By: Nomi Kaltmann as seen in a new collection of work inspired by the anthology On Being Jewish Now: Reflections of Authors and Advocates.

Oct 13, 2024

I’m not really a fan of jewellery. As a mom with four little children, I find dangly earrings to be perfect bait for tiny fingers. Plus, with a busy home life, I don’t really have time to spend on accessorising my outfit each day.  

However, a few weeks ago, in what feels like the first time in years, I decided to buy myself some jewellery: a pair of earrings. They were not particularly fancy, and they weren’t super expensive, but for me they were extremely meaningful as they were a pair of silver Magen David studs.

If you had told me a few years ago that I would wear my Jewish identity proudly on my ears, I don’t know if I would have believed you. As a Jewish woman, I have the privilege of choosing whether I want to reveal that I am Jewish. Unlike Jewish men, who look outwardly Jewish with their skullcaps and sidelocks, I don’t have to wear my religious identity out in public.

Yet, since October 7, 2023, antisemitism has been increasing in my hometown in Melbourne, Australia. Recent incidents include graffiti, assaults and threats. My grandfather was a Holocaust survivor who went through six concentration camps and was the sole survivor of his family. He chose to come and start his life again in Australia because it was so far from the horrors of Europe, where he had lost everything. I shudder when I think about what it would be like for him to live through this period of rising antisemitism, in a city that he loved so much.

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I have always seen my Jewish identity as precious. For me, it’s the source of my values and my character. I love that, as part of being Jewish, I give 10 percent of my earnings to charity and am obligated to visit the sick and take care of the poor. I love that Judaism implores us all to leave the world in better shape than we found it. Deep within my DNA, I know that I have a higher purpose beyond my own selfish pursuits.

With all its complications, I also love Israel. I spent a gap year there after school. I learned to speak Hebrew and I feel connected to the people and the culture. So many people that I know have hurled the worst insults at Israel and accused all Jewish people of genocide and crimes against humanity. It’s disheartening, but these accusations have also increased my dedication to pursuing my faith with love, no matter how misunderstood it may be.

So, with all these feelings swirling in my head, I ordered my Magen David earrings. When they arrived in the mail a few days later, I put them straight into my ear lobes. My children, not used to seeing me in jewelry, noticed them immediately and asked me why I was wearing earrings.

I told them with pride and without hesitation: your mommy is a proud Jew.