The school year opened with an energy of excitement, hugs, and the buzz of a new beginning. Yet even as the halls filled with laughter and the GO’s “beauty bar” set the mood, Mrs. Rina Zerykier, menahelet, wanted to set the tone for something much deeper. Introducing this year’s theme, Kol Kevudah Bat Melech Penimah, she reminded the girls that while the world obsesses over filters, likes, and appearances, Torah calls us to live with dignity that shines from the inside out.
She began by sharing something personal. “Even after over twenty years, I still get nervous on the first day,” she admitted. “I plan my outfit, I want to make a good impression. That nervousness isn’t shallow—it’s human.” But she contrasted that natural desire with the amplified pressures of today’s world, where social media curates endless images of perfection. “The world has become performative,” she said. “We’ve lost a lot of authenticity. Everyone is comparing, curating, editing. But do we really want to live that way?”
This, she explained, is where the Torah’s message of tzniut comes in—not as rules about elbows or hems, but as an inner orientation toward authenticity, humility, and real beauty. She drew on Chazal to show that tzniut has always meant something deeper. “Rachel Imeinu gave the simanim to her sister so she wouldn’t be embarrassed. That’s tzniut. The Kohanim Hatznu’im didn’t grab the Lechem HaPanim. That’s tzniut. Moshe Rabbeinu entered the Ohel Moed to speak with Hashem—it says he embodied tzniut. None of those stories mention clothing. They’re about dignity, humility, and kavod.”
She reminded the girls that the Navi Micha lists hatznei’a lechet im Hashem—walking humbly with G-d—as one of the three pillars of Jewish life. “That’s not just for women. It’s for all of Klal Yisrael. Tzniut is the gateway to a relationship with Hashem. It opens the doors to Torah and to real growth.” Quoting Rav Chaim Friedlander’s Sifsei Chaim, she emphasized that tzniut is the foundation for all middot. “It’s not about hiding. It’s about knowing you are a neshama, a daughter of the King, and carrying yourself with that awareness.”
Respect, she said, grows from this same recognition. “When you really respect someone, it’s not because of their brand or hairstyle—it’s because you see the godliness inside them. When you know your Father is the King, you naturally hold yourself like a princess—confident, calm, and dignified.”
With humor, she addressed the black, white, and pink stripes chosen for this year’s theme. “It may look like Sephora—but the beauty bar we’re talking about is inside. Sephora says you can buy endless products to make yourself beautiful. Torah says: go to the beauty bar of your soul. Invest in mitzvot, in Torah, in inner light. That’s the kind of beauty that never fades.”
Her parting words carried both blessing and charge. “This year, may you carry dignity and kavod wherever you go. Feel Hashem walking beside you—not because of how you look, but because of who you are. You are a Bat Melech. Shine from the inside out. Together, we will light up the world.”
And with that, the year began—not only with books and Chromebooks, but with a mission. From laughter in the halls to learning in the classroom, Kol Kevudah Bat Melech Penimah will guide the girls in shaping a year of growth, simchah, and true dignity.
Rethinking Tzniut AT YSZ Girls HS: Kol Kevudah Bat Melech Penimah
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