Oakland University Application Essay

            “Unless you turn the handle, the door will forever remain a wall.” ~Dovid N. Roetter       

For as long as I can recall, I have been drawn to the power of words; both the written and spoken. They can make you cry, laugh, sigh, smile, love, and hate simply based on how the writer/speaker sends it across and how the other end perceives it.

            The foundation of my love for words is due to the fact that they have the ability to create a bond between oneself and another without the necessity of physically knowing one another. Pen Pals, for example, have been creating friendships for decades with the two people never once meeting; yet, they can become the closest of friends simply through the usage of words.

            Both writing and speaking has helped me forge connections with people I would otherwise never considered conversing with. It has helped me become active within my community and my college, which in turn has made me who I am today.

            Being shy about my first semester in a college classroom back in 2013, I was hesitant to become involved with any student clubs on campus. However, I decided to reach out to the Jewish Student Organization of Oakland Community College, a branch of Hillel of Metro Detroit, and that ‘Hello’ drew me down a path that has forever changed my life.

            I found myself being reeled into Student Life on campus, and ended up becoming the new President of the club this past August. Since then, I have made connections with people that I never thought I would meet. For example, OCC had asked me to represent them in the beginning of May 2015 as their school mascot during Detroit’s College Signing Day; thus I was able to meet First Lady Michelle Obama.

            Communicating with others has helped give me the strength to arrange large events at OCC. For example, I arranged an Anti-Bullying Dance Day in November 2014 where thirty students and faculty members joined together on the dance floor to turn the beat around on bullying. I also put together a Multi-Faith Panel in February 2015 where we had representatives of six popular faiths [Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Atheism, Buddhism, and Hinduism] discussing their choice of faith and how we, as a college and a community, can help create a more loving world. Student Life has helped further a passion within myself that I have not been able to quench: a desire to be even more open and ‘people-friendly’. A desire to reach out and make my own connections.

            Speaking, I realized, has a source of magic behind it. As Professor Albus Dumbledore once said, “Words are, in my not-so-humble opinion, our most inexhaustible source of magic. Capable of both inflicting injury, and remedying it” (Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows). I recall back to June 2010, as I stood in front of the podium delivering my high school Valedictorian speech. I remember speaking about the many ups and downs one goes through while in their journey of education. I was able to witness people in the audiences’ eyes glaze over as my discussion brought them back in time to when they attended school. I discovered then how the energy, tone, and stressing of the right wording can twist a sentence into countless meanings.

            Writing helps me express my thoughts and share them with the world. Whether it may be a poem regarding thoughts about my first day in college, published on the OCC Spirit Blog, or sharing the moment of when I visited my brother’s grave for the first time, published in the N’shei Chabad Worldwide Newsletter. Writing is an outlet of my thoughts, emotions, and various lessons that I have learned and someone, at any time across the globe, can read it and connect with me. Chances are that I won’t even be aware of it; yet, the connection will still be established.

            Each and every person we meet or connect with in our lifetime is valuable. As The Doctor once said: “In 900 years of time and space I’ve never met someone who wasn’t important” (Doctor Who, Season Six). Every single person in this world leaves a legacy behind; however, it is their choice if it will be a legacy worthy of remembrance.

Permit me to share the following poem I had written back in January, entitled “Empty Chairs”:

Gathered together they wait patiently, not a soul lingers nearby.

They wait without moving an inch, unknowing who will be their future.

Seventeen of them are around, waiting for the room to fill up.

Slowly one by one receives a soul, it sits empty no more.

It has a gift of life, for just an hour or three.

It hears the crying and the laughter of whomever sits upon thee.

It learns a story of someone so special, it is now content.

It becomes a reflection of the person, it is their spot in the room.

Suddenly, without warning, the human rises tall and proud.

Swiftly walks away and out the door, never to be seen again.

It waits so anxiously, for another to fill the void.

Will another come, who may ever know?

We are all in this world, for but a fleeting moment.

Our stories are told loudly, and we laugh all together.

Yet a time does come when we get up, we leave the room without a warning.

Just one question does remain, that we must ask ourselves:

Will I remain an empty chair, for I am leaving a legacy?

Or will I remain an empty chair, for I am no one worth remembering?

            Why is a legacy so important? Why should we care what people think of us once we are dead? The answer is simple. It is not about what people think about what you did with your life; rather it is about what we have passed on to the next generation. As I would sometimes tell people, “You can only inspire within others what others have previously inspired within you”. Each connection that we make on this earth leaves an impact on the other person; positive or negative. Words are the numerous roads we take to the person next door. It is up to us to be careful to only write or speak positive things about our fellows as the next generation is constantly looking out to see who to copy and admire. We need to bear in mind that a single word can kill a friendship or spark true love.

            This is why I have always been engrossed with words; I, as the speaker or writer, have the power to turn some random combinations of letters into a work of beauty or destruction. I can take peoples’ emotions and reshape them to my desires; bringing them to tears or make them clutch their ribs in laughter. I can touch the essence of their very being.

