Welcome to the blog for Shalhevet’s 2011 travel program!
Shalhevet Staff:
Deb Fink, Bureau of Jewish Education
Rabbi Julie Saxe-Taller, Congregation Sherith Israel
Ilan Vitemberg, Israel Education Initiative
Jill Pottel, BBYO, Inc.
Holocaust survivor: Ben Stern
Ben’s daughter: Charlene Stern
Participants:
Adam Alloy
Eli Bovarnick
Micah Brown
Shai Bruhis
Nalani Genser
Molly Greenberg
Leo Grossman
Ori Herschmann
Iris Katzir
Talia Krebs-Oppenheimer
Alissa Orgel
Shani Paret
Jessica Pechner
Anya Platt
Hadar Reisin-Tzur
Nirit Revzin
Danielle Rinat
Laura Rossiter
Alystar Sacks
Ariele Scharff
Anya Schultz
Dekel Sherman
Madeline Spolin
Sam Stein
Raz Steinhart
Ioné Sterental
Jake Stern
Jordan Tennenbaum
Kaitlin Wahl
Monday 4/4 & Tuesday 4/5
From Deb…
What an amazing few days it’s been.
Before I mention anything specific we’ve experienced, I must say something about Shalhevet’s participants. I’m consistently in awe of this incredible group of teens. The inclusive, warm community they’ve consciously built…the open-hearted way they have engaged with our experiences and each other…their generosity of spirit that impacts everything we do as a group…the insight and awareness they bring to the deep struggles that come up in Poland…the emotional depth that seems to grow and grow as each day goes by…wow…it is inspiring. And it is truly a pleasure and an honor to accompany them on this journey. Also, they are an extremely fun bunch and we have shared much joy and laughter together!
After we arrived to Warsaw on Monday evening, we visited the Rappaport Memorial to the Heroes of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising. Our trip began at this monument in order to pose one of the key questions we will be asking during our journey: What and how do we choose to remember? After our tour guide Mark spoke to the group about Rappaport’s amazing sculpture and the way it represents memory, Rabbi Julie led us in the singing of Shehechiyanu…a prayer that expresses gratitude that we are alive, that we have been sustained and that we have arrived to this moment.
From Rabbi Julie…
On Tuesday we spent the morning at the Jewish cemetery of Warsaw and the afternoon in the Warsaw Ghetto. The cemetery, as our guide Mark showed us, is not only a place of tragedy but has a lot to show about the lives of the people buried there, their families and community. Stones are decorated with more than just names and dates – paragraphs are engraved, mostly in Hebrew, some Polish. (Yiddish was spoken but the gravestones are in Hebrew.) And many stones have images of symbols of a person’s life – books, candlesticks, tzedaka boxes, scales of justice, the hands of a Cohen with fingers spread to bless his congregation.
Most important was to be there with Ben, who buried his father in this cemetery in 1942 on the last day of Pesach, when hundreds were dying every week in the ghetto. Before we left California, Ben told me he had never said Kaddish for his family who died here. He showed me photos of his parents and his wife’s parents – and told me that every morning he greets them. Then he amazed me by saying he was going to say Kaddish when we were in Poland together. So today, the group stood together at the edge of one of the three mass graves in the cemetery, and said Kaddish together with Ben and his daughter Charlene. Then we remained in tears and silence for while. The members of our group are so thoughtful of Ben, not out of politeness but genuine appreciation and love of him. He has already shared many stories with us, and he’s also let us know that he sees this as his last time in Poland and that this group will carry on the responsibility to remember and tell of what happened in the Holocaust.
From participant Nalani Genser…
Experiencing the environment of the Jewish Cemetery in Warsaw through the eyes of Ben was beyond what we could have ever had experienced alone….This experience instilled in me a strong sense of being grateful for my Jewish heritage in that there were millions of Jews who were not as lucky to be able to live out their Jewish lives, giving us a huge responsibility as living Jews. Of course these millions of deaths are explained to us in school but standing on the actual ground where hundreds of thousands of Jews, many who remain unknown, are buried while watching Ben’s emotions talking about his father’s death as related to the same area, is one of the most meaningful connections to the past I have ever experienced.
From participant Jessica Pechner…
I sit and look out the bus at the flat land. Land that goes on for miles. The land of my ancestors, my people and history. This flat land has risen up into my heart.
