Today I went to Benji’s bris, my first time seeing one. What really stuck with me was how early this tradition says to a child, “You are one of us.” Benji, just eight days old, completely oblivious, had no choice in anything, yet was surrounded by a room full of family, friends, and community members. I heard Hebrew words I do not understand and then his full name spoken out loud for the first time by Elon. It brought everyone together… plus a tasty brunch. What a wonderful way to celebrate a newborn! Curious to learn more, I did a bit of reading afterward about how the eighth day is when a person starts his partnership in helping shape the world. Seven represents creation; eight represents our creations as human beings. The room stands around this tiny person and essentially says “Your life is part of the story we’re building as a community.” I liked this framing of it as the start of a shared project.
Watching this as an outsider hits differently. I grew up as a Chinese immigrant in Maine. No ceremony in a synagogue. No rabbi naming my future. My parents were just here to survive. Our “covenant” was just practical. It was their way of giving me the best chance of success. Do math. Get straight As. Don’t waste this chance in the US. The closest thing we had to a ritual was making dumplings together so that we could stay connected to a place I could barely remember.
This opened my eyes to a kind of belonging I hadn’t witnessed firsthand before. So my learn is this. There’s power in a community that gives belonging before you earn it. I may not have been handed a clear, public covenant but I am old enough to choose my own. I can decide what values I want written into my life and what kind of community I want standing around me and the people I care about. Watching Benji being claimed by his people makes me want to be just as intentional, even if I get there much later.
Thank you and congrats, Elon and Hannah!