Self-Management Shabbaton!

FRIDAY:

Lindsey and Sarah pose for a picture!

It was amazing seeing everyone after a month apart, but there was a bittersweet feeling that Diller 6 couldn’t shake. After a year together, we have become a family. We began as strangers and turned into life-long friends, and we had come together for the final Shabbaton. The only thing that hadn’t changed was the ridiculous amount of stuff that we thought we needed to bring for a weekend retreat. To Hannah’s surprise and delight, we promptly loaded the bus on time and drove to Fairview Lake for the last time as Diller 6. The drive over was scenic and a great time as always. We exchanged stories about our day-to-day lives and shared memories from our incredible summer in Israel. We arrived at our beloved Wickapeck cabin and jumped into loading our bags off the bus. Everything seemed easy and relaxed. We were all so happy to be together for an amazing final weekend. After we unpacked, we put on our Shabbos best and headed to the CIT lounge for Shabbat services. There, we were served a gourmet meal and given a domestic lesson by none other than our little homemaker herself, Rebecca Cooper. She taught us about formal dinner interactions in different countries and their specific meanings. It was an informative and interesting way to start off Shabbat dinner together. After dinner, Corey lead a workshop about music and how lyrics influence and affect our daily lives. We discovered how music can heal any wound and lift any spirit. Afterwords, we went back to our cabin for a night of fun, conversation, and fighting over who got to hold the Veggie Straws.

A breathtaking image of the Diller 6 cohort.

SATURDAY MORNING:

We began our Shabbat morning with an easy breakfast and a service. For the first time in our history, we had a real Saturday morning service–compared to the frequent alternative services we do–and it was incredibly successful. Eli put our Siddur together, and it was beautiful and personal, so I believe we would all like to thank him for it. It was filled with readings and prayers, so it was engaging and meaningful, and it created a sense of Shabbat in our community. We also had a particularly hilarious parsha of the week, where we acted out the scene of Abraham going to sacrifice his son Isaac with many different accents. Then, in high spirits, we left for a nature walk through the Red Oak Swamp. We got to see some fun stuff, like lighting methane bubbles on fire, and we even got to shake an entire tree (as strange as that sounds, it was actually pretty cool). Then we ended our walk in a separate section of the woods, where all the trees had changed colors, and we were reminded of the beauty of nature, and the peacefulness of Shabbat.  

SATURDAY AFTERNOON: 

Lindsey Max potentially have too much swag.

Seth and Bonder share ahug after a meaningful Havdallah

After a surprisingly delicious lunch of fried chicken, we began the segment of our shabbaton that we do best, free time. At this closing hour of our Diller journey, we value just simply spending time with each other more than anything. Before we are a group of Jews, or a group of leaders, we are a group of amazing friends that can’t seem to get enough of each other. Free time activities included noshing (of course), joking around, and a tad bit of the inevitable homework. By no means is Diller all play and no work, as we regimented part of our free time to work on our tikkun olam projects. It was so exciting to clarify our ideas and turn them into a tangible goal. This may sound corny, but I really felt the skills I learned in Diller come to play while working on the projects. Shortly after, we began our workshop with our resident JC Juliet! Her workshop was about memories that related to our guiding lights, the Diller Pillars. Not only was this a way to recount a lot of meaningful yet comical moments from our journey, but to see what aspects of Diller we really have taken with us throughout the year. We then trecked to the CIT center for dinner time, everyones favorite, mac and cheese. After the meal we dove straight into another stimulating workshop by Annabelle. In this workshop we wrote our biggest fear and our life’s dream on different pieces of paper. As is the Diller way, we discussed how these things made us feel, and how our fears truly do prevent us from doing what we want. As we are released into the world from Diller, it was really important to realize that the only real obstacle we have in front of us, is ourselves.