From Deb…
After visiting the Warsaw Jewish Cemetery on Tuesday morning, we had lunch at the Emanuel Ringelblum Jewish Historical Institute (JHI), an organization that houses the Jewish Genealogy Learning Center. The staff there described the extensive research they do for Jews all over the world that want to know more about their family’s roots. The highlight of our meeting at JHI was when the staff presented Ben with some information they had found that filled in pieces of his personal story. The additional details meant the world to Ben and his daughter Charlene. After our time at JHI, we spent the entire afternoon on a walking tour of the Warsaw ghetto area, hearing Ben’s personal accounts along the way. Our walk culminated at the Umshlagplatz, a memorial to the site where Ben’s mother and brother were shipped to Treblinka. During our closing circle, the students reflected on their day and said things like “I feel so lucky to have a dad that I get to see every single day” – and – “I was struck by the way Jewish traditions gave people spiritual strength during those awful times” – and – “What I learned today is more meaningful to me than all of my years growing up in Hebrew school” – and – “Finding my own first name on the Umschlagplatz memorial wall really made me understand that these big numbers of people were individuals just like me”.
From Deb…
On Wednesday morning we left Warsaw and drove to Lublin to visit the famous Yeshivat Chochmei Lublin. It is newly renovated and is now a beautiful space for worship and study. After an introduction to the yeshiva world, our group said the blessing for learning Torah and studied a piece of traditional text with Rabbi Julie. One of the special aspects of this yeshiva is that the great-great-grandfather of Hadar Reisin-Tzur (Shalhevet participant) was once a rabbi there!
In the afternoon we went to Majdanek, the concentration camp Ben was sent to from Warsaw. One of our participants, Ori Herschmann, had a grandfather who was a prisoner who escaped Majdanek and our visit was particularly meaningful for him. According to the teens that spoke during our process groups that evening, our time at the camp was powerful and intense. Each of the participants reacted differently to the horrors with which they were confronted: the gas chamber, the room full of shoes, the crematorium, the gigantic mausoleum. Rabbi Julie led us in a closing ritual and participant Danielle Rinat read a poem she had written the day before that touched us all deeply. Her beautiful piece verbalized some of the thoughts and feelings that had seemed to be beyond words and many of the teens expressed appreciation for this gift from Danielle. As we pulled away from Majdanek, the bus erupted in a chorus of “David Melech Yisrael, Chai v’Kayam”!! This led to a spirited song session filled with laughter that served as a strong affirmation of life after encountering so much death. I will never forget the smile on Ben’s face as he watched the teens singing and dancing.
From Deb & Rabbi Julie…
On Thursday morning we visited Tarnow, a small city whose population was 50% Jewish before the war. As we walked around the sweet little town, we saw remnants of the once-thriving Jewish community that lived there: street signs that are still named for well-known Jewish leaders, a gorgeous mikveh building, city walls with Yiddish writing, and the beautiful brick bemah from one of Tarnow’s largest synagogues. Ben shared some warm memories of Jewish holidays in his childhood home, including the cleaning for Passover that happened in his home this time of year. Ask your son/daughter to tell you why Ben’s mom always strung matzah from the ceiling in a pillowcase!
We heard about the Nazi invasion and saw a memorial to the hundreds of people (Jewish and non-Jewish intellectuals and politicians) who were sent from Tarnow on the first transport ever to arrive to Auschwitz. We traveled to a quiet serene forest where we tried to grasp the reality of the horrible shootings that took place there. Our group walked around in stunned silence as we took in the memorial candles, pictures, letters and symbols of remembrance that had been left on the fences of the mass graves. There were kites, balloons, and other representations of the joys of youth at the mass grave of the children. Many participants sat to write in their journals and others walked quietly in the woods. This was a very difficult visit and it took us all some time to recover on the walk back and the long bus ride that followed.
When we arrived in Krakow late Thursday afternoon, we had an incredible visit at a Polish high school on the outskirts of town. The Polish students led our group in some fun icebreakers including a game based on the family celebration photos they asked our kids to bring from home. The atmosphere was very warm and there was laughing and mixing between the two groups immediately. We then divided into small discussion circles and the teens got a chance to ask each other questions about their personal lives. We were all surprised by many of the similarities and differences they discovered! We then came back together and had a great conversation about many issues of interest to both groups. Our students asked what the Polish youth have learned about WWII, the Holocaust, and Jews. We were surprised to learn this school is named after a Polish Jew who fought in the Warsaw Ghetto uprising. The school regularly hosts visiting Jewish groups and they take a trip to Israel every year. We concluded our time together learning a traditional Polish courting dance – so fun! Thursday evening in Krakow, we went to a concert by an excellent klezmer band called Sameach at the Galicia Jewish Museum – a beautiful, very modern space with a café and extensive Jewish bookstore. There are Friday night services in this space every week led by a Reform woman rabbi.
From Deb…
On Friday morning we drove from Krakow to Oswiecim which is the Polish name for the town that the Nazis called Auschwitz. First we went to the Auschwitz Jewish Center which houses a beautifully-renovated synagogue and an exhibit about Jewish life in Oswiecem before the war. We then went to the infamous concentration camp, Auschwitz 1, which has been turned into a museum. One of our most memorable experiences there was a chance encounter with an Israeli man and his teenage daughter. The man’s father was saved by Oscar Schindler and, after sharing his family’s story with our group, he showed us photos of meeting Schindler when he was a young boy.
