Becoming a bar or bat mitzvah is such a significant experience in an adolescent’s life and each child wants to feel unique and special.  That is why a month after my daughter’s bat mitzvah, my husband and I were searching for ideas for how to make our son Daniel’s bar mitzvah feel special, yet equally as meaningful as his sister’s.  The answer for our family was that we would go to Israel for Daniel’s bar mitzvah during our Passover break. My husband, Daniel, and younger son had never been before, and my parents were excited to take the big trip with us.

Our Israel trip and the experience of having Daniel become bar mitzvah on top of Masada exceeded every expectation and was truly magical!  As we danced around Daniel, kvelling with pride, I knew that we had made the right decision for our family.

The backdrop of the gorgeous terrain, Dead Sea, and the history of Masada made it dramatic and moving. The Rabbi, whom we had just met, treated us like family. Her warmth put Daniel at ease as he got to tell the story of Passover in his Torah portion and wowed us all with a new level of maturity with his Dvar.

My mother recounts the experience as the highlight of her life, and I would have to say I agree.  We capped off our amazing celebration of Daniel’s bar mitzvah day by welcoming in Passover with a seder that evening at our hotel with over a hundred individual family seders happening concurrently.  Seeing the many different ways that Jews from all over the world celebrate Passover was truly special and made me so thankful that I was able to celebrate both Daniel and our Judaism with my family in Jerusalem as so many Jews aspire to do!