SATURDAY MA'AGAL: 

Saturday Ma'agal was very special. The committee provided notebooks to each of us and we went around the circle and wrote a personal letter to each of the fellow dillers as well as Leah. They also surprised us with a letter from one of the Israelis. It was SO amazing to hear from our Israelis. But the surprises didn't stop there. Leah had Rachel and Meital write letters to us (even the committee didn't know about this.) A bunch of us cried. It was a very long ma'agal, but worth it. Reading the letters that my fellow dillers was so cool, to think that a year ago we were awkward together and now we are like family is so crazy. I hope Diller 7 experiences that too. Afterwards, we just hung out until the late hours of the morning.

I don't even...

SUNDAY: 

Lauren, Coop, and Eden at the Friendship Circle walk!

Diller 6 shows off their fabulousness in a 
group shot at the Friendship Circle walk!

We had a decent wake-up, breakfast and packing.  We left and headed to the Friendship Circle walk. It was a great opportunity to help out a great cause. 
















We all felt satisfied walking and volunteering to help this amazing organization thrive and raise funds for their new building. Lots of hugs took place and we said our see you laters'.

It happened.

Super Sunday and Final Plans for the Last Shabbaton!

Our meeting began with lots of chit chatting and catching back up. The school year has hit many of us really hard, and we were all sharing in the common misery that is high school. 

We met at Sarah Nelson’s house, and so we headed to the basement to begin our official meeting. We started with a Ma’agal, (a circle,) and used it as a time to catch up as a group, and sort of help each other out with our problems. Because we know no other way, we shared our greatest fears and what was really plaguing our hearts, and it was the perfect segway back into the Diller atmosphere. 

Later, we filmed the song-parody for Super Sunday! We chose to film outside - for some reason - and it was wet and rainy and cold, but we made a fun video which should be super exciting to watch! 

We also split up into our groups for the self management Shabbaton, and had a last minute check-in with Leah, making sure everything was ready. 

I can’t wait another two weeks for this Shabbaton… it’s going to be most definitely an amazing experience and it’s going to end in a way that’s very special to me, at the Friendship Circle Walkathon. 

Also, a gigantic thank-you to Sarah’s family for letting us invade their home for 5 hours while we had our meeting!

A #tbt, (throw back Thursday,) photo by Lindsey Blenden from our very first Shabbaton all together to get us in the mood for our very last one that has come up much too soon!!

Together Again: Moving Forward

This was the first time we have been together as a group since we all returned from Israel. Naturally, we had a lot to catch up on about how our summer was post-Israel and how the school year was going. We had a surprise video call from Meital and Rachel who we miss SO much! It was so great to hear that they’ve adjusted to the college life well and that they still remember who we are. We quickly segwayed into a Ma’agal to just check-in and see how everyone was doing. We then split into committees to start planning for our Shabbaton. We spent a lot of time doing that, and then braked for lunch. It seemed as though we had a really fun Shabbaton underway! After lunch, we wrapped up with our committees and talked about the community service projects that we will be partaking in past our Diller experience. The meeting ended with the blink of an eye and then Diller 7 had their orientation with our very own Juliet Felsen as one of their JCs….Who said Diller 7 was allowed to happen?

Coral sent us a message from the army!

Meital participates in Challah for Hunger at Pitt!

Rachel goes to Hillel at UMD with
Baltimore and Boston JCs!

Annabelle and Max pose with a new member of Diller 7!

From Beginning to End - August 7, 2013

We woke up at 7:15 at the youth hostel right outside Tel Aviv on the last day of our trip. We all were very sad that we were leaving the other half of our cohort family, but we still had a full day of fun and exciting activities. After eating the final breakfast in Israel we broke up into smaller groups and had the final conclusion to the international congress. In this activity we rediscussed the sixth leg as well as talking about Jewish values. With an hour long bus ride ahead of us, most of the cohort decided to take a nap before arriving in Zichron Yaakov, a small town. Aftering touring around the city we headed towards "Mini Israel" which is exactly what it sounds like. There we stepped back from all of our amazing experiences and looked at it from an almost birds eye view of all the historical sights to see in Israel. After dinner we were on our way to Ben Gurion Airport on a fairly wishy washy bus ride filled with many different emotions. Saying goodbye to some of the most unique, friendly, and kind Israelis in all of the Holyland.

