A Bat Mitzvah is a coming of age ceremony or a reafirmation of faith. At the ripe age of 58, I had a Bat Mitzvah on January 28th, 2005. To be able to reafirm my faith both to myself and to my friends and family is important to me, as my faith and beliefs have played a major part in my new life.

My actual reading was the story of the ten commandments, yet I gave a talk on the importance of family. Why, you may ask?

My family is perhaps the most important thing on earth to me. I could not have survived all the changes in my life without my family behind me. Certainly there were doubts and challenges, but in the overall scheme of things, my family was there when I needed it.

How many of us can honestly say that our families are there behind us, helping us to cope with the vicisitudes of life? How many of us have dismissed the support of family as something frivolous and unnecessary in our lives, preferring to say that we can do it by ourselves?

I’m here to say I couldn’t do it by myself. I’m here to say how very important family is in my life, and hoping family is important in your life.

Speech       Torah Portion