Valuing Every Voice

Aloha Island School ‘Ohana,

35 years ago, I made the decision that I HAD to go to college FAR from my parents. I grew up in the same place for my entire 17 years, a small city in the Bay Area of California that had a population about the size of Kauaʻi. At the time, I desperately felt like I needed distance from my family. And that sounds so strange now, because 35 years later, the hardest thing about the choice to move to Kauaʻi was that I was choosing a move across the ocean from my family. But back then, with my teenage self, I just needed more “space” from my parents…they were tough, demanding, strict, and wanted me to mirror their beliefs about the world. And at 17, I had just started to stretch my wings. And honestly, my parents were the type that would show up at 6am at the door of my brother's dorm room (He went to college in Vallejo at the Maritime Academy, about 40 minutes from our home), and I just couldn’t have that. I was hoping for Brown, I didn’t get in, but I got a strong offer from Brandeis University in Massachusetts, and through a lot of sacrifice, my parents let me go 3,000 miles away for college. Now you might be wondering, that’s not what I remember about Nancy – Brandeis? And why I didn’t stay at Brandeis is a story for another time, but it’s my start at Brandeis, a dominantly Jewish university, where this Filipino, Catholic-raised girl landed that I was thinking about today…

Why was I thinking about a college that I spent only a year at? Well, because in that short window of time, my world was broadened. Sure, I got to ride the train into Boston and experience the vastness of that city that made San Francisco seem small. And yes, a friend took me home with her one school break to New York City, and I got to ride the subway for the first time. Whoa. But actually, it wasn’t these experiences that created the biggest pause for me. It was going to a school that centered on very different traditions than ones I grew up in. You see, by attending a college that dominantly served students of Jewish background, and just like there are many ways to be Christian, I learned there are many ways to be Jewish. I realized, when it felt like there were endless holidays in the fall, it was simply that I wasn’t used to recognizing the Jewish High Holidays. In fact, I didn’t know anything about Jewish holidays. I didn’t have the education our students get today, one that exposes them to different traditions. In fact, today our 8th Grade got to experience in their Ed-Venture the annual trip to visit important religious / sacred sites from Wailua to Līhuʻe, including St. Michael and All Angels Episcopal Church which also hosts the Jewish Community of Kauaʻi.

And so it wasn’t until I was 18 that I learned about Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, and other holidays in the Jewish tradition. In fact, next week marks the beginning of the High Holiday season in the Jewish tradition. For those who don’t know, Rosh Hashanah (which begins at sunset on Oct 2) celebrates the Jewish new year. The blowing of the shofar (ram’s horn) which is a part of the ceremony sounds remarkably similar to Kani Ka Pū (sounding of the conch shell). Yom Kippur will happen towards the end of October break, starting at sunset on Oct 11, and is a time for atonement and reflecting on one’s actions and seeking forgiveness. That time in my life led me to see how much there is to know and learn about the traditions of others. I was so glad to see first hand what it meant to fast for 24 hours, to pause at a different time of year for reflection. I realized that there were voices I didn’t know about and if I kept being open to new experiences, I could learn more and more about others.

Every day we have the opportunity to value every voice in the world around us, as a citizen, a parent, a teacher, a student, a neighbor, a friend... I am humbled by the opportunity to learn from each person that I am blessed to engage with through Island School and across our island. This is the work we try and do every day at school, and while it does not always come easily, it is what our world needs now more than ever.

As always, mahalo for your belief in our community and for entrusting your children’s education to this dedicated team at Island School.

Together,

Nancy Nagramada, Head of School

n.nagramada@ischool.org 

P.S.