            However, this can only be done once the connection has already been made. Until I utter one specific word, my magic can achieve no results. Unless I make the first move, the rest of the world will be like frozen statues to me, unable to connect and communicate with. I must reach out and create my own legacy. I must do all that I can do to use language to help the world; to bring love and harmony to those around me and across the globe. No one will make the connections for me; I must be the first one to extend my hand and say “Hello”.

Initiation

"Unless you turn the handle, the door will forever remain a wall." ~Dovid Nissan Roetter

A Year for Pesha Leah

            When I was just fifteen years young, my world was shattered by the weight of a truck. I had lost my beloved sister, Pesha Leah who was only twenty-three at the time, in a road accident as she was returning home from dancing at her friend’s wedding. I was broken inside, yet tried to not let it show.

            The pain and darkness consumed me. I don’t know why I kept it to myself; maybe I was scared, alone, helpless, or just stupid. I started turning down all of my hobbies. I rarely cracked open a book; didn’t pick up a pen to write often. When I did, it was all about death and evil and endless pain.

            I soon found myself not being observant in majority of Judaism’s ways. Some out in the open, but most I kept hidden to myself; not wanting to have to explain a feeling to those too coarse to want to even attempt to understand what I was going through.

            One thing I stopped doing almost immediately was Shabbos. It just seemed like too pure of a day for a world that can harvest such destruction. So I obliterated it from my week. I would put on a great performance for those nearby; but once they left it would be computer on and headphones in. When I was in Yeshiva, it was not easy to break Shabbos; thus I felt compelled to do so even more. I relished the feeling of shoving the middle finger in G-d’s face. Yet, it was a secret I was prepared to take to the grave.

            Then, my life turned around, again, one year ago. After months of trying to convince me, Hillel of Metro Detroit had gotten me onboard a Birthright trip to Israel with forty other Jewish college students – most of whom were not orthodox. These students did something I was scared to let others before them do: accept me for who I currently was.

            Within the first seventy-two hours, they had me opening up my soul to them, and they opened up in return. We shared a connection that was held up by Band-Aids; therefore it was stronger even than chains. They helped me shed my actor’s masks and shined the spotlight on my true self.

            Towards the end of the week, we had reached a level of family and soon it was time for Shabbos in Jerusalem. Watching many of them take on one way or another to honor the Shabbos Queen in a way they would not do back in America made me take on one last complete Shabbos, the way I grew up observing it.

I did it for my sister Pesha, who worked so diligently in her life and in her death to teach me to be true to what I feel. I did it for Pesha who gave me memories of gleaming Shabbos candlesticks, and a pearly white table surrounded by friends, relatives, and random guests.

            I took in that Shabbos in Jerusalem and I inhaled it together with my new family. And I am proud to announce that this Shabbos will mark one complete year without me exhaling.

            I could only have done this with the support of a group of people who probably do not even realize how much they effected my life with their remarks, compassion, showering of comfort, advice when needed, and most of all their energy that I fed off of while in Israel with them.

            Thank you Bus 1147 for helping me give a year to my dear sister Pesha Leah, and more importantly for helping me give a year to my true self.

            May the Shabbos Queen accompany the soul of Pesha Leah bas Chaim Leibel to G-d’s Heavenly Throne.

I Am OCC

[Published by the Oakland Community College Blog, May 5, 2015: https://oaklandcc.wordpress.com/2015/05/05/i-am-occ/]

            On Friday, May 01, 2015, I was OCC. Not just as a student, but as a student leader. As a representation of everything my school stands for. I was Rudy the Raider.

            Not too long after I joined Oakland Community College, I became involved with Hillel of Metro Detroit. During the past few years, I have become more and more involved with Student Life on OCC campuses and within a year I found myself becoming the new president of the Jewish Student Organization on campus (a branch of HMD).

            Although I had my hands filled with classes, I did my best to bring a new vibe to the organization and to Student Life in general. I found myself planning events like the Anti-Bullying Dance Day in November, and a Multi-Faith Panel in February. I gathered contacts with various professors, faculty members, students, and people from the community. I was working towards creating a legacy to leave behind when I must say goodbye to OCC’s doors this coming December.

            I had never expected it all to pay off so soon. Thursday afternoon, I was walking past Dean Hawkins’ office and he stopped me to chat for a bit. As he used to be the Student Life Coordinator at the Orchard Ridge campus, he knew me by now and I had kept up the relationship even after he switched positions.

            After asking how my classes went, he asked if I would like to the school a favor and be the mascot the following morning at a pep rally for high school students deciding on their colleges; a Detroit Signing Day. He informed me that the event will be honored with a guest appearance by First Lady Michelle Obama. Naturally, I accepted this immense honor and once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. It was the most memorable day of my college experience to date.

            Student Life on campus is a thriving program, full of huge opportunities. Whether it be student clubs where you meet your new best friend, or a chance to star in your school’s new commercial, or bringing a difference to the students you pass in the hallway. It helps you learn how to become a leader in a world filled with followers. It provides ways to help you relax from classroom pressures, and shows you that you do not always have to come to school just to listen to lectures.

            The more involved you become, the more chances you will receive to give back to your school; to show your love and support of a college that goes out of its way to make you feel special on a daily basis. On Friday I was OCC; tomorrow it could be you.