After the museum we went to Auschwitz II, also called Birkenau. This is the place where the transports arrived with cattle cars full of people. We walked down the train tracks on a very cold and windy day, wondering how people survived the harsh winters in Poland with so little to eat or to wear. Many in our group were shocked to see how vast Birkenau is – the sheer enormity of the place is a lot to absorb. We continued walking to the ramp where “selections” took place. Those who were fit for work, mainly strong young adults, were sent in one direction to be shaven, disinfected and tattooed while their loved ones…mostly children, elderly and sick people…were sent in the direction of the gas chamber. Ben told us about his experiences at Birkenau as we huddled in one of the buildings that used to be a housing barrack. We walked on to the crematoria which were blown up and are now just big piles of rubble. Ben’s wife, an Auschwitz survivor, requested that we recite Kaddish for her family members who perished there. Several Shalhevet participants and staff lost relatives at this site so we shared their names as well. After Kaddsish, we stood in a circle and spoke about the importance of family. The students received the letters that had been written by their parents before we left California and they had space to sit and read them, to cry or to journal or to quietly reflect. It was an emotional and powerful experience that struck each person differently. Later the teens expressed feeling “alone while together” while sitting with their letters. We sang “Eli Eli” and walked back down the train tracks and out of the camp. Each person who boarded the bus gave Ben a warm hug and a word of thanks for sharing himself and his story with us.
With the last intense site of death and destruction in Poland behind us, we returned to Krakow to prepare for Shabbat. When we reconvened after some free time, the teens participated in a group poetry exercise (that will be posted on the blog). We lit candles on a cake and sang Happy Birthday to Raz which helped us transition into the joy of being together to welcome Shabbat. The participants led a rousing Kabbalat Shabbat service and our singing/dancing could be heard throughout the hotel. Ben told the group that, although he is not familiar with non-traditional Judaism, he found the Shabbat services to be immensely uplifting and inspiring. The buzz and “ruach” followed us into Shabbat dinner which concluded with boisterous table-banging while chanting Birkat HaMazon. Later we gathered to hear Ben talk about the day of liberation when he was “reborn” and his subsequent experiences of meeting his wife, coming to the States, finding work, raising a family, and helping to build a new Jewish community. He and Charlene shared photos of Ben and his wife at the time of their wedding as well as current photos of his children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Ben told us that he feels now as though he has been blessed with 29 new grandchildren… our teens. We stayed up late playing hilarious drama games, laughing and playing to the point of tears…very very happy tears.
Shalhevet Group Poem: “I am…”
I am a shoe.
I hear silence.
I see other shoes smothering me.
I feel worn out, abused and lost.
I touch nothing, feeling the absence of human skin.
I am here to bear witness.
I was a town with many Jews.
I heard lots of silence.
I saw memorials for the many who were taken.
I felt sad.
I touched an old synagogue.
I am Tarnow.
I am strong.
I hear whispers in the wind.
I see an empty forest.
I feel too much pain.
I touch nothing.
I am not alone.
I was a death camp.
I heard Israeli teens singing together to remember the Holocaust.
I saw a crematorium where many of my ancestors died.
I felt scared and nervous.
I touched the walls of the barracks.
I am a death camp.
I am a moment in time.
I hear music.
I see the past and the present.
I feel hopeful for the future.
I touch support.
I am what was broken.
I am an Israeli flag.
I hear singing communities.
I see mourning and pride.
I feel the wind around me.
I touch the backs of those who take pride in what I represent.
I am a Jewish star.
I am a chimney.
I hear the mourning of the visitors.
I see rows and rows of barracks.
I feel burnt with hatred.
I touch the sky.
I am a chimney.
I am the restraint of liberation
I hear the screams of history.
I see the despair of the hopeless.
I feel the touch of a desperate palm, moments before death.
I touch, I rip, I tear, I kill.
I am barbed wire.
I will be a tree.
I will hear your rustling leaves.
I will see the world go by.
I will feel birds in my branches and soil in my roots.
I will touch you with my presence.
I am a soul.
I am the response.
I hear your thoughts.
I see your bent backs.
I feel like you feel.
I touch like you touch.
I am the response.
I will be a candle.
I will hear the laughter of a gathering.
I will see all people together, happy.
I will feel warmth.
I will touch everyone’s heart.
I am love and strength.
I will be visited often.
I will hear the gasps of recognition.
I will see the faces of compassion.
I will feel the winds of change.
I will touch the hearts of many.
I am a tribute.
I will be remembered.
I will hear my children’s laughter.
