I’m so glad you’ve been following my blog. Thank you. This is my 15th week here at Muss and the week began with the usual routine of attending classes, tanning (yes all of us are always looking at the UV index :)), and having sign outs in HOD, you know, the same drill. 

This week’s Shabbat was spent on campus. I LOVED this Shabbat. We all dressed in blue and white to prepare for Yom HazikHaron and Yom Haatzmaoot which are holidays for the day of remembrance and independence . It was also just such a meaningful day spent with my best friends. We concluded our Shabbat by watching Israel compete in Euro-Vision. Before coming to Israel, I had never really heard of or followed Euro-Vision, but being here especially when Israel is experiencing an all time high of anti-semetism, it was very special watching it with everyone. The energy and camaraderie that all of us shared together was truly inspirational. 

We rounded out the weekend with an insane 6 hour hike from Shivil Itab to Meatrat Hateomim. We hiked quite a bit earlier in the program so it had been awhile and this hike was definitely one for the books.  It was incredible. We had the best day!  We went through caves and BEAUTIFUL trails overlooking the mountains of Jerusalem. For lunch, it was funny. Each of us took took one ingredient in our backpacks to make a sandwich, and when lunch time rolled around, all us found a random rock, sat down and pulled out our ingredients, shared them and ate our newly made sandwiches.  It was awesome. We ate, lived and laughed. I’d say it was perfect.  After 6 hours of hiking which consisted of laughing, learning, eating, peeing and enjoying where I was right at this exact moment,  we arrived to the Ammunition Hill Museum where we learned about the 6-day war. Our tour guide’s father died fighting this war so when he was telling us about it, it hit home that this was really real. 

After the museum, we drove to a ceremony for International Jews around the globe for Yom HazikHaron, Israel’s remembrance day. Before attending this ceremony, I didn’t really know what to feel because I don’t have any personal connections to the IDF or hostages; however, in the ceremony with hundreds of people, we listened to various families of people who have either fallen in the IDF, murdered on October 7th, or is a kidnapped hostage in Gaza. It was extremely emotional to listen to all these people who had lost someone. I already had immense respect for the IDF; however my respect for them sky-rocketed after the ceremony. 

I listened to a testimony about a girl originally from LA (just like me btw) whose dream was to make Aliyah and join the IDF. Shortly after she joined, she fell in battle. The ceremony was extremely impactful to me and really made me wish we honored this day in America as it’s SO important. We finished the ceremony with another 1 minute siren of silence as we stood honoring everyone who has ever fallen. This year, Yom HazikHaron was much more difficult for everyone as October 7th made everything worse. After the siren, everyone remained standing and sang the Haktivah, Israeli’s National Anthem. It was incredible seeing everyone just pour their hearts into this song because of how devoted they feel to Israel. It was a feeling I have never experienced before. 

The following day, Yom HazikHaron continued. We had another ceremony in the morning and then we spent the rest of the day just memorializing everyone who has fallen. Our Madrichim (that stands for councilors in hebrew) created an exhibit where we listened to testimonies of people who lost their loved ones. Additionally, they added a NOVA Festival portion to the exhibit which included all of the innocent civilians (which could have me or any one of my friends) who attended Nova and those that were murdered. It’s hard to explain how difficult this was but all i can say is that I left there heartbroken.The entire day was just extremely sad and again, unlike anything I have ever experienced before. 

In Israel, partying is a major part of the culture here, so after we mourned Yom HazikHaron and night fell, Yom Haatzmaoot, Israeli Independence Day kicked off. It was crazy as the entire country completely shifted from mourning to celebrating within hours and you know what, so did we.  All of us got ready in our cutest blue and white outfits and attended a party in the park. It was so much fun. There was a concert which enabled all to sing and dance their asses off.  We partied and danced until midnight and I will never forget this feeling. 

It’s been an emotional roller coaster as you can imagine. Or you might not be able to imagine, but I will tell you, it’s been up and down. First we’re laughing and at the drop of a hat, we can be crying. It’s a lot. The next day we barbecued and then finished the day on a boat just watching the sunset.  The boat ride was absolutely amazing. We blasted music, ate delicious food, and soaked up every ounce of energy we could.  It was so beautiful. We watched the sun go down and sang and danced together. It was probably one of my favorite nights here. 

We finished the week attending classes again, and preparing for upcoming trips. As I have tried to share, this experience I am having is something I never knew existed. It’s an incredible feeling that just fills you up, nurtures your soul and makes me proud to be who I am. 

Stay Tuned for next week!

Xoxo,