is confronted with a level of challenge and uncertainty that can seem at times to be staggering and disorienting. But don’t be held back by fear and don’t wait for others to lead. As you have demonstrated over the last four years: aim high, dream big, and then get your hands dirty. Do the work. Plant your fields, sow your crops, even if you aren’t certain that they will produce fruits.
There is so much to be done. There is no shortage of sectors and communities here in New York City, across the United States, in Israel, and around the world that need your optimism and talent and also your intellectual curiosity and ability to understand and hold perspectives different from your own. Having been raised in a community committed to pluralism, share that gift with others. Having been raised by parents, families and teachers who lead with kindness, pay that forward and do the same.
We are so proud of the kind, passionate, and hardworking young people that you have become. I bless you to go forth, use your heads - only in safe ways - and your hearts and make a meaningful, positive difference in our Jewish community and in the world.
You are so ready and we need you!
Mazal tov!
