The bat-mitzvah is a Jewish rite of passage for 13 year old girls, (a bar-mitzvah for boys,) where we are inducted into being "Jewish adults" by studying to lead the Saturday morning Shabbat service. I count it as one of my greatest accomplishments, because the year before it was the worst of my life, yet I remained determined to see this through, studied my @$$ off for three months instead of twelve, and on August 10, 1996, joined the ranks of Jewish adults.
This first picture is actually of me on my 13th birthday, July 15, 1996, wrapped in the "Jewish prayer shawl," the tallis. Sadly, the one thing my parents forgot to bring to the service was a camera, so I offer pictures 2 and 3 as evidence that this event actually took place. If you click on picture #2, the writing Bat-mitzvah: Congratulations, Rachel, August 10, 1996 should become clear, and picture #3 is me standing over it at my afterparty; I'm the one in the pink tye-dyed shirt.
