Aaron Karasik

4/1/17
Personal Essay
ENGW1111
Just Jew It

Signora, is it cuz were Jewish?!

No, it wasnt.
No, that did not go over well.

Hold up, let me tell you how I got to this point. Some context needs to be
provided, so let me tell you about the one time I got sent down to the
principals office.

My 8th grade Italian class was set to start a project researching and
presenting a region of Italy for class. We were drafting what region we were
going to focus on; repeats were not allowed. My project partner and good
friend, Sam, and I had the first pick and selected the obvious choice, Sicily.
Home of the Godfather, Mafia, rectangular pizza and fine Mediterranean
weather, Sicily was the region to get. It was a region I wouldnt mind being
more familiar with.

Signora Pancheri went through the rest of the class, picking off regions, one
by one falling.

At the end she comes back to us and says, Boys, you cant have Sicily.
Why, we picked it first. We had the first pick.

In hindsight, I still think we were in the right here. She had no justifiable
reason to take this project away from us. We followed her rules and should
reap the rewards. It was hypocritical, and if theres anything I cant stand, its
when other people are hypocritical

Alexandras relatives are from Sicily and she wants to study the region
Well alright, well adapt, I guess. There are 20 regions in total, and 18 of
them were already selected. Well, what regions are left?

The last two regions were Val DAosta and Basilicata. This was a problem.
Literally nothing happens in Val DAosta and Basilicata. Im not studying Val
DAosta or Basilicata. That would bore me to death. Sorry, Signora.

We picked Sicily. We have the rights to Sicily. We deserve it.

Alas, Signora Pancheri overruled us. Our retorts were fruitless, but as the
saying goes, desperate times call for desperate measures.
Well if Alexandras parents are from Sicilyour families are from Russia. We
should get to do Russia.
This is a regions of Italy Project.
Heck, I dont know Signora, its the same logic you were using earlier.
It kind of was the same logic she was using earlier.

Now this where I really start to look bad. The conversation got a little heated,
and I was making Signora Pancheri a bit angry. What finally crossed the line
and set me up for a conversation with our principal and a 2-day suspension
from Italian class was the opening phrase, which again, in hindsight, was
probably not the greatest idea.

Signora, is it cuz were Jewish

Let me be upfront in saying Signora Pancheri was not anti-Semitic. She had
taught Italian in the Newton Public Schools system, a city colloquially
referred to as Jew-ton for decades. Word would have leaked long before my
time. Also, it was my third year with her, so I imagine I would have caught on
earlier.

I have to be honest, something didnt feel quite right after I said that. I had a
sharp pain in my gut, could have been appendicitis. I dont think Signora
took too kindly to me saying that to her. Im no body language expert, but
she seemed upset.

But, hey, I have no regrets. Although in court, I wouldve rather pled the fifth,
I knew exactly what I was doing. I know what those words mean. I know that
the possible repercussions from my accusation were far more severe for her
than for me. I was questioning her decision-making, forcing her hand in the
matter. It was my best chance to get what I wanted. It was definitely a risk
worth taking.

At this point, it seems only fair to reveal how my situation concluded and
what transpired post-suspension. Put simply, it worked.

A couple days later, when we were finally allowed back into Italian class, Sam
and I stumbled into a bit of a surprise. Our region of focus was Russia.

The next week, after we delivered a stellar presentation in class, we received

a final grade; 100. We got a 100 on a Regions of Italy Project using Russia.
Try doing that with Val DAosta.

I dont really understand why this moment sticks with me so much. Middle
school is the worst. I hope I lose all my memories from that brick prison. This
memory, however, will never go away.

I dont think getting in trouble is what impacted me. If anything, the

consequence was as much a reward as a punishment. I dont mind missing
class. What sticks with me, is that we succeeded. We got in trouble, and
came out on top.

I didnt learn much from middle school, but I learned this: sometimes its ok
to break the rules. I didnt get my first choice and I ended up doing twice the
work, but I still kept my dignity during that project and couldnt feel happier
doing it. I didnt accept my situation as it was given to me; I charted my own
course, and thus, stayed true to myself.

So, I guess it doesnt matter what you tell me to do.

Ill still do it my way.