At "Mini Israel" we had to answer the questions, Where we found our strongest Jewish connection, Where we found our strongest connection to Israel and its people, Where would we bring the cohort to if we could go anywhere new in Israel, and lastly where would we visit again if we could go anywhere. I found my closest connection to my Jewish heritage in the city of Jerusalem but more specifically the Western Wall. There was just such a strong religious vibe flowing through the city. I could feel, taste, and smell the passion towards Judaism. While at the Western Wall, surrounded by the orthodox men bowing back in forth I finally felt comfortable in my religion and a very homey feeling hit me very strongly. It is safe to say that Jerusalem was my favorite of all the cities that we visited because of combination of amazing history and fun attractions for tourists like me to do. 

In addition to feeling my deepest connection to Judaism in Jerusalem, I also felt my strongest connection to the Israeli people in Jerusalem. As I hinted on it before, being surrounded by such religious people made me feel at home. Being a reform Jew in a town with the majority of Jews being reform, it is not very often to see many orthodox people walking around the streets. First entering the city of Jerusalem for the first time, we drove in with all the blinds down until we finally were in the city completely. That was very powerful for me personally and I'm sure to other Dillers as well. 

When I first wrote down where I wanted to visit again I did not put much thought into it. But during our discussion after the "Mini Israel" tour, Coby told the group that he would've liked to have visited Yad Vashem again. I felt as if the Holocaust Museum was very, very powerful and I would've enjoyed experiencing it a little more and learning more.

During these three weeks in Israel I found my own Jewish identity. For the first time in my life I can honestly say that I'm 100% comfortable with my religion. I am certain that I can speak for the whole Greater MetroWest cohort when I say that we had the time of our lives whether it was with the Israelis or just us. None of this trip would've been possible without the amazing Diller staff we had. Rachel (Rayfo), Meital (Meishort), and of course Leah (Mama Leah) were all so very supportive with anything at all and without them I don't think this trip would've been as special or successful. Sitting on the plane now talking to some Israel natives just solidifies the theories that Israelis really are the most friendly people on the planet. Laila Tov everyone see you in a couple hours.

Corey Basciano

The Light Within - August 6, 2013

Our first full group travel day began early in the morning to the wake up call of roosters at our campsite in Metula.  Our activities began with a tour of  Tzfat, one of the four holiest cities in Israel.  We walked through the different quarters, and learned about the types of people who lived here.  We also met with an artist who taught us about Jewish Mysticism, Spirituality, and how he developed his connection to Israel after growing up in Michigan.  

At the cave of Rabbi Simon ben Yohai, we learned about the 13 years he and his son spent there studying Judaism.  Since our time in Israel is coming to an end, we stopped to reflect on how we grew individually and as a result of other people's actions.  We used the metaphor of each person being a candle and another person reflecting and showing his/her light to the group.  It was meaningful for me to see how close we have come as a group and how we know each other well enough to identify important qualities.  Next, we visited a Druze hospitality for dinner, but not before enjoying a snack of pita druzit in the village.  At dinner, we learned about the Druze religion, culture, and beliefs.  We found it fascinating that the religion is a combination of all monotheistic religions, mainly including Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.  As a Jew who knows how hard we fought for a state of our own, I personally was intrigued to learn about why the Druze do not want the same.  They argue that since they already live peacefully in various countries, they do not want to create violence by fighting for a country of their own.  I think this fact only increased our connection to and pride of Israel for the whole group.  The Jewish people have endured wars to get the country and unity that we are all so proud of, and after touring the country for three weeks,  we cannot imagine the Jewish people without Israel.  This pride is what makes Diller and ISS so important to each of us in a unique way.

