Yom Kippur in Jerusalem

No cars. No machines. No work. Everything comes to a stop on Yom Kippur in Israel. Even the airport is shut down. There is no law prohibiting it, but nevertheless nobody drives on the holiest day in Judaism. Having grown up in a world of constant motion, this was something that I had never experienced until this year.

The night before Yom Kippur (Kol Nidre) we left synagogue and the street was filled with little kids taking advantage of the car-less streets by riding their bikes up and down the hills of Jerusalem.

I stayed with the Wine family in Jerusalem and attended their temple for both Erev Yom Kippur and the morning services. Since they belong to a Conservative congregation, I was fairly familiar with the service, though I was very grateful to the woman who provided me with a half English/half Hebrew sidur (prayer book). I couldn't follow the sermon too well, but hopefully next year at this time I'll understand it much more.

In the afternoon, I decided to walk the 2 miles to the Old City and spend the last few hours of Yom Kippur praying at the Kotel (Western/Wailing Wall). The walk there wasn't too bad even though I hadn't had anything to eat or drink for more than 20 hours. As I approached the Old City, I decided to enter through the Damascus Gate and take a shortcut via the Arab quarter. While this was smart to save time and energy, I also faced another challenge because I was confronted with the rich smells and sights of the delicious food that was being sold there. It was a nice reminder to me that Jerusalem is home to three religions and each have their own important part in the city.

When I finally arrived at the Kotel, it was as it had been the first time I was there: I was looking at a wall with people praying in front of it. It's only as I got closer to it, put on my talit (prayer shawl) and really looked at it that I did begin to feel the importance and power of the moment. As thousands do daily, I walked up to the wall, said my own prayers for the coming year and kissed the Jerusalem stone that was warm from having baked in the sun all day. I looked at the cracks between the rocks and saw an untold number of notes, little prayers that people had left here.

It's amazing to think what constitutes a "holy" place. A place where people come to express devotion, thanks, anger, love, belief and more... I guess that's what I liked most of all being there at the end of Yom Kippur; just looking out at all the people that were gathered there, from Orthodox Jew to the curious tourist and everything in between. So many people together with so many different thoughts about the same place.

I am thankful that I was able to spend this year in ירושלים Jerusalem.

Reflecting on the year that was...

Well, here we are again. Yes, it's that time of year, the time between Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur when we think back on all the things that transpired in the year before and all we want to happen in the year to come. It's also the time when we (Jews) are supposed to think about anything that we've done wrong and ask for forgiveness from those whom we have wronged. Likewise, we are commanded to forgive anyone that has wronged us. So, if anybody is mad at me, here's a big, public "I'm sorry" and I also hold no grudges coming into this new year. Now that I've gotten that out of the way, here are some of my thoughts on what this past year has meant to me:

A lot. This past year, almost more than any other, has been a time of deep personal growth and movement towards a fulfilling and happy life. I finished out my stint as an Americorps VISTA volunteer in Miami, serving for one year at the Association for the Development of the Exceptional (ADE). ADE is a day program serving adults with developmental disabilities, providing these very special and wonderful people with a place to come learn, work and be accepted. It is a phenomenal program. In my time there as Development Coordinator, I, along with the help of many others, planned a Fashion Show, a fundraising Bowl-a-Thon, created a monthly newsletter, and was part of a team that secured a $290,000 grant. Needless to say, I am very proud of my accomplishments in Miami and miss everyone at ADE. The people there, both participants and staff, touched me in a very profound way and one that will have a lasting impact on me for the rest of my life. *I served as part of the City of Miami VISTA partnership and anyone who is interested in learning more about this great opportunity, should contact Dorcas Perez at DPerez@miamigov.com. Dorcas is the VISTA team leader and oversees a team of 15-20 volunteers just like me who are stationed at non-profit organizations throughout the city of Miami. She is an awesome person to work with and is always looking for qualified candidates who want to volunteer a year in service to the US.*

It was only towards the end of my VISTA experience that I made the decision to make aliyah. People that have known me for years, knew that this was something that I had once strongly considered, but had spoken little of for some time. In January I was conflicted for a few days trying to decide if now was the right time for me to do this. I told myself that I needed to go back to Atlanta and work, save up some money and then do it. However, that just didn't seem like the right answer. When I did finally decide to move, it was as if a giant roadblock that was in my way suddenly vanished, that I was firmly putting myself on the right path. I am so happy that I came to that decision and as I sit here typing these words I know that I'm in the right place.