Peace Only Starts With You - MSU Personal Statement

TOPIC: Describe a significant event from the past two years which required you to interact with someone outside your own social or cultural group (ethnic, religious, geographic, socio-economic, etc.). How did this impact you? What did you learn and what surprised you? [400 word max.]

College life has is not easy for many people; being a religious Jew makes the task even harder. Can’t eat from the cafeteria. Need permission to miss an exam for Passover. Can’t even study properly on weekends due to the Sabbath. In November 2014 – February 2015, however, I had a most difficult, yet amazing, life changing experience.

            As president of the Jewish Student Organization at OCC, Michigan, I realized that with all the hate going on in the world, we must begin working properly towards cooperation world-wide. Diligently, I began putting together a Multi-Faith Panel event to help spread awareness and love throughout my college grounds.

            Preparations slowly began to gather our esteemed panelists. Deciding upfront that there will be a representative of six major faiths (Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, Atheism, & Hinduism), I knew it would take time to confirm the various speakers.

            Two months passed by, and still things had to be done. Fliers distributed, brochure made, forms filled out. Soon the day had arrived. On February 12, 2015, forty people including the Campus President and Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs, gathered into a study hall to change the world for the better.

            The event was a grand success and I, personally, gained as much from the preparations as I did from the event itself. I realized just how far one must go to make sure not to say or do something that could potentially offend someone from a different background. I understand better now that just because you do not agree with someone else’s way of thinking, it does not necessarily make them wrong; it just means you are both at a body of water and are crossing it via your own unique pathway.

            Throughout the event, I gained a deeper insight as to what each of these many belief systems actually believe; as opposed to what I had previously assumed. I was surprised to learn, for example, that my concept of Atheism was false.

            This event, the planning and the attending, is without a doubt one of the highlights of my life. I felt like this is what college is about: learning to not be shy about something you are passionate about, and to work towards a goal. To appreciate your classmates for who they are, not what they believe in. To try and make a difference.

High School Musical 3: Senior (Modern Dance Essay)

            One of the most common musicals produced by the Disney Channel is the High School Musical series. Known for their beautiful way of intertwining a story with modern dance, HSM brought enchantment to many children, teenagers, and yes, even adults worldwide. Each song brings with it a force of beauty, awe, affection, and class. The use of many various dance techniques are portrayed throughout each of the three films; however I found Senior Year to be the most passionate and enthralling to watch.

            The first song of the film, “Now Or Never” is a perfect example of the power that dance can have to portray emotions, feelings, and thoughts. The scene is a basketball game, where the stakes are high. The actors are dressed in the team jerseys. The dance is very fast-paced using double time for their actions; most of which are locomotor. Due to being a basketball game, there are lots of various pathways being used with all possible levels. During a foul play, the dancer collapses suddenly to the ground; during a jump shot, the actor sustains in the air.

            By contrast, the song entitled “Can You Imagine?” is the complete opposite; yet shows the power of non-locomotor dance techniques. It is a very slow, half-time dance and is mostly non-locomotor; yet that is the beauty of it – there is so much told in the lack of movement! The two dancers switch from middle to high levels and contract inwards toward each other while towards their own body. There is also a sudden grab of the female dancer which proceeds to open up the dance to movement pathways.

            Another similar dance is entitled “Can I Have This Dance?” It, too, is a slow waltz (literally). As waltzes tend to be, this dance is done in half-time movements with slow steps throughout the stage. Both actors keep eye contact and mirror each other’s actions. The female is sustained in her fall by the male dancer as well as being suddenly tossed into the air halfway through the song. Towards the end, the female does a sustained pekay followed by twists mid-air. With twists and Shawshays, this dance, as well as the one prior mentioned, shows the art involved with ‘Show Don’t Tell’ that is the true power of dance.

            Throughout the above three songs, one can grasp the story within the story that is told via elegant dance. A song is pretty; dance makes it a wonder to watch. The art of the body expressed to the audience is what makes or breaks a musical. The gasp as the dancer sustains in pekay. The gaping mouths when he/she twirls through the levels. The suspense of watching a double-time leap. The beautiful difference in melt and rise. This is art. This is dance. This is beauty.

A Lion Stands Watch

Many say that nightmares
are nothing more than a dream.
They claim that there
is no meaning to be found.

Many accuse us of overthinking
the thoughts that arrive in the night.
They laugh at our fears
saying the monsters are in our head.

They will never know
the terror that we see.
They will never watch
our lives fall to hell.

I used to be afraid,
now I am no more.
For I have a Guardian Angel
ready to attack intruding dreams.

She stands tall and proud
waiting by my side.
She doesn't close her eyes
unless mine are wide open.

She will hug me when I'm scared;
caress me when I'm worried.
She will always be my friend
forever and ever.

My Nala shoos away the nasty thoughts
that try to take advantage of my fears.
My Nala will watch over me with love.
My Nala helps me find sleep at last.

And if anyone still will claim
that there is not a thing to worry for;
I tell them they are right,
For my Nala keeps them at bay.