Dear Rebecca, dear Levi, dear Sara, dear Samuel,

Dear Jewish kid sitting in the corner the day after Christmas.

Dear Jewish kid who everyone else is jealous of, because apparently, you get eight times the presents as everyone else.

Dear Adam, dear Daniel, dear Moses, dear Hannah,

Dear Jewish kid who misses picture day, because it was scheduled for Rosh Hashanah and you were in services all day.

Dear Deborah, dear Esther, dear Maya, dear Leah,

Dear Jewish kid who stares at the ground when the school lunch only has pork.

Dear Jewish kid who doesn’t know what to say when asked if they “speak Jewish”.

Dear Jewish kid whose friends don’t seem to understand why their parents won’t let them go to a sleepover on Friday night.

Dear Ruth, dear Simon, dear Tovah, dear Noah,

Dear Jewish kid who doesn’t know how to respond to the question, “The Torah is the Jewish version of the Bible, right?”

Dear Jewish kid who has to miss school for their most important holiday, but sees other kids get two weeks off for theirs.

Dear Solomon, dear Jacob, dear Miriam, dear Tayla,

Dear all the Jewish kids who get to experience Shabbat every Friday night, saying the old Hebrew words you know thousands are saying with you across the world.

Dear all the Jewish kids who get to whisper and giggle with your best friend in the back of the crowded temple on High Holidays.

Dear all the Jewish kids who get to help their mother make a big pot of Matzo ball soup on Passover, loving Matzo so much even though it tastes like cardboard.

Dear all the Jewish kids who get to light the candles, and see the reflection of the fire dancing across your fingernails.

Dear all the Jewish kids who get B’nai Mitzvot, being welcomed into the adult community with a celebration. The kids who get to feel the excitement of standing at the bimah, with the Torah laying in front of them, the congregation staring back at them, the people who watched them grow up all gathered together.

Dear all the Jewish kids out there who might feel alone: We are united. Now, more than ever.