The theme of the Bat Mitzvah is "what candles and light mean in Judaism", mum told me. Kayla loves the sunset at the beach. The candle lighting theme came about because of that.
Mum sent me a few photos of Kayla lighting the Shabbat candles by a
window and left it to me to decide which was the best way to illustrate
her daughter. She also asked if it was possible to add Kayla's Bat
Mitzvah invitation to the design too. She originally wanted me to leave
the date off the cover because it was already on the invitation, but the
text was so very small that I suggested adding it in gold lettering as
well.
Blonde hair and blue eyed Kayla is wearing the dress she planned to wear
for her Bat Mitzvah. She is lighting the silver Shabbat candles by a
window. A card showing the blessing that we make when lighting the
candles is next to the candles.
It reads as follows:
Blessed are You, Lord our G-d, King of the universe, Who has
sanctified us with His commandments and commanded us to light the
Shabbat lamp.
Shabbat candles are candles lit on Friday evening before sunset to usher in the Jewish Sabbath. It is customary to light two candles. I also light a candle for each of my children and am currently also lighting a third one for the Israeli hostages in Gaza, who are unable to light their own candles.
Shabbat candles are candles lit on Friday evening before sunset to usher in the Jewish Sabbath. It is customary to light two candles. I also light a candle for each of my children and am currently also lighting a third one for the Israeli hostages in Gaza, who are unable to light their own candles.
Even though the walls in the photos I received were white, I suggested
making them a bolder colour to make Kayla stand out. I chose this
flame yellow colour because of Kayla's chosen theme of candles and
light.
I decorated several pages inside Kayla's book too. The first page shows
her doing gymnastics, a hobby which she practices four times a week! She
is wearing a black leotard and black shorts.
Kayla also loves Netflix, so the following page shows it on the screen
of her phone. She is a keen member of Bnei Akiva, the
largest religious Zionist youth movement in the world, with over 125,000
members in 42 countries. I showed the logo of the movement, which is
made up of the Luchot (two stone tablets representing the
Torah), wheat, an olive branch and a scythe and pitchfork. Kayla likes to be
with her friends at Bnei Akiva, so I added a couple more friends too.
Pepper the family dog makes an appearance on the final page.
Just like Elisha, Kayla's Bat Mitzvah celebration was planned before 7th October, when terrorist attacks killed approximately 1,200 Israelis (and more have died in subsequent operations in Gaza and against Hezbollah). War broke out in Israel. I hope that Kayla was still somehow able to mark her Bat Mitzvah later that same month.
* This post has been shared on The Good. The Random. The Fun. and Wordless Wednesday (on Tuesday).