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| Home > Israel > Day 10: It's so hard to say goodbye |
| Day 10: It's so hard to say goodbye | | Date Created: Jan 12, 2005, 04:08 AM |
 We woke at 8:30 AM. I was SO tired--- it was starting to hit me that I had very little sleep. Almost everyone was sick and i was looking forward to resting in my own bed. I wasn't looking forward to saying goodbye and having to go through the process of reflection and looking ahead to go back to school. We met around 9 AM in the hotel conference room. Each one of us went around and reflected on our experience in the past ten days. It was hard for me, because even now, I am still processing everything and will into the future. More on that later. It was great to hear the experiences of the others, and Max was very brave to tell the group he was disappointed because the whole Palestinian- Israel issue was totally one sided. We only got to hear the Israeli position, which was expected, but I was disappointed we were not challenged in our dilemmas from the other side. A few comments were negative, but most of the group talked about how the trip really changed them. I don't know if it changed me, but I am coming home from the holy land a better person.
The day was filled with light activities. I decided to burn CD's of my 350 pictures for the entire group-- this was time consuming, but not too hard. All day I was carrying around the laptop with Jon in tow with the blank CD's. Jon was my wingman the entire trip with my camera, jacket, backpack, laptop, cord, batteries, water bottle, hat, etc. etc. etc.
We stopped at the mall, which was very much like an American mall, except there were original stores that are not in Israel. it was so nice to not see so much American capitalism in Israel and this held true for most of the places. Israeli people owned Israeli companies that bring the profit back to the country instead of an American conglomerate. There was a McDonald's, however, and it served Shwarma... my first and true love (next to a Taco Pirata). We went through security going into the mall, which made me feel much safer. I really did not feel unsafe the entire trip-- Israel is great place to visit.
Later on, we went to Independence Hall where a famous speech was made by David Ben-Gurion in 1948 declaring Israel's independence and starting the 1948 war. I had to find a plug in the lobby to continue burning CD's, so I missed most of it.
The evening started to set in and goodbyes were imminent. I was spending the final hours cutting the group's farewell video and just talking with the new friends I had made. I knew I would see Doreen and Jon because they live in Manhattan, but Ashly, Whitney and Gabe live out west-- and people live in Israel or Indiana, Chicago, etc. I was getting very sad. We stopped at Rabin square, where Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin was assasinated.
We spent the rest of the evening in Jaffa, the old city that served as an important port. Napoleon attempted to conquer it, but failed miserably at the hands of the Ottoman empire. We did a bit of shopping then had our final dinner at a local restaurant. Then, we gathered together to watch the final video I cut and the pictures that have been posted on the web blog.
It was time to go to the airport. It was hard, because the people who were extending their trips were planning their week. I was not too happy, because I had to be in Texas by Thursday, so every time I heard their plans to go to Egypt or Eilat or to travel in the muslim quarter of Jerusalem, I got upset-- I didn't want to leave this magnificant country with so much to offer. The goodbyes were hard, but I didn't want to spend much time on them. "Keep in touch" really meant "have a nice life" to some of the people I said goodbye to. I may never see them again.
Went through security at the airport and sat at a bar, plugged in my computer and finished blogging. Now I am about 2 hours from home, and these are my final thoughts:
I left on this trip because I wanted to know what it meant to be Jewish. Everyone kept on telling me that i was because my mother was, and I never really understood why until this trip. You don't have to recite the Torah or go to Synagogue every week to be Jewish. It's a philisophy of life-- it's a state of being. It's a connection you hold with millions of people all over the world. It's an identity. The two times I went to synagogue in my life, I felt very uncomfortable and thought that I did not belong in this house of worship. People were standing up and sitting down and speaking in a language I did not understand. Well, that was no longer a problem for me because I immediately had an amazing connection with 37 other people and 7 people that lived 6,000 miles away. Being Jewish is about not believing there is an absolute truth-- not making judgments on people and not dividing people. Jewish people are loving, caring and want to see the world a better place. Being Jewish is being positive- loving your family and being good to your friends. Being Jewish is about giving to people and seeing the returns come later. Being Jewish is about believing in fate, believing in miracles and allowing yourself to let go to the will of God. Kaballah says that everything happens for a reason. I came to Israel for a reason and explored my Jewish identity for a reason. I touched the wall. I visited places where miracles were made. I met my Israeli brother. I became instant friends with total strangers. And for that, I thank God. |
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