When a 2,000+ Year Old Greek Legend has Better Representation of Women than a Modern Novel

So completely the opposite of what I expected, I found myself relating more with the female characters in the Odyssey than with those in Memory of Running. Which seems odd, because the main women in the Odyssey are either gods or queens, while the women in McLarty’s novel are “just regular people.” But I found that Chris, Norma, and especially Bethany all fell flat as characters. Their actions and emotions weren’t very believable, and I didn’t get the sense that they were full people in their own right, that they could be a protagonist in their own story. It seemed that their actions and lives were all in relation to Smithy, and not just because he is telling the story. Not to mention the annoying fact that ¼ of what we learn from Smithy about any given female is detailed commentary on their breasts.

Like Lauren mentioned, Norma’s continuous obsession with Smithy struck me as irritating and unrealistic. Why does she still love a man who ignored her existence for 20+ years, and takes months to respond in any way when she says she loves him? And why is Chris so interested in this random guy she meets on the road who is 20+ years older than her, and go so far out of her way for him? Unrealistic. Bethany was a tougher case because I don’t know the particular nature of her mental illness, but it didn’t seem realistic. Her episodes seemed forced, and mostly there as a way to mark Smithy’s life and spark his development. Bethany’s illness felt like a different version of the movie trope where a man’s wife dies, mostly to further his pain and give him a motive for revenge or a journey.

Women of the Odyssey have their own annoying idiosyncrasies, but in general the poem does a much better job fleshing them out and exploring their motives. Penelope is a great example in this respect. She’s in a very difficult position, being plagued with suitors while Odysseus is gone, and at first glance it looks like all she does is stay in her room and hide. But she has a strategy. I interpreted Alcinous’s complaint of Penelope “leading them on” as her method of holding the suitors at bay. If she says no outright, they will demand to know why and escalate the situation. But this way, it looks like Penelope is weighing her decision carefully. And then there’s the sly funeral shroud trick -- which Penelope keeps going for three years!! It really takes skill to keep people from being too impatient for that long. And although her goals center around her long lost husband and son, Penelope reads as a character with her own personality and her own goals.

And then of course there is Athena. She’s a pretty special case, given that she’s a goddess and no regular woman. But she is clearly a being with her own agenda, and someone to be respected or feared. We don’t yet know why Athena takes such an interest in Odysseus or Telemachus, but we trust that she has a reason. Essentially, the women in the Odyssey, while not numerous, come across far more realistically than those in The Memory of Running.

Hero's Journey

Hello, I'm just letting you all know that this blog is no longer for Non Fiction Writing but for The Hero's Journey.

Project Overview: Goals and Desired Outcome

CUTY intends to use this grant to provide need-based scholarships for the congregants of Sinai Temple that contribute substantial help. The scholarships will be provided to returning campers who are Bnei Mitzvah or older. After Bnei Mitzvah age, many summer camps approach the age bracket where children can no longer be campers. However, URJ camps offer a special counselor-in-training and leadership program which is just as much of the experience, and would also be covered. The CUTY scholarship would allow for continuous camp attendance by the younger members of the congregation, and could help alleviate overall declining attendance at synagogue events.

CUTY plans to provide scholarships with this grant for four years, and observe the impact on their congregants over time. A $1000 scholarship would be provided annually for a post-Bnei Mitzvah campers returning to their regular URJ program. A $2750 scholarship will also be provided annually for congregants who wish to attend their camps leadership program. This scholarship is significantly larger because the leadership programs usually last two months, and are therefore more expensive.

CUTY believes that these scholarships can contribute to keeping the Sinai Temple youth involved beyond their Bnei Mitzvah. Every single member of the current CUTY youth leadership board has been to Jewish summer camp, and many have stated that it is what prompted them to stay involved and want to learn more about Judaism. CUTY hopes this grant can extend this conviction and excitement to the younger students of the synagogue, keep them involved when the current board graduates, and teach these new students how to expand the youth group themselves.

Needs Assessment

Since URJ summer camps have long sessions and function as sleepaway, the fees are high. Some parents cannot safely spare the money to pay for the entire session. In addition to the cost of the camp itself, parents often need to purchase new clothes or items for their children before they go to camp, such as sunscreen, bug spray, toiletries etc. The camp shopping costs are especially high on the parents of first-time campers, who must buy reusable items such as sleeping bags and fans.

