My name is Dikla Druckman and I am a student at the Schechter Rabbinical Seminary in Jerusalem. The first time I encountered Torah reading was when I was 12, as I was preparing for my bat mitzvah at Kehillat Raanan in Raanana. Dvora Rowen taught me the trope. I remember the excitement and magic that were part of the process, as well as the fears and the pressure I felt as the day of the ceremony approached. The magic of that day ignited a spark inside of me. During the following years, I forgot the melodies, but I relearned them after I finished the army, when I began to teach students for their bar/bat mitzvah ceremonies. Today, I am 30, and as part of my rabbinical program I work with Masorti congregations in a number of capacities. These include teaching courses about prayer and preparing youngsters for their bar/bat mitzvahs as well as conducting these ceremonies. I was privileged to teach in the Bar/Bat Mitzvah for the Special Child Program, working with youngsters with a wide range of disabilities. I studied music, and I am a Hazzanit (Cantor) as well as conducting a children’s choir. I have a BA in psychology and in Jewish thought, and I am currently completing my master’s degree in Jewish thought. I am also studying spiritual care.