- Sarah Nelson

P.S. Shout out to Mom, Dad, Eva, and Taffy!  I miss you so much and can't wait to see you in the morning!!

From 400 to 40 - August 5, 2013

After an incredible 5 days at Congress, Diller 6 said a heartfelt goodbye to our many new friends and departed for a much needed day of fun. We first went to an incredible Israeli water park located on the Jordan River for kayaking. After lunch, Diller 6 put on some oddly dirty life vests and boarded our kayaks for an hour of extreme wetness. We paired of into groups of 6 and the Jordan River turned into a battlefield.  Paddles were stolen, water was splashed, and Dillers were knocked off of rafts, but it was an incredible day. After departing from our war on the water, we showered in suspiciously dirty bathrooms and headed to Metula, one of the northern most parts of Israel and also home to Diller's Israeli director, Liat. The town of Metula lies right on the boarder of Lebanon, an area of extreme tension. But the people of Metula live peacefully with their Lebanese neighbors. While in Metula, we met Liat on the top of a mountain and experienced a beautiful view while Liat explained to us the history of the town in which she currently resides. Afterwords, we went to her home for a delicious meal that was much needed after a week of food at Givat Haviva. It was so amazing of her to welcome Metro-Lezion into her home and provide us with a relaxing night of fun and incredible views. Afterwords, we went to sleep outdoors at a campsite. It was a beautiful night to sleep under the stars and a great way to spend one of our final nights together. 

- Annabelle Hanflig

P.S. Shout out to my Mom, Dad, and cats! Also, shout out to Rayfo and Meital for being the most incredible JCs ever and to Leah for being the heart and soul of MetroWest. Tuna sends love to everyone!

The Last Day of 400 - August 4, 2013

We began the day with a group picture of every Diller Teen Fellow wearing the new Diller T-shirts we got. Then we were given a short break before we began our next activity. When we all gathered in the audiorium, we didn't really know what to expect, all we were told was that there was going  to be a panel of leaders answering questions. Finally, they walked onto stage and the panel began. Tal asked a series of questions about modern Jewish issues and "the Jewish problem".  In the second portion of the activity. In this part, we broke off into smaller groups with a specific specific leader. I had Leah Garber, a head coordinator of the JCC in Israel. Leah's job is to foster and facilitate relationships between cities/ communities in the USA and Canada with cities/communities in Israel. For example, her organization joined Greater MetroWest with Ofakim.  She told us about her belief that every Jew has to have a strong connection with Israel, and part of  her mission is to form that relationship. She told us that one of her struggles is that in New York City, where the highest population of Jews exists (Israel not included of course) only 35% of the jews there come to Israel. She also spoke about how many of the Jews in Israel only think about the Jews in Israel, not the Jews in the diaspora. She recounted that when she finally came to the US to  Pittsburg, and she met Jews not in Israel, she discovered how amazing our communities were and she discovered a new portion of her Jewish identity. This was my favorite activity that we've done, because it gave me such a refreshing point of view and she was also a really cool person. After that we had free time and lunch. We then met with our tribes and prepared a closing ceremony. At the closing ceremony we had a BBQ dinner and all of the groups put on little shows that  were really funny and exciting to watch. For example, my tribe rewrote lyrics to "We Will Rock You" and performed it in front of everyone. Our Israeli JC, Mor Filo, even had her acting debut as she was one of the MCs of the night. At the end the counselors put on a show that included dancing and other songs. Finally, we ended the night with a crazy White Tent dance party that lasted until 2 AM. 

- Josh Cohen

Shabbat as One - August 3, 2013

Shabbat at Congress was both relaxing and thought provoking. in the morning, we had the option to wake up with prayer, yoga, or other alternative minyans, but we also had the option for some much needed sleep. After this, we had breakfast and more time to rest. 

After this, the current Dillers were able to attend seminars led by Diller alumni. The alums, all different ages,  hailed from all over North America. The previous Dillers each lead a seminar about different topics such as leadership, creativity, Jewish idenity, the future, and more. I went to one that was about our identities and how they would change over the future. Our group of about 15 people went around the circle and admitted our personal fears for the future and what we aspire to do with the rest of our lives.  

