My favorite thing about being Jewish is that we get to have fun holidays and eat good food. There are lots of meaningful, important, but still entertaining traditions, like when we light the Hanukkah candles, or have a Seder at Passover. To me, becoming a Bat Mitzvah means that I get to become an “adult” in Jewish terms. While preparing, I got to learn new prayers I had not known before, which was cool. It is special to me to do this because at first, I was not going to become a Bat Mitzvah, but then I changed my mind and I’m glad I did. In preparing for my Bat Mitzvah, I learned that the hard work can be fun, if you are determined and focused. I also learned that I’m pretty good at learning the prayers, so that instead of being stressful, it is enjoyable to study them.

My mitzvah project was baking for firefighters. I chose to do this, because I love to bake and I also like helping people and making them happy. What I got out of it was seeing all the smiling faces when we delivered baked goods to them, and it made me feel happy to make them happy. It was satisfying to make the treats and share them with people who enjoyed and appreciated them. Moving forward, I plan to keep learning and participating in Judaism by watching Shabbat services, telling people outside of religious school about Judaism if they don’t know. Also, I might become a tutor for other b’nei mitzvah students.

Amelia is the daughter of Sarah and Ryan Kilmer. She is the sister of Alex. She is the granddaughter of Joseph and Marietta Kilmer (Sammamish, WA), and William Liebman (West Hartford, CT). Send notes of mazel tov.