I will see my family grow.
I will feel the love of grandchildren.
I will touch many hearts.
I am Safta.
I will be a bird.
I will hear the earth’s music.
I will see the beauty of creation.
I will feel free.
I will touch wherever I alight.
I am soaring.
I will be remembering.
I will hear the voices.
I will see you in my dreams.
I will feel the pain.
I will touch gently.
I am Ben.
From Deb…
After sleeping in on Shabbat morning and having a relaxed breakfast, we gathered in small groups to process the previous day’s events. The teens were incredibly thoughtful and suddenly the amount of time we had planned to spend in small groups had doubled and then tripled! A participant in my group talked about being very moved by the intense feelings that came up at Auschwitz & Birkenau. This same participant is not very familiar with Shabbat tefillah but spoke about a moment that happened during Friday night services. The spirited singing and uplifting energy led to some kind of internal shift. In the words of the participant, who had teary eyes while speaking, “It was the first time in my life that I felt proud to be a Jew.”
Later in the morning the teens engaged in some traditional text study and took a look at the story of Cain & Abel with Rabbi Julie. We had Shabbat lunch at the JCC which is part of the active (and growing) Jewish community of Krakow. We learned about the classes they offer, the preschool, the senior programming, the student group and other adult programming, well-attended Purim celebrations and Passover seders and the growing number of Poles discovering and exploring their Judaism. The vibrancy and excitement of the staff at the JCC was contagious and we really enjoyed our visit there. On our walk to the JCC we happened to run into the man we met during our tour of Auschwitz (whose father was saved by Oscar Schindler) so he and his daughter joined us for lunch as well. We then went on a walking tour of Kazimeirz, the former Jewish district of Krakow, and visited many of the synagogues in the area. The sunny day matched our mood and many of us sang songs while walking through the little streets and alleyways.
When we returned to the hotel, we were honored to have a speaker join us from Righteous Among the Nations, a Polish woman whose family saved Jewish during the Holocaust. Her story was riveting and the teens had lots of questions. The teens remarked that she is a “total mensch” and an example of a role model who stood up against injustice and chose not to be a bystander. After dinner the toranim led the group in a lovely Havdalah ceremony and then we went out to Old Town for some free time and yummy ice cream!
From Deb…
We spent the morning driving from Krakow to Warsaw where our first stop was the Nozyk synagogue. When we arrived, a large group of soldiers from the Israeli army were holding services in the sanctuary and they invited our group to join them in the singing of Oseh Shalom. We sang and danced in circles around the bemah, our voices rising up to the high ceilings. Afterwards, Rabbi Michael Schudrich, the chief rabbi of Poland, spoke to our group about Jewish life in Poland today. As always, our teens had lots of incisive, thoughtful questions: How do we find the balance between remembering the Holocaust and moving on with current Jewish life?…How is Israel viewed in Poland?…What should they as Jewish young adults do as a next step regarding Jewish life after learning about the Holocaust? …and many more great questions. Rabbi Schudrich was so impressed that he turned to me and whispered, “Are they really only 17 and 18 years old?”.
Following our time with the rabbi, we went to visit the moadon (youth activity center) that is run by the Joint Distribution Committee. We heard from several teens and the young adults who work with them about the summer camps and year-round programs they run for the Jewish community of Warsaw. They also talked about their personal lives and their feelings about Holocaust education, Jewish identity, connection to Israel, and living in Poland as a Jew today. It was inspiring to hear about the revival that is taking place in their community today and how committed these young Jews are to the continuation of Jewish culture, traditions and values.
After dinner at a nearby restaurant, Ben told the group the next chapter of his story. Ben was one of the leaders of the survivor community that opposed the Nazis’ petition to march in Skokie, his home a that time. Ben wrote letters to newspapers, collected signatures, and rallied support for a counter-demonstration. Ben spoke passionately about the importance of standing up for what you believe in, not being a bystander and putting values into action. Our next and final activity in Poland was a closing ceremony at the Memorial to the Warsaw Ghetto Fighters, the same place where we began our journey. Rabbi Julie led us in a ritual that included each teen and staff person sharing one memory or aspect of the week that they were taking away with them. We sang a few rounds of Hinei Mah Tov (a song about how good it is for us to be together) and each person lit a memorial candle. As we walked back to the bus and headed to the airport, singing and chatting, our anticipation and excitement to be in Israel grew and grew.
