So much happening!

I have to apologize for my negligence in updating-- life has been very busy here. Yes I'm still in Israel! I will be coming home on December 15, staying in Atlanta until Jan 5, then heading to NYC for a week, and then.... back to Israel. I'll be staying through late April or early May, then coming back to start the summer semester at Georgia Tech (doing my Masters in Health Systems program). That is the current plan.

So, what all has happened since August? Well, my arm has recovered nicely... I did physical therapy for about a month, until I was able to extend it all the way. It still hurts at times, and there's a pretty nasty scar, but other than that everything is just fine.

In September, I was busy with Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, and Sukkos. I spent Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur in the Old City of Jerusalem, right by the Western Wall (Kotel). It was a truly amazing experience, being able to pray and know that every Jew in the world was facing towards the Kotel and saying the same exact prayers, in many different languages. Walking around the Old City on Rosh Hashanah I could hear shofars being blown from many different congregations-- it was an awesome experience. On Yom Kippur I made it through the whole fast this year, for the first time. I felt very uplifted and renewed afterwards.

In October, regular classes resumed again. But, right before, I went camping for a couple of nights with three friends on the Sea of Galilee up north! We were able to borrow tents and sleeping bags from friends. We could see gorgeous mountain ranges across the sea. The first day we went rafting, and then we just hung out, went swimming, and built a huge bonfire to roast marshmallows. It was so much fun, and very relaxing.














Then, this past Sunday through Tuesday, I went on a trip with my school to Eilat, a city on the southern tip of Israel bordering Egypt and Jordan. We did a hike every day, rode camels, went snorkeling on the beach, went to an incredible oceanarium, took a boat cruise, climbed huge sand dunes, and more. Our hotel was right off of the beach so we could walk along boardwalk at night. The oceanarium was right along the beach also, and they had an observation tower that was built on the ocean floor itself about 100 yards or so off the coast. You could get out to it and climb stairs down until you were level with the ocean floor, and look out the windows and see coral reefs and thousands of fish up close in their natural state.

Opportunity for Growth

So, up until recently my decision to extend my stay in Israel came very easily, with little complications. For the first time it gets more difficult...

Two weeks ago I slipped on a stone staircase in northern Israel and broke my arm, got a temporary cast and came back to Jerusalem to have surgery at Hadassah Ein Kerem (the largest and reputedly most advanced hospital in Israel). I am fine now, I just have a bandage that I'll have for another week and then I'll get the stitches removed and start 6 weeks of physical therapy.

Throughout everything (including 4 nights in the hospital) I witnessed so much kindness from my friends here at my school Neve. Two friends changed their weekend plans very last minute to stay with me at the hospital before the surgery, and two friends stayed with me the nights after the surgery. They slept in chairs by my bed. It was unbelievable, especially considering I'd only known them for between 1 and 2 months. My house mother was at the hospital during the surgery, calling my parents to give them updates. I don't know what I would have done without all of them, really. I would have been so incredibly lonely and scared. I'd never been hospitalized in my life before, at least not that I can remember. And to be somewhere I don't speak the primary language...

I always used to pride myself on being independent. Now, I've had to relearn how to ask for help. It's been a very humbling experience. I am so grateful for all the support from everyone around me here.

If staying in Israel had been too easy I wouldn't have appreciated it nearly enough. I really believe that this happened in part to make me appreciate my time here even more, to feel like I earned it.

Anyways.... everything else here has been amazing. I love my friends and my classes and Israel. I am learning and growing as a person every day.

Big news...

I am absolutely in the right place at the right time in my life here. I am growing so much—literally every day I hear something that changes my outlook on life, and gives me the tools to refine some quality in myself. The classes are stimulating, the people are amazing…

A few weeks ago I started thinking about all the reasons why I have to go back home in August. The main reason was school. But, I contacted Georgia Tech and they said I would be able to defer for up to a year.

So, I’ve decided to stay longer. I still have so much learning and growing to do here, and I’m at the perfect crossroads in my life. Once I finish grad school and start a job, the most consecutive time I could probably ever take off to come learn in Israel would be a month, if that.