We ended Shabbat with Havdalah in our partnerships, which was extra emotional because it was our last Havdalah as Metro-Letzion. After Havdalah, the night eded with White Tent, a social gathering amongst all the Dillers with music and food. 

- Eden Posner

PS I miss you Mommy and Daddy but I'm so excited to extend!

The Balance - August 2, 2013

This first complete day of Congress all together began with a sense of excitement and the taste of mediocre French toast. After an early breakfast of 8 am, we moved to our first workshop of the day which dealt with the memory leg of the table. We discussed a few types of memory pertaining to us as Jews, including personal memory, and our collective memory/presence at Mt. Sinai. We then split into North Americans and Israelis to think of events that marked our own countries national memory. We discovered that Israel's national memory was a lot more amorphous and intertwined with Jewish history, reminding us that Israel is before all, the Jewish homeland. This  helped us transition to our next leg of the table, the one I personally feel the most connected to, Israel. As someone who sometimes struggles with their identity as a Jew, an activity in which I got to explore the many facets of israel was especially meaningful. Having the discussion of what zionism truly is with jews both from the diaspora and from  Israel was probably a once in a lifetime experience.The knowledge that half of the people in the room would be receiving their initial draft orders within weeks made me feel a personal sense of responsibility to the state of Israel. This activity only continued to cement my dream of making Aliya, of coming home to where I belong. After a delicious lunch, we went on to our final workshop of the day, choosing a sixth leg of the table, or your own way of connecting to Judaism. It was interesting to see how different each leg was despite the fact we were all Jewish. Most people had others in common with them, but as my mother says "she marches to her own beat" so I ended up defending my leg 'community'  by myself. Having a Jewish community and network is something I highly cherish in my life, and despite being alone, I was proud to speak about my feelings to the rest of the group. The diversity in Jewish beliefs witnessed in the tribes was only amplified by the arrival of the shabbat. We had SIX options of prayer that evening, where I had only been aware of three at most.  I attended the meditation service, which was led by a delightfully pleasant girl named Hannah. Interestingly enough, I felt a Jewish experience from just breathing deeply, but I guess being here does that to you. Sorry to go out of order, but to balance the diversity, and to be my favorite moment of the day, we had what was called the White Parade. Every 2013 Diller in the world, dressed in white, walking  together towards an open field. It is the balance of diversity and unity that makes Diller, and the jewish people, so extraordinary.

Rebecca Cooper

PS Shout out to my family and friends in America, you are the only reason I wouldnt run away and stay here.     

...Crossing Cultures! - August 1, 2013

Diller is sold as an international network of North American and Israeli Jewish teens.  Yet it took until today, almost two-thirds of the way through the Israeli Summer Seminar, for the entire international Diller network to come together.  At 9:30 this morning, the eight Israeli cohorts joined the eight North American cohorts at Givat Haviva, thus ending North American Kennes and beginning the International Congress. Congress, much like Kennes, greatly resembles the seminar that we had just organized in Ramat Eliyahu. It is really interesting to experience the same kind of programming from the other side—now as chanichim. 

We began to digest the lecture delivered yesterday by Avraham Infeld in which he laid out the five legs of the Jewish table. In our first activity with the Israelis joining us, we played several games to break the ice and get to know each other.  Our programming for the day touched upon two of the five legs as described by Avraham Infeld: family and the covenant. We traced our family heritages and genealogies while talking about the values that we value in family relationships.

Congress is giving us the opportunity to meet Jewish teenagers from across the world and bring our own rich histories to the table for an international discussion. While we spend most of the days divided in our tribes with one or zero other MetroWest Dillers, our nightly Ma'agal Leilah allows us to once again spend time with our New Jersey cohort. Tonight, before beginning our Ma'agal Leilah, we celebrated Juliet's birthday with the Rishon LeZion Israelis.  Tomorrow is the second day of Congress. In the evening, the first Shabbat spent with all of the North Americans and Israelis in Diller will begin. While the days remaining in this amazing Israel Summer Seminar are dwindling, we look forward to ending the trip and finishing Congress with a bang.

