So this is the blog post that all the parents at home have been anxiously awaiting. The first blog of ISS, the amazing, life-changing three week pilgrimage to Israel that we have eagerly been waiting for during this whole 9-month (wow, has it really been that long?) process that we call the Diller Teen Fellows program. So as you would have all expected, the drive to Newark airport was smooth, we quickly got through security and checked our bags, and nervously sat around the terminal waiting. When we finally got onto the plane, we were so excited that we couldn't even sleep during the whole 12 hour flight--wait, none of this happened. Thanks, Hamas.
So as I’m sure all of you know, today was not the first day of our ISS in Israel as it was marked on your calendar from so many months back when got the final schedule for Diller. Because of the escalations and conflict in Israel right now, our trip was delayed a week, and was modified to maximize not only the safety of the trip, but also the meaning of it despite it being one week briefer than we all hoped it would be. This does not however, mean that this week would be lost time. Thankfully, due to the quick planning by Amanda, Leah, and Moshe, we have a week full of activities that are both fun and meaningful to our Diller journey.
So considerably less excited than we would have been if we were driving to the Federation to get on a shuttle to Newark Airport, we all made the expedition to Whippany today for a full day of Diller. We had time to hang out and catch up with each other since the last time we met (Sunday), and then started on activities. We did a lot of much needed “fun” activities today. I am not going to waste your time by explaining them all, but for example one of the things we did was decorating the amazing, wonderful, stunning, super fashionable fanny packs that we will all be sporting in the homeland. Another thing we did was play a really great word association game not just for fun, but also to help get to know and bond with our phenomenal new coordinator, Amanda.
The really important idea that I (and I hope everyone else) got out of the day came to me while talking to a fellow Diller while we were all enjoying frozen yogurt at the local place we walked to. We were talking when we realized that at that moment, we should have all been on a plane to Israel about to embark on the carefully planned Diller itinerary that every cohort before us had the fortune of enjoying. I suddenly felt depressed thinking of the opportunity that we were robbed of because of events in Israel that we couldn’t even control. My friend and fellow Diller told me that she felt that we just have to keep optimistic, not let it bother us, and just think about all the great possibilities before us, and the fact that at this point, we still are going to Israel, so we just have to take the options we have this week and enjoy them, not think about what we might be missing. This really resonated with me because it also made me contemplate something my Israeli friend, Matan (the person who I hosted during NAS AND the person who would be hosting me during ISS) and his family said to me and my family the other day. He told us how at time like these, life in Israel goes on. Yes, they might constantly have to run down to bomb shelters, yes, their days may be filled with more anxiety than anyone should have to have, yes, they may constantly have to check the news to see where this conflict is going and how it might affect them, but life moves on. They still go to work, they still go to the markets, they still go out at night to hang with friends. They take the opportunities they have in their current circumstance and they run with it. Thats when I realized that we have to do the same. Of course our situation isn’t nearly as terrible and serious as having to live worrying about missile strikes, but we can still apply that Israeli mentality to our lives. We will take our situation and make the most of it because just like the Israelis, we can't let an unfortunate situation take away from our lives. No matter how much it stinks that our trip was delayed, and no matter what news we may or may not receive tomorrow, it will all be ok (Ok, well, if the trip is completely cancelled it might not be ok, but we’ll deal with that if we get there).
-Ethan Gelman (The super good looking and funny kid you all saw at the meeting Sunday night).
Blog committee note: Here’s our vlog for today! Stay tuned for more!
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