diversity day

I can't imagine why my little blog about my life as a NYC school teacher has caused the people at google/blogspot to bring my blog under review.  I don't remember writing about anything subversive, but perhaps mentioning my monthly flow in my very first post, in the very first few lines has caused some eyebrows to be raised... whatever the reason may be, I'm gonna keep blogging... lock (on my account) or no lock.  

Oh, and before I go any further... Happy Day of Atonement!  

Living in South Carolina for most of my life I grew up knowing very little about the Jewish faith.  One of the coolest kids in my middle school was David, a little Jewish kid, who from all reports, had the best bar mitzvah in all of Columbia, but then again, he was the only Jewish kid in the entire middle school, so there really wasn't any competition there.  Anyway, my first steps off of the small commuter plane in LaGuardia Airport (that brought me from my home in SC to my new home in NY) were taken with a near dozen other Hasidic Jews also waiting for their luggage at the airport's baggage claim.  I was fascinated by these men, and by their faith, which has asked them stand a part from the mainstream society through their faith, diet, and wardrobe.

As a teacher in New York, I have students from all walks of life.  I have one student from Egypt, one from some place in the Middle East, some from France, one from the Midwest, most from countries scattered throughout the South Pacific, and all mixed in with the native New Yorkers... I could go on and on and on if I really wanted to continue down my class roster, but I'll spare you that.

I'm so envious of these kids and the racial utopia that they live in here in New York City.  South Carolina, has/had very little diversity, which for a biracial girl growing up in the south, was pretty soul crushing at times.  But don't get me wrong, New York isn't perfect.  I still get stopped and asked almost every day about my ethnicity, which is really annoying and which I have yet to get used to... It's a personal question that I feel is never really as simple as its asker may be truly aware of... The "what are you" question is loaded and can be answered and taken in multiple of different ways. 

So what am I trying to say?  I don't know.  Today's Day of Atonement has made me stop and reflect on why I have this day off.  It's because of the diversity and respect for one's diversity that has created this state holiday in which I am now enjoying.  

Ok, enough rambling and back to grading... ugh... 5 hrs and counting.

x,

Ms. P