When I look at my life, I see:

When I look at my life, I see:

A little Jewish schoolgirl waiting for Shabbat and the arrival of her grandaunt Silvia with the newest Mickey Mouse comic.

A 13-year-old young girl wanting to belong, thinking that keeping Kosher or Shabbat will let her enter a desired circle of people.

An unsatisfied teenager, tired of hanging out with the same people all the time and looking for her first non-Jewish friends.

A university freshman in a non-Jewish setting, realizing––for the the first time––that she doesn’t know how to act in public (although member of a minority all her life, she never needed to bear her identity in the presence of someone else).

I see a young Jewish woman making noise as president of the Jewish student union, becoming involved in public causes and eventually entering student politics.

An active listener who understands that individuals remain bystanders if they do not act upon their knowledge, someone who wants to respect the past, create a meaningful present, and invest in a healthier future.

A female activist making baby steps, successfully advocating for something for the first time.

A first-time director piloting the Jewish Salons in Vienna — up until this day the most valuable and freeing Jewish experience I had in my life.

A Jewish professional, member of the board of directors of the Jewish community in Vienna, terrified by the idea of having to spend the rest of her life discussing internal community problems and Austrian politics.

I see a woman in her 30s, in New York City, rearranging all she thought she knew about herself and searching for confidence as a young professional in a new country.

A European Jew in the United States, agonizing about the fact that she doesn’t feel connected to American Jewry; her identity based on being an outsider, a migrant, a minority, as opposed to being part of the majority culture.

And then as a pair, a young international romance forced to leave their safe haven — the city that is no one’s home — in search of new adventures.

A Jewish couple in Istanbul fascinated by the sounds, images, and smells of a historic place, yet worried about their unknown future.

I see a woman in love leaving her comfort zone and family behind, willing to move to a foreign country without any language skills, compromising all of her professional experience.

A language student, who leaves all her previous knowledge outside the classroom door and starts all over: “Hola, mi nombre es Yvonne”.

A volunteer, eager to gather the bits and pieces of Spanish that are not taught in formal education: ready to re-enter her career, one that haven’t even started, yet.

And now? As a woman in her mid 30s living in a completely unknown culture and environment. Someone who has studied culture, communication, and education for many years and who, for the first time in her life, feels like she has found a technique to playfully approach and harvest her interests, knowledge, and experience; someone who created a platform that allows her to investigate and experiment the topics most relevant to her new reality.

Migration. Identity. Language.

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