Week 11 | November 8-November 14, 2014

Good (almost) shabbos everyone! I am so happy the weekend has come, and I think that sentiment is shared by most right now. The feelings of relief and gratitude for the impending arrival of shabbat are unmissable. Shabbat signifies relaxing, retreating from the world with all of its ups and downs and scariness and into the safety and unconditional love and appreciation of family and friends. It means good food, lots of laughs, and long naps. And after the week the Jewish people and the state of Israel have had, shabbat is exactly what we need right now. In case you don't know what I am referring to, this past Monday, two successful terrorist attacks were carried out and two more were attempted. There were two victims-both in their 20s, and many others injured. Throughout the week, terrorist have been throwing "scare grenades" into heavily populated areas-grenades that explode and make a loud noise, but have no gunpowder, and thus, no ability to hurt or kill anyone. Until they fully explode, it is impossible to detect whether or not they are real, so they send all nearby people, police, and soldiers into a frenzy. Although harmless, they just add more terror to the tension radiating throughout the country. They reveal just how truly corrupt our enemies are-even without the proper ammunition, equipment and infrastructure to carry out as many deadly attacks at they would like, they will spend time and money to simply infuse the Jewish population with fear. Their motives are so impure are so evil. Their cruelty, however, can be matched and exceeded by all the great things that happened this week.  

 

^ with friends on Saturday night 

 

^^on a school trip to Chevron, the ancient city in which our matriarchs and patriarchs resided and are buried

^^^selfies with my special needs students, Lauren and Deena. Every week I teach them the weekly Torah portion. In this week's Torah portion, we learn about the death of Sarah, the matriarch, and the quest for Abraham to find Isaac a wife (my namesake, Rebecca)

 

^^^at the color run on Friday in Tel Aviv. You can see which pictures were pre-run (the ones where we look clean and put-together) and which are post-run (those colorful, fun ones)

On Monday, I began writing this week's post after a somber schoolwide meeting about the current security standards (i.e. we were put on lockdown) and a mournful recitation of Psalms in memory of the day's victims. The atmosphere was so heavy it was hard to bear, and sadness and anxiety feeds off itself, so everyone was in a state of gloom and stress. Things just looked bleak-two stabbings in one day, along with the events of prior weeks, suggested to many people that a third intifada was upon us, something Israelis live in constant fear of. Even the word intifada sends chills down my spine. I called my daddy (he's my rock- my logical, fact-bound, stoic and unflustered papa who never falls victim to crowd panic or exaggerated claims) who calmed me down, but I still fell asleep feeling unsettled and down (only to be woken up at 4:30am by the Muslims's call to prayer, a reminder to never again sleep with the windows open). In my original post on Monday, I talked about how hard it was, how stressed I was, how bad I felt for the victims and their families and how much suffering our people seem to endure. But then life went on-I had classes, I did laundry, I laughed and learned, I watched The Mindy Project, I ate a chocolate bar every day, I puzzled through pages of Talmud. I felt uplifted by my Torah learning with my special needs students and reveled in an amazing talk I had with one of my favorite teachers over lunch. I complained about the fact that skim milk isn't a thing in Israel as I made my coffee, I walked 6 kilometers, I vacuumed, I tweezed my eyebrows, I chewed too much gum and exacerbated my TMJ, I took money out of the ATM, and I sang to myself as I painted my nails. I lived my life.

I concluded the week with the annual Color Run in Tel Aviv, run by an organization that supports victims of terror and their families. I ran for team Yachad (special needs children and adults), along with over 450 American students learning for a year in Israel, and most of my friends. It was a 5k run in which you run through 7 colorful balloon arches and colored paint and chalk is thrown at you-yes, you come out dirtier than you can imagine, but it is so fun, unifying, and happiness-inducing. I just got back to school and am spending shabbat here, eating at teacher's houses but sleeping in my own bed. Friday always makes me feel hopeful and reflective, and I realize now that the mindset I had on Monday, while understandable, is wrong. Yes, it can be hard and scary, and yes, it sometimes feels like the Jewish people have it rough, but we are also strong, smart, and doing amazing things every day. There is so much light all around us-it may be the darkness that gets the headlines, it may be the stabbings and murders and riots that catch the eye, but if you look a little deeper, you can see infinitely more light. No matter what, I am so grateful to be here, to have the opportunities I have and to be Rebecca Siegel. I am so grateful to be a Jew (shoutout to you, Mom, for making this all possible) and so grateful for the many gifts I have that others don't. I hope everyone has a blessed weekend. Please pray for Israel and the Jewish people. XXOO Rebecca