I was born in a tiny town in Arizona.

And when I say tiny, I mean reaaaally tiny. The streets were dirt, people rode horses, and outside my bedroom window, I could see the stars ever so clearly.

Our closest city—or true civilization—was about 45 minutes away.

It was an hour away from home.

I have so much gratitude for growing up surrounded by nature and simplicity—I really do. But as a Jewish child, growing up so far away from other Jewish people came with its own challenges.

My parents did everything they could to give me a Jewish upbringing despite how isolated we were, and I give them so much credit for that.

When I was very young, we lit Shabbat candles every Friday night. We celebrated all the holidays. For Hanukkah, we had blue and white lights that went around the entire house. For Passover, our seder plates were usually decorated with silly masks to represent the Ten Plagues.

We always had a Rosh Hashanah party to attend. We always went to services for Yom Kippur. 

Just like Jewish kids across the country, I attended Hebrew school, had a bat mitzvah, and went to Jewish sleepaway camp.

So, right? I feel like that’s a pretty good Jewish childhood. 

But still, I was often the only Jewish kid in my class.

And it did give me a sense of loneliness. There was always some sort of disconnect between my classmates and me.

They knew I was different, and I knew I was different—but I didn’t really understand how different until I got older.

That’s when I realized that I may have been the first—and possibly the only—Jew some of my classmates had ever met.

It was in college that I really started embracing my Jewish identity and actively getting involved with my community.

One of my proudest moments was when I advocated for Jewish inclusion in my sorority’s DEI initiatives, even giving a lengthy presentation during Jewish American Heritage Month.

Since then, I’ve journaled a lot about my experiences as a Jewish young woman in America. I’ve written articles. I’ve written a book (that’s not yet published). I’ve made Jewish content. 

I went on Birthright after graduation. I had a religious Jewish........

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