I was going to make it some funny reflection on how Hanukkah is pretty much sent to the background during the holidays: it's hard to find Hanukkah related gifts, our only song on the radio is by Adam Sandler, etc. However, things changed a couple weeks ago when I experienced - for the first time, at 20 years old - the validation that being Jewish meant being different, being a minority.

I was walking out of a restaurant with my best friend when I first noticed the word "Jew" written in the rain of my car. I yelled at her, thinking she had done it, but she came around to the back, looked at it, and said, "I didn't do that." I was super confused, but thinking that it had to be a friend trying to have some fun, tried to brush it off.

It should be mentioned that I am very vocal about my Jewish faith in that I always talk and joke about it. The most recent example I can think of is being elected president of the Hillel at my school. I am excited for this new position, and I have made tweets such as, "I plan to lead my fellow Jews to the stars AND BEYOND" and "I am literally the rabbi of Roanoke College." My friends know that I take pride in this and am very open about it, so we can talk about my religion easily and lightly.

Back to my car, though. I had posted a picture of it on Snapchat asking who had done it, but instead of getting an answer I had people telling me it made them angry, and that I should be worried. So, I started getting worried. I started posting on social media asking for whomever had done it to let me know so I wouldn't have to advise the college faculty that there could possibly be some bigotry on campus. No one responded. I realized that it was possible that someone was targeting me, so out of concern for my own safety I notified the campus police.

The next day, I received tweets from random people on Twitter trying to say that I was making the whole thing up or was overreacting. They called me simple, and even used my tweet about leading my fellow Jews to the stars as an opportunity to say that I was being racist against non-Jews.

I was in shock. I had never experienced a form of bigotry like this before. Sure, I had once been told to "go back to Germany," but this was more hard-hitting for some reason. I felt as though I was in danger, people weren't believing me, and I was overreacting.

A few weeks later, as Hanukkah approaches, this incident is barely on my mind. It was easy to get through as all of my friends showed me that they had my back, and now it's easy to focus on what's going on. I've learned to be more wary of how I showcase my religion, because if the writing on my car was meant to be a joke, it means that I let the jokes go too far. I will always be proud of who I am, because being Jewish is a huge part of what defines me. It's important for me, and everyone who has ever felt oppressed for that matter, to remember that bigots are insignificant.