- Eli Schechner

P.S. Shout out to my sisters and my parents: I already started work on the common app today, so it's all good! 

From Sea to Shining Sea - July 31, 2013

Today was the first full day of Kennes, a time where all the North American Dillers come together. We began the day with a nice late wakeup at 8:30, and then moved on to our first activity, discussing North American Jewry, with our separate tribal groups. These tribal groups are just like mini Diller groups for the duration of Congress. We then had a speaker named Avram Infeld, and he talked about the five legs of Judaism. Avraham Infeld believes that the five legs, family, memory, Hebrew, covenant, and Israel, are the unifying elements in Judaism. He kept telling us to think of Judaism as more of a family and a culture than as a religion. For example, one doesn't have to be observant and pray often, but he can feel connected with the culture and thus feel connected with Judaism. He encouraged us to find at least three legs that we can identify with and call our own. This way, no matter who we meet, we will always have at least on leg in common. 

After this inspiring speech, we had lunch and a couple hours of free time, in which people either took naps, went to the pool, or hung out with their new friends from all of the other North American cohorts. After free time we had another meeting with our tribes, and the theme of this one was "Looking Kadima," or looking forward as a Jewish people and looking at the legacy we as North American Jews want to leave. Then we had dinner, and after that we had a cultural evening with Robbie Gringrass, who told us stories about his Israeli experience and sang some Israeli love songs, while trying to spread the message that even though Israel is not a perfect place, the people who live there and people around the world still have enormous pride for the country and for the Jewish religion as a whole. After this we talked about his song "Rak Po" or "Only Here" and how we all feel a sense of belonging with one special place in the world, whether it be Israel or our home towns. We finished our day of seminars with our Ma'agal Lilahs, or night circles, in which we, as a MetroWest cohort, recapped all of our daily activities.  We ended our incredibly busy and exhausting day with a White Tent, or a place for all of the Dillers to meet each other and socialize! Tonight's White Tent was incredibly special, because we surprised Juliet for her 17th birthday! HAPPY BIRTHDAY JULIET! WE LOVE YOU SO MUCH! So, we ended today looking forward to tomorrow, which begins our five day Diller Congress with all the Israelis!

- Hannah Kanter

P.S.- Mom, Dad, Em and Rach- I love you and miss all of you and YES I AM REMEMBERING TO WEAR SUNSCREEN :) , 

An End and A Beginning: From Community Week to Kennes - July 30. 2013

Today started with a big surprise. Michael (Israeli Mike) and I (Lindsey) lead a group activity without any staff! We were told there would be a surprise for both Americans and Israelis, but we weren't allowed to know what the surprise was. We found out this morning when we got to the Youth Department and that part of the surprise was that the staff wouldn't be there. We were given a task to watch a clip about Randy Pausch and his message to the world.  

Pausch discusses everything he wanted his children to know after his pancreatic cancer had taken his life. It includes stories of his childhood, lessons he wants his children to learn, and things he wants his children to know about him. He repeatedly stresses that one should have fun in everything one does, that one should live life to its fullest because one never knows when it might be taken. 

After the clip we had to find two envelopes telling us what we needed to do. The second envelope told us we had 2 hours left in Rishon ans we can chose what it is we want to do with it, along with some rules. We were told to meet back at the youth department at 11:30. After a long debate, MetroLeZion decided to split up into two main groups. One group went to a big park nearby, while the other group went to Yad Levanin, a museum that is dedicated the t fallen soldiers from Rishon LeZion. 

Later on in the day we started our journey to Kennes. We had an opening ceremony and met the different cohorts from North America. Many of us started to create new friendships and can't wait to meet and bond with many more people throughout Kennes and Congress, when the Israelis join us.

