A Multi-Cultural Education

Tonight we went to the Marietta Greek Festival, which, by the way, if you have never been, is a total must-go. It was so fun for adults and kids. We got a tour of the church, got to watch Greek dancing, see Greek paraphernalia, eat gyros, eat desserts (baklavah sundae rocked), and Alexis got to jump around on a bouncy. Super fun! Anyway, Ben teaches the son of the priest there so Ben went up to him and reintroduced himself to the priest as his son's teacher. Just to set the stage I will describe the man for you. The Greek Orthodox Priest was wearing a long black robe, had a bushy gray long beard, and long hair tied back in a knot. Ben and Max were talking to him while Alexis, Bubum, and I were eating on the grass. Alexis all of sudden pipes up and says, "I'm going to say hi to the Rabbi". My mom and I died laughing. I guess she is exposed to too many Orthodox (of a different kind).

Speaking of Orthodox, we got a tour of the church inside which was beautiful. It was also totally ironic how similar many of their beliefs and customs were to Judaism. I may be a total dork, but I find that stuff so interesting and how different religions overlap. For example, they refer to a specific area in the sanctuary as the Holy of Holies which only the priest is allowed to enter. This is quite similar and has the same name as the inner sanctuary at The Temple that only the high priest was allowed to enter on Yom Kippur. Another similarity was that they had a candle burning on this alter that burned for a whole year and is then relit, similar to the Nir Tamid (eternal light). They also have a ceremony on the 8th day of life for baby boys and a ceremony for a child who is 40 days old which is similar to the old Jewish custom that a 40 day old child was brought to The Temple for the first time. Additionally, the men and the women sit separately during the Greek Orthodox service. All of their holidays also begin at sundown the previous day. Anyway, there just seem to be so many similarities that I find it very thought provoking.

Second interesting thing of the day: the Greek word that we all became familiar with from the movie My Big Fat Greek Wedding....."OPA!". I found it completely ironic that Alexis called my dad Opa because it means grandfather in German, but today we learned the meaning of the word in Greek and it totally sums up who my dad was and what he was about. It truly brought new meaning to the word Opa for us today. According to the Greeks, "OPA" is a Greek word that may be used as an exclamation, or the announcment of a celebration; the celebration of life itself. It is another way of expressing joy and gratitude to God, life, and others, for bringing us into the state of ultimate wisdom; that all that really matters is health, family, and friends.
It is a humorous affirmation that you a€™re the best; that you a€™re where you a€™re supposed to be; and that you need to stop and celebrate. It is the Greek way of stating they have come to a level of serene exuberance able to enjoy life. They also say "OPA" and throw napkins in the air as a reminder that we are as free as the birds; that the sky is the limit so let go, fear nothing and join in the celebration. It is a way of saying don't worry; no matter what has happened you are still alive, don't be harsh on yourself, there's another minute and another day ahead of you to right what is wrong, and we are here together to make sure of this. I just thought that every time they yelled "OPA" it was in excitement and celebration and that is what my dad was all about!

Lastly (I promise I'm almost done), Alexis was totally into the dancing and here is video of it: