There are many themes in my Torah portion, Vayetzei. The theme that I would like to speak about is the theme of “working hard pays off”. This occurs in my Torah portion when Jacob works for Laban for 7 years. I understand that because in my life when I work hard in sports like swimming and track, it pays off. For example in track I went to practice everyday and I got a lot faster and now I am one of the fastest on my school track team. This shows I put in hard work, and it paid off just like how Jacob worked for Laban all those years.

To become a Bar Mitzvah it was my responsibility to make the world a better place. This was done through my mitzvah project. For my mitzvah project I went to the JFCS shelter, which stands for Jewish Family and Children’s Services, and donated food there. I wanted to do this because I know people not having food is a big problem and I wanted to help. Also, my project made the world a better place because I went to a person’s apartment and dropped off food to her when she was in need.

I would like to thank some of my family members. First I am thanking my dad for always being there for me and helping me with my bar mitzvah. Next I would like to thank my mom for helping me with my mitzvah project and being a great mom. Next I would like to thank Jack and Gabi for hanging out with me and having my back. Lastly, I would like to thank my family and friends who came to my bar mitzvah today.