Zeesy's Bas Mitzvah
Originally posted on www.clearasmud.blog on November 1, 2022.
Wow I can’t believe 3 years have passed since ZEESY’S Bas Mitzvah!
She’s grown so much you wouldn’t even recognize her!
We celebrated ZEESY’S 15th birthday a few weeks ago and I will never stop being in awe of the person she is and is continuing to grow into. Zeesy has a rare genetic disorder that affects her everyday life in a real way but she navigates all the challenges with grit and grace.
Enjoy this little trip down memory lane from her Bas Mitzvah 🩷.
I’m also reposting the remarks I shared at her Bas Mitzvah and the photos of the beautiful event that epitomized Zeesy’s beauty and spirit.
Back in May, when Chaim and I sat down to begin thinking about Zeesy’s Bas Mitzvah, we wanted it to reflect who Zeesy is. Zeesy is that girl who from an incredibly early age loved art, coloring, painting. She has a creative soul that makes everything around her more bright, more picturesque, more vivid.
So, we decided on Zeesy’s Garden as the theme for this Simcha, bringing us all together to celebrate Zeesy’s appreciation for the Garden of Life.
You see, Zeesy entered the world back in 2010. From day one, she was unique in her development, her cognition, her way of learning. Yet, Zeesy, through incredible work and determination has not only made lemonade out of lemons, but has shown us that lemons are a beautiful, tasteful, mouthwatering fruit that adds so much flavor and pleasure to the simplicity and monotony of life. Zeesy doesn’t spend her days bemoaning her lot in life, focusing on the fact that she may be different, quite the contrary, she lives it up, celebrating each day, each
moment, each human interaction, each teacher, each classmate, each life experience, as something positive, inspiring, delightful, and upbeat.
Every flower in a garden is special. It grows in a unique style, it is nurtured and watered according to its needs, its colors are distinctive; each flower adds so much to the garden of life.
Years ago, we took Chaya and Zeesy to Butchart Gardens in Victoria, on Vancouver Island. It was mind blowing. So warm, so attractive, so colorful, it wasn’t world renowned because all the flowers looked the same and were alike. What made it special was the diversity of flowers, each embedded with a G-d spark that made it stand out to be a gorgeous creation in its own right.
Zeesy is the queen of our community garden because she lives life with the attitude of appreciating each moment as a special flower. Sure, she has her moments with siblings and friends, not every day is easy and smooth sailing, but you got to see Zeesy about 15 minutes after waking up each morning: She thanks G-d for life, washes Negel Vasser, which is the traditional purification of hands, she drinks her special breakfast shake, gets her meds, and before you know it, she’s bouncing toward the door to have another awesome day at school.
Today is music, today is library, today is therapy before school with Hannah, today I have Hebrew learning with Zissel, today I am going to have a call with Shana. She is a breath of fresh air: she is a beacon of optimism and positivity.
Our dear Rebbe, of blessed memory, even well into his ninth decade, would stand each Sunday giving out dollars to encourage charity and kindness. Some Sundays he would stand for as long as eight hours without interruption. Once, an elderly woman could not contain herself and burst out “Rebbe, How do you do it? How is it that you do not tire?”
The Rebbe smiled and replied: “Every soul is a diamond. Can one grow tired of counting diamonds?”
Zeesy epitomizes this concept. Always seeing others as sparking gems, with the most positive of outlooks. She sees everyone as amazing and delightful. I hope that when I grow up, I can be like Zeesy too :)
I wish Zeesy a hearty Mazal Tova and bless her with all our Rebbe’s brachos that G-d grant her all that her heart desires to continue being the blooming flower to our Bozeman community and way beyond.
May you have the inner strength to teach the world that challenges aren’t an excuse for a lazy or boring life, but one that inspires us to greater heights and to change the world for the better.
This post brings back so many special memories, I’m grateful that it was documented so beautifully and I always enjoy sharing with you!
Love,
Chavie
this was a truly thoughtful piece , I hope that ZEESY recognizes that she special to you and Chaim