A Fitting End

After 186 hours of classwork over six weeks, we've finally concluded our intensive pre-program Ulpan.

There's plenty I can write about, from the incredible teacher I learned from to the conversation groups and activities that contributed to our language skills and the friendships we made. Instead, I'd like to talk about one night, a night that summed up my Aliyah and my experience living here in Israel so far.

When the Ulpan kicked off in the end of June, there were about fifty participants. Now, with class officially ending last Thursday, only about thirty of us remain in Ra'anana. As a special treat, our madrichim (counselors) decided to take us out of the town for a barbecue in Yafo, a welcomed excursion.

We arrived at an open, hilly field above a small cliff overlooking the Mediterranean sea. The timing was perfect, the sun setting just about the time we started to grill the food. After some time relaxing and playing soccer, I walked a few feet away from the edge of the cliff and took a few moments to look around.

Directly in front of me, the sun had finally set behind the last clouds. As I looked to the right, I could see the vividly lit buildings of Tel Aviv in the distance. The water in front of me stretched as far as I could see, the waves crashing quietly on the rocks far below my feet. As I looked around, the one thing I felt was content. The beauty of the view all around me was overwhelming. The entire time, I smiled to myself, feeling more than ever that this is my home now; this breathtaking land is my breathtaking land.

After a short while, I was joined by Chaim and we talked about it for some time. With the strum of the guitar sounding behind us, the chatter and laughter of thirty others muffled by the discussion, it was the highest point of my life here in Israel so far. Those talking and laughing together some distance behind us had become some of my closest friends. While my brother is the one member of my biological family here, I knew that I had already begun putting together the foundations of a different type of family in Israel. Nothing could make me happier.

As our final days here in Ra'anana wind down, I can't help but look back on them with the fondest of memories. The language improvement is not the only thing I'll be leaving here with. I have developed lasting friendships with many who will be living all over the country and it will be difficult to say our temporary goodbyes.

The future has a lot in store for all of us here in Israel. I know that each one of the friends I've met will be successful in the army and I look forward to our relationships long into the future. While we're saying our goodbyes to friends, the town we've become accustomed to, and the routines that have become second nature to us, I'm thrilled to be beginning Garin Tzabar finally this Wednesday. Tonight was the culmination of the spectacular experience here at the Ulpan. Wednesday will be the culmination of a patient two year wait for my turn on Garin Tzabar, joining a Garin on a Kibbutz and getting started with the army process.

I'm looking forward to joining all of the members of my Garin, many of whom I haven't seen since our final seminar. Everything is finally happening!

Lots more to come in the next month!

-Brett

Weekend in Jerusalem

As last weekend was one of our last before beginning the Garin Tzabar program, we decided to spend it in Jerusalem.

I've always felt a certain connection towards the city, as many who have been there will be able to understand, so I thought it would be fitting to have a Shabbat there to experience one of Judaism's most sacred traditions in its holiest city.

My brother and I began the trip with one of our closest Garin friends, Chaim, and our roommate, Avi. After the long bus ride, we finally met up with another one of our close friends from the Garin, Jochai, and indulged in a meal from our favorite falafel joint in Israel. After an evening out on the town, we headed to our temporary home for the weekend, eager to begin the Shabbat experience we were looking for.

The usual problem of finding a place to stay for the weekend wasn't an issue to us, thanks to a hostel called “The Jerusalem House,” a free place to stay for Jewish travelers. Their generosity is unbelievable, evident in everything you could ever need for a weekend out of town being presented to you without even having to ask. One of their main goals is setting up their guests with a local English-speaking family for a home cooked Shabbat meal, something we've missed since living on our own. After a busy afternoon at the Shuk, we headed off to get ready and begin Shabbat at the Kotel.

A Shabbat service at the Kotel is unlike anything else I've ever seen. Jews from all over the world, from ultra-religious to mostly secular, gather at the Wall in hundreds to conduct a service, each in his own way. It's always incredible to witness Jewish people from every portion of the spectrum together, gathered for the same reason. After doing our own short service, we spent a good while simply watching in awe.