From participant Kaitlin Wahl…
As I write this we are descending to Tel Aviv. I’m running on three hours of sleep and so please excuse me if I go off on a tangent or lose my point completely. The past week spent in Poland is one I will never forget as long as I live. Remembering is one of the lessons that we learned; we have a responsibility to never forget what has happened here. I can’t talk about the past week with out talking about my new Grandfather, Ben. Ben is our survivor, and I say he is ours because there is no other way of describing the almost instantaneous loving connection he had with the group. He is one of the most amazing men I have ever had the privilege to meet as long as I live. This man has the ability to have us laughing one minute and sobbing the next, with his life stories. Here are a few words I would use to describe him: brave, determined, kind, loving, youthful (while we are all sitting, complaining about the food and lack of sleep he is up and at the front urging us forward), a true hero.
From Rabbi Julie…
We landed in Israel at 4:00am on Monday morning and our airplane erupted in applause. Even at this early hour, we were all buzzing with excitement. We went straight from the airport to the beach in Tel Aviv, arriving at the shore at 6:30am after only 2 or 3 hours of sleep. I took a breath of the breezy air and watched as the members of our group came to life and ran onto the beach toward the water, shoes off and voices flying on the wind. I tackled Deb, our director and my friend, and we landed in the soft, fine sand. The kids ran around in the water, laughing and splashing, and literally did cartwheels in the sand. Ben stood watching the teens with tears in his eyes, saying over and over again that never would he have believed that he would witness such a joyful scene on the shores of Eretz Yisrael. Then Ben swept Deb up in his arms and everyone laughed in amazement at his physical and emotional strength. After a bit, we launched our week in Israel with a welcome ceremony, holding the sand in our hands, singing Im Tirtzu (“If you will it, it is no dream”, the words of Theodore Herzl) and reciting the Shehechiyanu in thanks for our arrival to this moment.
A wonderful breakfast at a restaurant across the street from the beach was the remedy for all of the terrible meals we’d eaten in Poland (we know nothing of real Polish food, since our kashrut policy resulted in our having meals shipped from Israel.) Then I left the group for a day off and took the bus to Jerusalem to visit my friends in Beit Hanina, part of east Jerusalem. I spent the night with Rani, a beloved friend of 20 years, at her new home in Neve Ilan, a neighborhood on the way from Jerusalem back toward Tel Aviv. Her balcony looks out to the west on rolling hills, then Yaffo and Tel Aviv and the Mediterranean. The sky was clear under the half moon, reminding me it was exactly a week until Passover.
From Deb…
Our arrival in Israel was fantastic! See above for a more detailed account but here’s what comes to mind first: Sunrise on the beach. Water of blues and greens. Singing voices floating on the air. Teens running and jumping and flipping and flying. Spirits soaring. Im Tirzu Ayn Zo Agada. Sand in hands. Shehechiyanu. Arms on shoulders jumping together in a circle chanting “Achim, Achim, Achiyot, Achiyot, Simcha Simcha!” Brothers, Sisters, Happiness!!
Even though they were bursting with energy, I thought that they’d choose to rest a bit when we got to the hotel but wow, I was wrong! Within minutes of the bus stopping they were digging into their suitcases and pulling out hats, sandals, sunscreen, shorts, tank tops and bathing suits – and off to the beach they went. After a few hours of fun in the sun and lunch, some of the teens were picked up by friends and family while those who remained spent the afternoon doing a fun scavenger hunt in the neighborhood of Neve Tzedek. At sunset we went to the “Namal” (port) which has been renovated with restaurants and shops so the teens could have some free time and choose their own dinner. It was a mellow and relaxing day with gorgeous weather and we felt we had finally come home.
From Deb…
What a day! We began with an interesting activity (led by Ilan) about the goals for our week in Israel. We read Israel’s Declaration of Independence and talked about the dreams and values that the State was founded upon. Our study of the Holocaust has taught us many lessons, including the importance of treating all people equally and accepting/celebrating differences. Last week we saw first-hand the extreme result of hatred, prejudice, and discrimination and today we learned how Israel’s founders hoped to create a place where all people could live freely and openly in a democratic Jewish state. We talked about the challenges that have faced Israel in realizing these dreams and explained that this week we’ll be meeting with individuals and organizations that are working towards a better Israel. Our time in Poland, especially because of Ben and his stories, taught us to stand up for our beliefs, to lead lives that are true to Jewish values, and to take action against all kinds of oppression and injustice.