Scholarships are available for URJ camps, but Sinai Temple is located far enough away from all of them that area scholarships do not apply. Sinai Temple does have scholarships for summer camp, but they only cover a fraction of the cost. Grants through the Foundation for Jewish Camp are available, but they are usually for first or second year campers, while grants for returning children give minimal help.

In order for URJ summer camps to have the maximum effect, it is important for children to return multiple times -- especially after their Bar/Bat Mitzvahs. There is currently a huge problem in Jewish communities all over the country, where children stop attending synagogue services or event after their bar/bat mitzvahs. Sinai Temple suffers from this phenomenon as well; the Bnei Mitzavah class of 2012 numbered thirteen students, while the Confirmation class of that same grade numbered three students. Studies by the Pew Research Center show that children who went to Jewish summer camp are far more likely to remain active in the community as they grow up. Former campers get involved with and lead their youth groups, become assistant teachers in their Hebrew schools, and are active in the Jewish community when they go to college

Executive Summary

Champaign Urbana Temple Youth (CUTY) works to connect Jewish teenagers from the East Central Illinois area, and is part of Sinai Temple. CUTY works to create educational, religious, community, and social programs. CUTY also provides opportunities to learn leadership skills, as it is led by a youth board which holds yearly elections. CUTY also travels to regional North American Federation of Temple Youth (NFTY) events. Teenagers involved in a Jewish youth group often develop a strong sense of Jewish identity and a connection with their community.  

But only so many CUTY events can take place during the busy school year, and in the summer the kids and staff travel. Studies from the Pew Research Center in DC show that the strongest contributor to a sense of Jewish identity and connection is Jewish summer camp, which perfectly fills the time between school years.

Union for Reform Judaism summer camps aim to:

• Enrich the lives of Jewish youth lives by strengthening their sense of identity
• Give a broad Jewish education and illustrate Reform values
• Cultivate lifelong friendships and teach leaderships skills

The goals of URJ summer camps are essentially the same as those of CUTY. Most URJ summer camps are sleepaway, and can last between two weeks to two months. Thus they are expensive, on average $3,000 for a one month session.

In light of these costs, Champaign Urbana Temple Youth requests the Robert & Toni Bader Charitable Foundation to consider a grant of $15,000 to fund scholarships for the youth of Sinai Temple that will enrich their lives and strengthen their Jewish identity.

Editorial: Give Dandelions A Chance

Hundreds of potential salads are waiting for us. In our public parks, in our backyards, and probably right beneath the windows of this classroom. You all know the flower: Taraxacum officinale, or the common dandelion. Yet familiar as they are, I know many people who strongly dislike dandelions. They classify the flower as a weed. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, a ‘weed’ is:” A[n] herbaceous plant not valued for use or beauty, growing wild and rank, and regarded as cumbering the ground or hindering the growth of superior vegetation.”

While it’s definitely true that dandelions are widespread and grow wildly, I would like to remind everyone that they are strikingly beautiful, fragrant, and soft. Dandelions’ classification as a weed rests mainly on the biology of their growth pattern, which leads them to open/disturbed soil, which is usually found in areas inhabited by people.

The negative attitude towards dandelions is actually very recent, arising in the 20th century. The ancient Greeks ate dandelions, and the flower was used in traditional Chinese medicine. In Medieval Europe, people loved dandelions and removed grass from their lawns to give the room to grow. The pilgrims brought dandelions to America on the Mayflower; likely as a foodstuff and medicine.

The dandelion’s rumored medicinal benefits have recently been proven by numerous modern scientific studies. The plant has many nutrients, and the leaves are full of antioxidants which help protect the cardiovascular system. Most notably, dandelions helped the liver function, reduced insulin levels, and stimulated fat metabolization in mice.

In Europe, dandelions were prescribed for almost all ailments as a kind of catch-all. The plant was so popular because of its commonality, and gentle chemical nature. In short, it acts as a diuretic to clear the body of toxins, provides nourishment, and helps the digestive system function efficiently. In fact, dandelions have more nutrition than many common garden vegetables; more vitamin A than spinach, more vitamin C than tomatoes. The range of ailments they are reported to have cured is astonishing; dandruff, baldness, sores, toothache, fevers, rotting gums, lethargy, weakness, and depression. It was only in the 20th century that people discovered the underlying cause of much of these problems: vitamin deficiencies.