When dinner placements rolled around, we ended up going to a family very closely associated with the hostel we were staying at. The food was exquisite and the experience memorable. It was amazing to witness a group of Jews we have never been overly familiar with observe Shabbat with their rituals and traditions. Having never come from a particularly religious background, the experience was enlightening and fascinating to all of us.

Without delving into politics or generally controversial topics, something I'll refrain from doing on this blog, it was certainly new for us to be exposed to and listen to a different side of things at our dinner. While everyones' views may not have been identical to our own, it's important to understand that everyone has their own beliefs, their own narrative on the issues facing our country and facing us as Jewish people. The whole experience served to show me what a diverse religion we have, with every family having different customs, traditions and views. No one group has a more valued say than any other. This unbelievable mix just contributes to the rich cultures that make up our melting pot of a religion.

We're now well into our final weekend in Ra'anana and will keep you updated. Until next time!

-Brett

Garin Tzabar: Volunteering

As we near the end of the Garin Tzabar intensive ulpan in Ra'anana, things are slowly starting to wrap-up. Tomorrow we will be having a party in my class and the ulpan will be having a ceremony of sorts to commemorate our completion of this part of the program. Our last official day will be on Monday and, on Wednesday, we will have our official opening ceremony for Garin Tzabar and move to Kibbutz Malkiya with our garin. Today, though, we finished the community service aspect of our ulpan in what was, so far, the highlight of my time here.

I began the day a bit homesick for the first time, but was expecting as much due to the fact that it is Founders' Day for Beta Theta Pi, the anniversary of our organization's founding. I thought a lot about how good it would be to be with my brothers for the day, and commiserated with some of my fellow alumni who feel similarly. Realizing I wasn't alone helped a lot (thanks, Shane!) and it was a fitting start to a day that would be marked by volunteering in the community, a core value of our fraternity. So, if anything, I felt good enacting the principles of the people I missed!

Throughout the program, we have visited a local seniors' home every Wednesday afternoon. I remember my first day being extremely challenging. Communication with the elderly can be trying and I find it difficult to see people suffering and in pain at the best of times, but the language barrier added a dimension that I wasn't anticipating. I committed to overcoming the difficulties and believed that it would get better, which it definitely did. In the the following weeks, we built genuine relationships with the residents. I will never forget singing "Yerushalayim Shel Zahav"/"Jerusalem of Gold" with them when, out of nowhere, a powerful, gorgeous voice emanated from a lady in the back of the room. Virtually all of us stopped singing so that we could listen to her... it was such a shock, as if there was so much life I hadn't seen in this person, and she was expressing it to us. The nature of the song itself made it even more touching. An elderly woman who lived her whole life here was singing, seemingly to us,  about one of the most significant reasons we came. As she sang, with unwavering passion, lyrics of a people returning home to beautiful Jerusalem, I felt an overwhelming feeling of conviction.

Besides singing sessions, we developed the routine of playing chess with a man named Shalom. Each week, Shalom would sit downstairs  and wait patiently for us to finish talking or playing music with the residents upstairs. A small group of us would spend hours with him, getting beaten badly, and slowly discovering bits and pieces of his story. He, along with many of the other friends we have made there, asked us to continue to visit him, and we certainly will.

 

A very moving letter presented to each Garin Tzabar volunteer thanking us for our contribution to the home, to the community, and to the State of Israel

The most moving moment of the afternoon came when we were gathered upstairs with everyone and the director of the home presented each of us with letters of appreciation. The words written on the page were extremely meaningful for me, but when a lady named Ebie began to speak to us, I felt a lump grow in my throat. She told us about how proud it makes her and the others when they see us and how much they appreciate us. With teary eyes, she looked up to the sky and said, "You give us so much hope. When you come here, we just think, 'here they are... here are our angels.'" It was a truly emotional moment for me, my heart swelling with pride and gratitude for the opportunity to have volunteered there. 

For something that started a bit rough for me, I feel that I have grown from the experience. As weeks went by, it became something to look forward to, and is now something I will miss. I am very much looking forward to going back many times in the future. 

For now, wishing a very happy Founders' Day to my Beta brothers and getting an early sleep for the big breakfast party in class tomorrow.

         -   Darren