Right now my plan is to stay until December, and start school in January. I will miss everyone at home very much, but I am certain this is the right decision for me to stay.

Updates...

Sorry for the delay in updating. I’ve had an extremely packed last few weeks! Where to start… I’ve had some time to do more traveling. Stayed with a family in Netanya and went to its beach on the Mediterranean—so gorgeous. The family was incredible—11 kids between ages 9 and 30. Though they lived a very simple lifestyle they were one of the most spiritual and joyous families I have met. They really made my friend Esther and I feel like a part of their family, rather than just a visitor.

After Netanya I went up north to the towns of Nehariya, Acco, and Haifa (actually the 3rd biggest city). Really enjoyed experiencing the less touristy parts of the country. Israel is absolutely beautiful. Many people just think of it as desert country, but actually there are tons of beaches on the west coast, mountains up north, and lots of palm trees everywhere (except in the south where it is really a desert!). Here you also see the fusion of all cultures, even just amongst the Jewish people who were exiled from their countries—there are Jews from Persia, Yemen, Russia, Ethiopia, all over Europe, the US and Canada, even some from the Far East.
My friend Emily and I spent last Shabbat in Efrat, a settlement of about 15,000 families an hour out of Jerusalem. The father of the family I stayed with was a Yeminite, and his wife was British. Such a fascinating mix of cultures. We enjoyed traditional Yemenite dishes (delicious spongy breads, spiced soups, etc) and learned a ton about the history of Israel in the 20th century. Being in America it is very difficult to get unbiased news from the Middle East. Everything is slanted to the whims of the media. It was quite a different experience to hear what Israel has been struggling through since its independence in 1948 from someone who actually lived through it all.

What else? Classes are still going really well. I’ve decided to dedicate myself more seriously to learning Hebrew, taking an extra class 4 days a week to build my vocabulary and grammar. I know I will improve a lot over the summer.

The girls here are amazing, and I’ve had the opportunity to do all kinds of things outside of class. So far I’ve been to a concert put on by one of the girls who’s an amazing singer/songwriter, a wedding, an engagement party, a banquet where girls gave speeches about how their lives have changed since they’ve come to Israel to learn, and so much more. Tomorrow I’m going with some friends to deliver toys to children in Hadassah Hospital here. I have survived and thrived without TV and with limited Internet access. It’s so refreshing, to be completely in tune with the life around me rather than so many external influences. It feels so much more real.

More thoughts...

I’ve been here almost a month now—can’t believe how fast time has flown! I’ve realized that all the travelling I have desired, all the adventures I’ve sought after, it’s all been part of my quest to discover life and its meaning. But, I’ve been finding that here, without needing to leave Jerusalem. Everything seems so simple now, like it was right before my eyes but I was blind.

It’s been determined that for every 100 Reform or Conservative Jews today in the US, only about 5 of their descendants will be Jewish after 4 generations. Whereas for every 100 traditional/Orthodox Jews, they will have more than 900 Jewish descendants in 4 generations. So much assimilation—we non-Orthodox Jews are losing our unique cultural identity, and it’s an incredible shame. I am very grateful to be in Israel today rediscovering it. There is something about our roots that is such a fundamental part of who we are, we simply can’t ignore it. Nor should we.

Life is not about the destination, it’s about the journey. It’s not about the work we do, but who we are and how we live our lives. I certainly don’t want my tombstone to say “She was a great engineer.” There is way too much more to live for. Now is the time, while we’re still young and independent, that we’re forming the backbone for who we’ll be for the rest of our lives. What a powerful feeling.

Thoughts...

Things are going great! I’ve learned the buses and have basically figured my way around town. Have been out shopping on Jaffa and Ben Yehuda streets downtown, have gone to the Western Wall, and last Tuesday we took a class trip to the beach in Tel Aviv—so beautiful! Joined a gym nearby also to stay in shape.

