For the past 22 years, Jewels of Elul has featured reflections from luminaries including Rabbi David Wolpe, The Dalai Lama, Lady Gaga, Elie Wiesel, Norman Lear, and Desmond Tutu. This year, however, Jewels of Elul XXIII takes a bold departure: instead of global icons, the pages are filled with the voices of Southern California students ages 12–18. 

Visit: jewelsofelul.com To read the complete Jewels.

This special edition of Jewels is a collaboration between Anne Frank LA and the Pico Union Project. Jewels amplifies the next generation, whose clarity and compassion remind us why those voices matter most. Craig Taubman, the creator of the Jewels notes, “At this moment, it’s the children’s voices that break through the noise of hatred and despair. In their words, we hear a future worth believing in.”

Jewel by Arielle Mokhtarzadeh Ravanshenas 

I recently traveled to Amsterdam with my husband. Visiting the Anne Frank House felt essential. As we walked through Anne’s life—internalizing every word, image, and memory—I was struck by the resonance of her story. Anne’s story endures because it is unfinished. Its abrupt end begs us to imagine what could have been. In our yearning to finish her pages, we grant ourselves the audacity to continue her story and reimagine the life she might have lived. 

I am the daughter of two Iranian American Jewish refugees. I once called them “immigrants,” but I now understand that that word erases the gravity of their forced migration. Like Anne, they were forced to flee from a country their families had called home for generations. Unlike Anne, they lived to write new chapters – and shared their pens with three new storytellers. The power of Anne’s story lies both in the particularism of who she was and the universalism of what she represents. Targeted for her Jewish identity, her story echoes that of all young women persecuted for theirs. With my mother’s story etched in my heart, and Anne’s words scribbled before my eyes, I thought of another young woman whose story was left unfinished. In September 2022, Mahsa Amini, a 22-yearold Iranian young woman, was murdered by the “morality police” of the Islamic Republic for exposing “too much” hair. Like Anne, Mahsa never intended to be a symbol. In her death, she gave life to a revolution for Women, Life, Freedom. In Anne’s voice, I heard my mother’s. 

In my mother’s strength, I felt Mahsa’s. And in Mahsa’s innocence, I saw Anne’s. For Anne. For Mahsa, and for every story left unfinished—we write.

Jewel by Lizzy Portillo 

At the age of 7, I embarked on a journey to the United States, hand in hand with my mother, leaving behind the comfort of familiarity to chase the promise of a brighter tomorrow. The journey was a profound leap of faith into the unknown. With no family or friends to lean on, my mother and I faced the challenges of a foreign land with resilience as our compass and determination as our guiding star. 

Upon entering school, I embarked on my journey to learn other languages. It became about more than mastering words and grammar – it was about a quest for connection and belonging. I immersed myself in foreign literature, films, TV shows, and music. With each new language learned, I felt a sense of empowerment and liberation from the constraints of communication barriers. 

My passion for language acquisition is driven by a desire to bridge gaps and foster connections in a diverse world. I know firsthand what it’s like to not be understood and be looked at differently because I didn’t speak a certain language. My goal extends beyond linguistic mastery; I aspire to aid those who find themselves in the same position I once did. My journey from a small town in Honduras reflects the essence of achieving success without a roadmap. The resilience I developed at a young age when coming to the U.S. convinced me that there aren’t limits to what I can achieve. I want to demonstrate the talents of a young girl from a small country who immigrated to the U.S., driven by determination and self-reliance. As I continue to pursue my dreams, I am reminded that my destination isn’t just a journey of self-discovery and empowerment, but a path to success without guidance.