Just Shy of Ordinary by A. J. Sass
Author:A. J. Sass [SASS, A. J.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Published: 2024-01-30T00:00:00+00:00
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
THE WEATHER CHANGED OVERNIGHT between Friday and Saturday. Cold replaced summerâs last thread of humidity. A few minutes after Mom picked me up, it also started drizzling.
I barely noticed. I was too busy going over everything Rabbi Levine had said to me. During this morningâs service, she had also invited everyone to meet at the Wisconsin River to perform the Tashlich ceremony, where you cast away unwanted experiences and the bad things youâve done over the past year by throwing breadcrumbs, greens, or pebbles into the water. It sounded beautiful.
It had also given me an idea.
âDid you have a good time?â Mom asked.
âYeah. Everyone was really nice, plus I learned a lot.â
âAnd youâre getting the information you need for your project?â
âYep, I think so.â
I still wasnât quite sure what my essays should be about, but I had most of today and all of tomorrow to figure it out.
âGreat.â Mom smiled. âIâm proud of how hard youâre working, Shai. Public school is a big adjustment, and youâve made such a smooth transition.â
I smiled.
The closer we got to home, the more my idea blossomed. I imagined standing at Helen Evansâs dock, casting every bad experience of the last year awayâmy arm picking, Mom telling me sheâd lost her job, and so onâinto the lake, one by one.
âDo you want to do Tashlich with me when we get home?â I asked.
âPardon?â
âFor Rosh Hashanah,â I said. âRabbi Levine was talking about it this weekend. Itâs where youââ
âI know what Tashlich is, Shai.â
âOh, right. Duh.â It was easy to forget that Mom had grown up Jewish. She knew all this stuff and more already, but it still felt new and exciting to me. âSo, you know it helps you reset. Then you get to make good changes for the new year.â
âIâm aware. But, Shai⦠youâre not Jewish.â
âBut I thought if you had a Jewish mom, you were automatically Jewish.â
âTechnically, thatâs true, yes.â¦â Mom backtracked fast, but I didnât have time to think about it before she spoke again. âDid someone at your grandparentsâ temple tell you this?â
Her words were quiet, but they settled like rocks in my stomach.
âNo, I looked it up online. So, since Iâm technically Jewish, I should be able to do Tashlich just like every otherââ
The expression on Momâs face stopped me. It was frustration, maybe anger, and something else that was harder to place, all blended together.
Mom didnât say anything at first. The only sounds were the plink-plink-plinks of the rain and the swisha-swishes of the windshield wipers.
My throat felt thick. Mom and I never fought. Sometimes we debated, especially when Mom was still homeschooling me. We disagreed about what to have for dinner or how many books I could carry home from the library (and read before their due dates). But nothing major.
We werenât technically fighting now, either, but still. This conversation felt different.
Several mile markers passed. Mom sighed. A long, heavy breath.
âThere are as many opinions about who is or isnât a Jew as there are Jewish people,â
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