Brian Levenson Reflecting on Grandma Irene and Identity
b'Today\\u2019s episode is going to be a little bit different than the ones we\\u2019ve done in the past. I just had an inspiring experience that I thought would hopefully make all of us think a little bit more about our own identity, our own values, our ancestors, and how those experiences and the experiences of our family members impact us and how we see the world today. I wrote a little bit and I\\u2019m going to share what I wrote, and this is the best medium I know to share important, interesting, unique information. I really hope that today is something that will make you think and inspire you to look inward and reflect on yourself. At its core, this podcast episode is about identity and how we use that identity to make a difference and make an impact in this world.\\n\\xa0\\nHere are some insights I\\u2019d like to share form today\\u2019s episode:\\n\\u201cWhat would you do if you were able to spend time with Adolf Hitler (without any consequences) if he was around today?\\u201d (7:15).\\n\\u201cIt\\u2019s one of the best gifts I think my parents gave me and my brothers: the capacity and the ability to think critically and to have convictions in some of our thoughts, and to stay curious about those convictions\\u201d (8:15).\\n\\u201cWhen [my grandmother] did talk about her experience [surviving the Holocaust], it was mainly about how grateful she was to be in America and to have the family she had\\u201d (9:10).\\n\\u201cMy grandma and her parents were the lucky ones in Hungary\\u201d (11:20).\\n\\u201cOne of the stories that always stuck with me about grandma was, upon arriving to New York and seeing the Statue of Liberty, a soldier turned to her and said, \\u2018You have no idea how happy I am to see that lady again.\\u2019 To which my grandma replied, \\u2018No, sir. You have no idea how happy I am to see her\\u2019\\u201d (12:35).\\n\\u201cAll of us have the opportunity to stand up against hate. We\\u2019re complicit when we don\\u2019t\\u201d (13:10).\\n\\u201cWhat I wasn\\u2019t expecting was for my trip to Hungary to be accompanied by so much emotion\\u201d (16:25).\\n\\u201cI\\u2019ve cried my way through Hungary. Some tears were tears of pride, and some tears were tears of sorrow. Some tears were tears of joy, and some tears were tears of anger\\u201d (16:45).\\n\\u201cThey say that trauma lives in the body. While I have lived a ridiculously privileged life with very little trauma, perhaps my grandma\\u2019s trauma was pouring out of me as I walked the streets of Hungary\\u201d (17:00).\\n\\u201cLife can be sad, hard, and emotional. Perhaps we all need to lean into those emotions to ensure we are doing everything we can to leave this world better than how we found it\\u201d (19:20).\\n\\u201c[My grandma] would be blown away by the young people who are teaching and helping the older generation re-connect with their Judaism without fear\\u201d (20:00).\\n\\u201cWe must never forget what happened and we must never forget that we are a team. We must support each other; have perspective on what can happen if we don\\u2019t\\u201d (20:30).\\n\\u201cI believe life should be enjoyed and lived with gratitude in the present\\u2026. But I know I can hold more space than just joy\\u201d (21:35).\\n\\u201cI need to carry some of my grandma\\u2019s trauma with me. It will help me step up and step out against inhumanity. I don\\u2019t want to leave my tears in Hungary\\u201d (21:50).\\n\\u201cIf you are thriving, you have a responsibility to go pour into somebody else\\u201d (22:40).\\n\\u201cIf you\\u2019re just thriving for yourself, I would argue that\\u2019s not a meaningful life\\u201d (22:50).\\n\\u201cWe all have to understand the darkness of humans. We cannot be blind to it\\u201d (24:15).\\n\\u201cWe all have to co-own our stories of the past\\u201d (25:00).\\n\\u201cWe\\u2019re all an amalgamation of our DNA and our experiences, but our stories and our ancestors are inside of us. We carry them with us\\u201d (26:05).\\n\\u201cI\\u2019d like to challenge you to reflect on who you are, your history, your identity, and how that impacts your decisions today\\u201d (26:30).\\n\\u201cDo you have your story, or does your story have you?\\u201d (26:50).\\n\\u201cWe must create new memories, new stories, new generations, new values, new ways of seeing the world, so that we can make this place better\\u201d (27:15).\\n\\xa0\\nIf you\\u2019d like to connect with me further'