Next we visited Beit HaPalmach, an incredible museum that presents the story of the founding of the State of Israel. Before our tour we met with Amnon Inbar who is the grandfather of Raz Steinhart (Shalhevet participant). Amnon was born in Poland and made aliyah in 1934 when he was 8 years old. He was a member of the Haganah, served in several of Israel’s wars, and is the president of the veterans association of the Haganah of the Tel Aviv area. He’s a sweet and gentle man who relayed his personal account of the War of Independence, an excellent introduction to our time at the museum. Again we emphasized the theme of committing to ideals and fighting for our beliefs. From there we went to have lunch with Israeli teens and the young adults who work with them at IGY (Israeli Gay Youth). The IGY teens were in San Francisco a few weeks ago and today they shared reflections on their visit to SF as well as their personal life stories. In August 2009 there was a shooting attack (by a Jewish man) in a café where the gay teens were having their weekly gathering. Two people were killed (one of the youth advisors and a straight teen who was present as a friend/ally) and 12 were injured including one of the IGY teens we met (she was shot). Hearing about this horrific attack and the other life stories the IGY teens shared, our group could see that Israel is not yet the open and progressive culture we take for granted in the Bay Area. Our teens were impressed by the way that the IGY teens and young adults reacted to the oppression they experienced – instead of becoming bitter or seeing themselves as victims they have become advocates for the change they want to see in their society. They facilitate educational programs in the community and provide services for gay teens in Tel Aviv who are looking for a safe place where they can feel fully accepted.
From here we walked to Nachala’at Binyamin, an area of Tel Aviv that is blocked off each Tuesday and transformed into an artists bazaar. The teens meandered around, had some treats, looked at the wide variety of art, listened to music, and shopped a bit. We all enjoyed the festive and colorful atmosphere (and the fresh fruit smoothies!). Next we travelled to the Old City of Jaffa where we wandered through narrow cobblestone alleyways that wind around white walls with blue trim buildings that overlook the sea. We climbed to the top of the hill to watch the sunset and hear more about the history of the city and what it means to both Israeli Jews and Israeli Arabs. Then Gahl Rinat, big brother of Danielle Rinat (Shalhevet participant), came to talk to the group about his personal story. Gahl was part of Shalhevet’s first cohort and has since made aliyah and settled in Jaffa. He is very articulate and funny so the kids really enjoyed him and learned a lot from hearing about his experiences. One of the main messages Gahl gave the kids was that they should take all of the strong feelings they have from Poland (and what they’re feeling now in Israel) and decide what they are going to DO with them in their lives…to act upon their feelings, not just let them fade away.
Then Gahl joined us for dinner and a show at Nalaga’at. We ate at Café Kapish where all of the waiters are deaf. After an absolutely delicious dinner, the café staff hopped up on a table and taught us some sign language. Then it was time for the show called “Not By Bread Alone” in the their theater. The entire play was performed by actors who are both deaf *and* blind. Some of them could speak a bit, some used sign language. They all had seeing/hearing assistants helping them with different aspects of the performance. The screen above the stage projected their lines in Hebrew, English and Arabic. Many of the actors were born blind and/or deaf but some had lost their sight or hearing later in life and had memories of sights or sounds. The short stories they presented dealt with the loneliness and isolation they feel in their lives that are full of silence and darkness. They described the assumptions other people make about them, their intelligence level and their ability to communicate their opinions (or even have opinions) because of their disabilities. They are no different than we are in terms of their need to connect with others, to be recognized as individuals with hopes and dreams, and to be valued. Their message, that they can’t live “by bread alone” was driven home by the actors baking bread during the play. Afterwards the audience was invited up onto the stage to taste the bread and to shake hands with the actors and actresses. We saw their faces light up with every handshake, a human touch reaching into their world to connect and appreciate them for who they are. It was another powerful example of the importance of putting the lessons of the Holocaust into practice…being sensitive to those that are “other”, accepting differences and serving as an advocate for all people to be treated equally.
From Deb…
We spent the morning at the BINA Center for Jewish Identity and Hebrew Culture. Bina means “wisdom” in Hebrew and is used here as an acronym for “A Home for the Creation of the Nation’s Soul” a term coined by the poet Haim Nachman Bialik. The center’s goals are based on Jewish study, social justice, community and leadership. One of their flagship projects is the Secular Yeshiva which is the only non-Orthodox institute of its kind in Israel today. Young adults from around the world come to the yeshiva to study Jewish texts (both traditional and modern) where the emphasis is on learning Jewish values so that they can be implemented in the modern world. BINA is situated near the central bus station in one of the most distressed areas of South Tel Aviv. It is a poverty-ridden neighborhood populated by illegal foreign workers, refugees, ethnic minorities, drug addicts, prostitutes and other disenfranchised populations. One of the center’s other flagship projects is called BINA Baschuna (Wisdom in the Neighborhood) which is a community-wide social action program that seeks to respond to the needs of this underserved community. We were given a tour of the neighborhood and we heard about the programs and services provided by BINA volunteers. We then returned to the center where the director of the secular yeshiva led a text study with our group on a section of the Haggadah. He focused on the centrality of the Pesach story in Judaism and the importance of remembering that we too were once slaves in Egypt and therefore have a responsibility to help others who are enslaved or mistreated in other ways. The exodus story is particularly meaningful to us, having just left Poland, and BINA’s mission and goals resonated strongly with our group.