- Lindsey Blenden  

Surfs Up! - July 29, 2013

Today was a very exciting day as it was not only full of surprises but it also marks the end of the first half of our "trip of a lifetime" and the last day of community week. This morning we had to get up very, very early to catch our tour bus to Palchim, a private beach on a kibbutz near Rishon. The Dillers thought that a day at the beach was the suprise that Rotem and I had casually mentioned before but in reality our suprise was a day full of surfing, beach games, and fun! When we arrived at the beach we were all anxious because many of us had never been surfing before but soon after we talked to the instructors we were to be working with, all the anxiety melted away and was replaced with complete excitement. There were 4 stations to rotate between: beach volleyball, beach soccer, an intro to surfing on land, and then the real thing. It was so much fun to be out in our surf shirts riding the waves. After the half hour of trying to stand almost the whole group was successful in catching at least one wave. I was not that lucky but they were big waves and I'm a little girl, so riding in on my knees a couple times still felt like success :). After every group went surfing we tanned, had some lunch, and just hung out together on the beach. It was a really amazing experience that I feel privileged to have participated in, even though I'll probably be picking sand out of my hair for a couple weeks.

At around 2 we reluctantly gathered our belongings and headed back to our respective homes for some free time. After very sandy showers, most of the Dillers went shopping in different malls around Rishon to relax before our big farewell dinner with all the Israeli host families. We met again at 7:30 for food, friends, and goodbyes. We left the ceremony spreading gratitude to all the families for their wonderful hospitality as well as some Diller behind the scenes coordinators. It was an amazing week with new relationships that will hopefully last beyond the Israeli Summer Seminar and so many memories we will never forget.

- Lauren Goldman

P.S. Shoutout to the   Tobster, Gershon, Zachy and Grady I miss you guys tons xoxo

Check out the video from the closing ceremony made by out wonderful JCs!

                                 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HAiLFOMLCcU&sns=em

The Experience of Others: July 28, 2013

Today was a very meaningful day to many of the Diller Fellows. We began the day at the Youth Center in Rishon and did an activity that posed the question of whether it is "easier" to be a host or a guest and explored the relationship between host and guest. We then read a passage from the Bible that had do with our discussion, and acted out the situation. It was a thought-provoking exercise that set the mood for the rest of our day where we learned about ourselves and how we should act as   a host and guest.  

After leaving the Youth Center, we traveled to the Children's Musuem in Cholon. Before enterig we did an activity similar to charades that demonstrated the importance of body language in communication and the ability to overcome obstacles using different forms of communication when the obvious means are not available to you.

Then we entered the exhibit that we were going to "view" which is called "dialogue in the dark." Individuals are led by blind or visually impaired individuals through an exhibit that is pitch black- nothing is visible. It was an interesting experience that has affected me in several ways. It has put into perspective the difficulties of the blind in an obvious and more realistic way. It has also showed me that blind individuals are no different than anyone else. My tour guide, Sarah, was very friendly and had a bubbly and outgoing personality. Although she has always had poor vision, she has not let that facet of herself become dominant. Her voice was resonant and powerful. It was very easy to trust her and let her guide me. At the end of the tour she said that "everyone has flaws – mine happens to be my sight." The statement supports the idea that those physically and mentally handicapped are no different than anyone else and that each and every one of us has a flaw, whether or not it is obvious at first glance.

After the tour in the museum, the group was given free time to spend in Jaffa. I had a lot of fun walking around the old city. The architecture is beautiful and the views of the Mediterranean Sea are breathtaking, to the point where I had a least 15 pictures of the same view. 

Later that evening we dined at Café Kapish, a small restaurant where the servers are deaf. It was an interesting experience and I was able to learn some sign language, including how to say thank you, bon appétit, and good bye. 

- Eric Kaden

P.S.: Shout out to my parents Ian and Monica who are currently in France. I hope you love it there!