I am starting to study the Torah, and I have a tutor who is teaching me Hebrew. Most of my other classes have a heavy emphasis on character traits, self-development, and self-definition. We’ve talked about figuring out our purpose in life based on the skills and traits we possess and the environment we find ourselves in. So many people today simply go through the motions of life, taking a job because they need/want the money, hopping from relationship to relationship, never really creating a meaningful life for themselves. Those people simply can’t be happy. There is just so much more to life than that.

Many of the girls here came straight out of high school. In Israel, like in most of Europe, they have this concept of a “gap year”—pretty much everyone takes a year off before they start college to really figure out who they are and what they want to do with their lives. This can involve studying, volunteering, travel, or any combination.

I wish America would adopt this concept. Seriously, so many Americans have no idea what they want to do when they start college (like me!), and so they end up switching majors frequently, and often even end up graduating with a degree they don’t plan to use. What a waste of time! If I had known this earlier, I would have without a doubt taken a year off to come study and travel in Israel. It’s just such a liberating experience. I feel like I’m completely on my own in my journey, yet at the same time surrounded by such amazingly wise rabbis and caring girls who have nothing to hide—so many have opened up to me already in my short time here. And really, what difference does it make in the long run if you start college at age 18 or 19?

Life is all about growth, and continuously challenging oneself to become a better person. And my school Neve creates an environment that perfectly fosters that growth. I feel so blessed to have the opportunity to be here.

A few interesting experiences so far, that come with living in a religious neighborhood:
First, my roommate Tamara needed a power converter for her laptop, so we went into this electronic store and the English-speaking guy behind the counter helped us find the right one. After he found it, Tamara realized she didn’t have enough money on her to pay for her, and so she apologized and told the guy that she would have to come back for it tomorrow. The guy goes, “Don’t worry about it, I know you need this now, just take it. Come back and pay tomorrow. I know you will come back.” She replies, “No, I would feel bad, I’m not sure that I’ll be able to come back this way tomorrow.” He said, “So, come back the next day, or the day after that. I’m not worried, I know you’ll pay.” Never in America… (Post-script: Tamara still felt uncomfortable with it, so she took up my offer to lend her money to pay for it then. But what an amazingly powerful trust.)

Second, Tamara and I were on a crowded bus, and a young woman gets on the bus with a stroller. She says something to me in Hebrew (which I don’t understand at all), and next thing I know she’s handing me her baby to fold up the stroller so it takes up less room. Which is fine, no problem. But then she just doesn’t take the baby back. She eventually goes to the front of the bus to get her card punched, and doesn’t return for a little while. All told, I ended up holding the baby (which was adorable!) for about half an hour, until she had to get off the bus.

Out of all the experiences I’ve had so far here, these two are the ones that most represent the beauty of living life by the Bible. You see someone else religious on the street, and you just know what ethical standards they hold themselves to. Although it would be naïve to just have blind trust, it’s still a whole different mindset.

First Impressions

I am here in the Holy Land! In Har Nof, a quiet religious neighborhood in the Jerusalem hills, to be exact. From up here, we’ve got a spectacular view of the whole city of Jerusalem (see left). We’re about a 90 minute walk or an hour bus ride from the Old City and the Western Wall. I feel so at home here. I could not imagine spending my summer any other way.

I’m studying at Neve Yerushalayim, a women’s college of about 1500. The rabbis are so caring and inspiring, the girls that surround me are warm and kind-hearted, the people of Har Nof are incredibly friendly and welcoming… it really is an amazing place to be. Israel in general is amazing. I lack words to describe the deep connection I feel when I’m here. It just feels like… home. Even though I have no family whatsoever here. Doesn’t matter. It’s home.

My classes are on topics like the Bible, ethics, interpersonal relationships, and Jewish laws. We talk about things like the purpose of life, the purpose of creation, how to achieve happiness and success in life, etc. It’s all about personal growth and understanding. I can tell that I will be challenged to think more here than I ever was in college. I will not be the same person when I come back.

I stayed in Har Nof this past weekend, but I plan on getting out most weekends and really experiencing the country. I’ll be going to a different city for every Shabbat (Friday night through Saturday night), and also taking day trips to Tel Aviv and other close-by places. I am going to try to make it to Istanbul in mid-June as well.

Take care,
Shayna