After lunch we headed out of the city and up North. Beautiful sunshine, rolling green hills, brilliant wildflowers, fresh air, blue skies, breathtaking views. Our first stop was Kibbutz Lochamei HaGetaot which was established by a community of Holocaust survivors who were members of the Jewish underground in the ghettos of Poland and veterans of partisan units. It is an incredible place with a fascinating story and we were guided by a member of the kibbutz who explained their unique perspective on Holocaust education and the preservation of memory. The kibbutz is meant to serve as a living memorial and the museum itself was constructed to focus on the resilience of the human spirit and the power of the Jewish people to rebuild and begin anew. From there we drove to Rosh Pina where the teens were given free time and money to buy their own dinner. It was an exciting moment on the bus when the Kinneret (Sea of Galilee) came into view! We ended the day at Kibbutz Amiad where we stayed in their adorable bungalows under a clear sky, full of stars.
From Deb…
We woke up in the kibbutz bungalows and walked outside to see a circle of storks flying overhead in a clear blue sky. After breakfast in the dining hall, we loaded onto the bus and drove North to Etzbah HaGalil (the “finger” of the Galilee), the panhandle of the Hula Valley. First we visited Beit HaShomer, a museum located at Kibbutz Kfar Giladi in Tel Hai. The museum tells the story of the Bar Giora underground security force that was set up by European immigrants in 1907 to guard and settle the land. This later became the Shomer movement which was the precursor to the Hagana and later the Israeli army. One of the founders was Zvi Becker, great-grandfather of Anya Platt (Shalhevet participant). We learned about Zvi and his comrades at the museum and then went to visit his grave at Kfar Giladi’s cemetery. We also saw a memorial bench that was recently installed in the cemetery to honor Anya’s grandfather. We walked up to a lookout with a breath-taking view of the green valley below and the snow-capped Hermon Mountain in the distance. From the lookout we could easily see the Israel-Lebanon border and get a feel for how close the Lebanese villages are to the kibbutz. We saw some Israeli soldiers setting up for an induction ceremony and one of them explained that this site is still considered a national symbol of bravery, commitment and sacrifice.
Next we drove to Kibbutz Meggido where Ilan (Shalhevet staff member) grew up. The kibbutz was founded by Holocaust survivors and Ilan’s parents came to speak with the group about their decision to move there and be a part of the community. Ilan gave us a tour of the kibbutz including a climb to the ruins that Kibbutz Meggido is named for, the site called Armageddon. From there we drove South and the excitement in the bus grew and grew as we neared Jerusalem. A cheer went up from the teens and staff as the entrance to the city came into view. Everyone watched out the window as we made our way through to the center of the city, seeing the buildings of Jerusalem stone and the people on the streets…so different from those we saw in Tel Aviv and the North. We got off the bus at our hotel and walked across the street to Montefiore’s Windmill in Yemin Moshe. As we walked to the edge of the neighborhood, the walls of the Old City came into view. We stood in the courtyard with a panoramic view of the Old City and East Jerusalem stretched out in front of us. We sang Yerushalayim Shel Zahav (Jerusalem of Gold) and talked about our people’s longing to return to this city and to bring peace to this land.
Next we checked into our hotel and got showered for a “night out on the town”. We walked to Anna Tico, a fantastic restaurant where we ate outside under a clear sky in a charming courtyard of Jerusalem stone, white lights and beautiful flowers. After a delicious dinner, the group had free time on the Ben Yehuda Midrachov (pedestrian mall)…shopping for souvenirs, eating ice cream, listening to street musicians, and soaking up the festive atmosphere.
From Deb…
Today began with a talk by Raya Even-David who is the Educational Coordinator for Netzer Olami, the World Union for Progressive Judaism. She is involved with many organizations and activities that are working to advance religious pluralism in Israel. She told us about her personal involvement with Nashot HaKotel (Women of the Wall) and their struggle to pray with tallitot and read from a Torah at the Kotel. She also described some of the other court cases and legal battles that involve the government’s involvement in matters that effect the religious and personal lives of those who wish to practice Judaism in a way that is not in sync with the Ultra-Orthodox (who are currently in control of such matters). Raya served as another example of a leader/activist who is working to bring about change in Israeli society so that all people are treated equally, granted freedom and accepted fully as they are. From here we went to the Haas Promenade (tayelet) and then to Machane Yehudah (the shuk) for lunch. In the afternoon, we went to a park near our hotel to reflect and journal about the coming Shabbat in Jerusalem and the beginning of our transition to going home. We also wrote notes with prayers/hopes/wishes to put in the Kotel. After some free time in the hotel, we went to Kehilat Kol HaNeshama, a progressive synagogue in Baka. We stood in the courtyard before services began and read the reflections we had written about spending this Shabbat in Jerusalem. Here are some excerpts from the teens:
I hope that this Shabbat brings about a space for all of us to enjoy Israel and each other in a relaxed yet conscious way and to fully appreciate being able to come here and celebrate together.