Now that we know the dandelion has practical benefits, why did attitudes about their character change so suddenly? Originally, dandelions were praised for their beauty, and there are hundreds of folk traditions and myths involving the puffy seeds. In Europe people used to write poems for the flower. The “war on dandelions” came with the rise in popularity of a closely cropped, uniformly green front lawn, often used as a status symbol. The practice of lawn maintenance has its roots with the aristocracy, who used to be the only people rich enough to pay someone else to clear their yard with a scythe. After World War II and with the rise of the suburbs, many Americans were moving into their own homes, with their own yards. Naturally they wanted to impress their neighbors, and lawns seemed to be the way to go.

Unfortunately, dandelions are attracted to areas with open or recently disturbed soil – almost the definition of a lawn. They are tough plants which grow quickly, produce a lot of seeds, are impossible to get rid of, and largely got in the way of the perfect lawn or flowerscape. I think the dandelion’s interference with lawns and landscaping in general is largely what got them such a negative reputation.
Nevertheless, I really appreciate dandelions and think we should re-evaluate our stance on them. Just because they are common doesn't make them any less wonderful -- take the sun, for example. Dandelions are gorgeous flowers just as much as the rose, and they don't even have thorns. Besides their beauty, dandelions can have medicinal benefits, and who isn't up for free salad? Think it over.

It's Almost June And I Haven't Exploded Yet

As long as I can remember and ever since I started going, waiting for my summer camp, Goldman Union Camp Institute (a.k.a GUCI, although I’ve learned to give this acronym LAST), to start was and is the hardest thing I’ve ever done. I guess you could say I’m really good at it, since I have no choice in the waiting.  “Live eleven months for one,” as we say. Nowadays it’s a lot easier to make it to camp and still be in touch with everyone because of technology (no more frantic catching up on an entire year of someone’s life). I can finally talk with my cabinmates -- we have a group chat and talk every day, it’s like family dinner. We cover everything; what’s happening in their lives, what’s happening in mine, ideas for camp next year (we’re bringing a mini cactus as our mascot and my friend’s bringing her matching cactus onesie), and the obligatory “songleader so and so from GUCI came to my synagogue today!” whereupon I get lowkey jealous.

There’s also plenty of videos GUCI online (including that hour long video of Shabbat song session that I watch way too much), and I have memory boxes full of letters from my parents and my cabinmates’ parents (yes that’s a thing occasionally), our cabin essays from when we led prayer services, those cheesy mystic ballroom dance face masks, toothbrush bracelets, etc. Basically as time went on there’s a lot more to remember to camp by and it’s gotten exponentially easier to exist until June 14.

But I almost feel like I’m cheating at the waiting game since I have so much memorabilia. I can talk with my friends anytime, and I honestly don’t have a choice in the waiting. That said, it’s not like a skill isn’t proved unless it can be done blindfolded after being in solitary confinement for 3 days (In 1st grade someone told me that’s what I had to do to become a piano master). There’s also many things from GUCI that I can’t recreate, like the lifestyle and the entire community and the constant guitar music.

I also remember how waiting wasn’t always so easy. When I was younger, I couldn’t keep in touch with people as well since I didn’t have a cell phone or Facebook (and the first year I got my phone, I couldn’t remember my number to give to anyone…...classic). I remember crying in the middle of December because it had been so UNBELIEVABLY LONG already and there were so many months between myself and June.

Yet no matter how badly I wanted GUCI to  start, I couldn’t speed up time right? Wrong. As i’ve gotten older time has seemed to speed up a LOT, to the point where junior year was a blur and I can’t believe it’s spring already. I was shocked when it became September.  I don’t know why this perspective shift is happening to me so suddenly but it’s really freaking me out. Especially because I’m finally starting to understand that super depressing song (Which we also sing at camp) which I hate and love, The Circle Game.

Overall, I believe I’m great at waiting for things I have no choice about -- a wonderful skill right?! Funny how many other people seem to have this skill too! Either way, I’m pretty proud that I didn’t spontaneously combust one of those winters while looking through our cabin photos, and this year there’s only three months left.