To me, this Shabbat resembles unity and all the love we have for each other.
Sharing this Shabbat with my newfound friends in Israel is amazing. I have grown close to many of the trip’s members throughout this adventure and I can’t imagine spending this Shabbat with anyone else. Beyond my friends here, this unique indelible experience in Israel will make Shabbat all the more worthwhile. Whereas I used to dread the Shabbat service, I’m ecstatic to participate in the festivities tonight.
I’m looking forward to a happy, peaceful Shabbat filled with laughter.
I think being here on Shabbat will be really meaningful because so much history has taken place here and to take part of this tradition in Jerusalem will be very special.
To spend Shabbat in Jerusalem tonight I feel so much love for Judaism. I feel so much pride in our journey as a people as well as a group of 29 friends who took on the challenge and opportunity of opening up and embracing our past. I feel the pain and the piercing wounds of our family in the Holocaust but I also feel the bravery and resistance of Ben and the many Zionists who fought for tonight to be possible. I feel alive because we are alive. And we are here right now because we are not afraid to remember and to live on and be strong. I feel blessed and honored and full.
Shabbat:
Soar
Hands touching stones
All of us together
Beneath large skies
Bonding
And
Touching history.
More important than being in Jerusalem this Shabbat is being here with this group. Just as we created our own life, laughter and joy in Poland on Shabbat I hope we continue to create it and keep that spirit with us tonight, tomorrow, and the rest of our lives.
Shabbat in Jerusalem: I am so blessed to be here in Israel. I feel at home with myself. I am purely happy and would not want to be with anyone else or anywhere else but here. Shabbat Shalom, Shalhevet!
This Shabbat feels particularly special here in Jerusalem because it signifies so much power, beauty, importance, and pride for the people of Israel. This is a tradition of our own culture and to be in the Holy Land for Shabbat will be something I’ll never forget.
Some haikus for Jerusalem:
All the beauty around
Accentuated through group
No place rather be.
Opaque surroundings
Carved into stone for many years
The Jewish homeland.
As the bright sun sets
All religions are together
A holy city.
This Shabbat means a transition: one from the week to the weekend, one from the middle to the end, and soon, one from Shalhevet to home.
From Deb…
The Shalhevet teens were given 2 choices for how to spend Shabbat morning: attend services at Shira Chadasha, a feminist Orthodox synagogue, or participate in an alternative Shabbat program with Ilan in nearby Mishcanot She’ananim. Ilan led his group through a series of activities focused on themes that are central to Shabbat: being mindful, fully present and in the moment. The group who went to services enjoyed the passionate singing and was fascinated to see how a community that is committed to both Halacha and feminist principles has made decisions about how to pray together. The kids had some free time before Shabbat lunch and some chilled out at the hotel pool. In the afternoon we walked to the Old City, through the Jewish Quarter and down to the Kotel. The teens had some free time and many put the notes they had written the previous day into the Wall. Later in the afternoon we broke into small discussion groups and continued our processing of the Shalhevet trip and what it has meant to each of us. One of the teens in my group said “Being Jewish has always been something my family felt was important and it was something I felt I HAD to do. Now it feels like something I GET to do.” Another teen talked about a newfound commitment to Jewish values, especially standing up for those that are oppressed. Another expressed a desire to return home and find a way to connect more deeply with a Jewish community. Another talked about the decision about where to go to college and how the trip has affected her priorities. I had to blink back tears while they spoke, hearing how powerfully the trip had affected them in such meaningful ways. After dinner and Havdalah, we did a reflection exercise where I asked the teens to close their eyes and I walked them back through our entire itinerary from the last 2 weeks, asking them to remember their thoughts and feelings during each step of our journey. Afterwards, I asked them to journal about their reflections and you can see what they wrote by clicking on the blog page above called “Reflections from Participants” .
Next we went to Migdal David (the Tower of David Museum) for an outdoor sound and light show that projected the story of Jerusalem onto the Old City walls. It was amazing! On our way back to the hotel, we walked through the Mamilla pedestrian mall and got some last minute souvenirs and treats. When we returned to the hotel we had an Appreciation Circle where each person had the chance to express appreciation for one other person and to receive some appreciation as well. Then we surprised Hadar with a birthday cake (Happy 18th, Hadar!) and said goodbye to the 5 teens who decided to extend their stay in Israel and were being picked up that night or the next morning. By this time it was after midnight and our bus was scheduled to take us to the airport 4 hours later. Some people chose to go to sleep or to pack while others hung out in the group activity room we had reserved for the remainder of the night, playing music and talking and soaking up the last moments of time together before traveling home.