Moving halfway across the world does come with its consequences, however, mainly being so far away from my loved ones, my friends and family. Skype, gmail chat, facebook, text messaging and more have made it quite easy (and cheap!) to stay in touch, but still I won't get to see people as much and will surely miss many important events (cousin Annsley's wedding being the first; mazel tov!). Alas, there is a yin to every yang, and my longing to be near my family is mine. However, I've only been here for less than 3 months so for the time being there is no need to dwell on this...

Again, I've managed to write more than I intended, but hopefully you have found it mildly interesting:) I would just like to say thank you to a whole bunch of people. There have been some great people that have come and gone from my life in this past year and I am a much better person from having been with them all. I want to say how lucky I am to have the most supportive family in the world, one that is there for me at a moment's notice. Likewise, I am blessed with friends that share no equal in this world and can be counted on for a laugh or for a listen.

As I head off to Jerusalem (not next year in Jerusalem, this year:), I will keep my prayers for a better world in this year to come in my mind. This past year has been a great one, but the year to come will be even greater, at least until the one that comes after that. I was raised to believe to make the most out of our time and to appreciate all that we have and I'm doing the best I can. I'm sure you all will do just the same...

For those of you that are fasting, may it be an easy one. For those that aren't fasting, eat a pizza for me!

Wishing y'all the best in the year to come. Shana tova one more time:)

What a weekend!

Wow! I think that was the fullest weekend I've had in a very long time. From the moment it began, it didn't stop until Monday morning. Time to roll back the tape and see how much I can remember:)

It began on Thursday night after work. The workdays here run Sunday-Thursday, so our Thursday is the equivalent of an American Friday. It has definitely taken a little time to get used to going back to school/work on Sundays, but when Thursday rolls around it still feels like I got a 4 day work week (and we all love those). Anyway, Thursday night I went to a reunion of NBN (a great organization that helps new olim in Israel... separate post to come at a later date) on the beach and played Ultimate Frisbee (little sister, Robin, is captain of the UGA team). Afterwards I went out with some friends to two fun dance clubs; one on the beach and another at the port. It was lots of fun! On Friday I went to a great Turkish restaurant for lunch. It is owned by the brother of one of the women in my ulpan class. It was delicious! That night I had a nice Shabbat dinner with two other people from my class, a good friend from Spain and the other from France. The common language was a mixture of Spanish/English/Hebrew and we had a great time being together.

Saturday was amazing. Three and a half years ago, I studied abroad in Cuba. While I was there I met a very sweet and nice Argentinian couple who were traveling around the island for three weeks. Since then we have kept in touch via e-mail and Gmail chat. So, Mati (pictured above with me), the guy from the couple, happened to be visiting in Israel with his family for a wedding. We arranged to meet up on the beach and had a great time playing shesh pesh (backgammon) and chatting. We picked up right where we left off from many years ago and spent a great afternoon together. It just goes to show that you should definitely keep in touch with people, because you never know when you might end up playing backgammon with them on the beach on the other side of the world:)

Saturday night we went out to celebrate my 25th birthday (actually on September 9). Many friends from ulpan and other places came to the bar and we had an awesome time dancing and partying. Many of the pictures from that night are available via my Facebook profile. Someone asked me if I feel different now that I'm 25 and I guess, for the first time in a while, the answer is yes. Strangely I don't think I can get away with being a kid anymore. Somewhere along the way I'm all grown up and 25 is one of those turning ages where you know that adulthood is around the corner (in my case, maybe 5 years away:). For now, I'm definitely loving living for today, but I guess I'm just not a kid anymore... though anyone that knows my family knows I will always be a kid at Hart! (misspelled intentionally)

Sunday (which is our Monday) started off by going to ulpan (ok, I was a little hungover). At the end of class we ate cake for my birthday and another girl's birthday in the class and it was very sweet. It's so nice when people are so kind to you even though you've only known them a short while. It made me feel really good and I appreciate it very much! Afterwards, I went to work for a short day, because then I went to... the Black Eyed Peas concert! My friends, Leora and Ariel, got us tickets for my birthday and it was a blast! The concert was in Jerusalem, set just outside the Old City in an amphitheatre that is easily hundreds (if not more than a thousand) years old. The scenery alone was stunning, with the lights reflecting off the Jerusalem stone and the beautiful steep hills of the city. The music was awesome! They played most of their big hits and I got to see my ex-girlfriend, Fergie. She is still Fergalicious and G-l-a-m-o-r-o-u-s, but I don't think we'll be getting back together:) hehehehe...

All-in-all it was a great weekend and one that I will definitely remember for a long time to come. I want to send a big THANK YOU to everyone that wrote me, called me, thought about me and anything else on my birthday. It was so nice to receive all the Facebook posts, e-mails, messages, texts, calls and everything else! We have so many ways to keep in touch with each other and yesterday I think I used them all:) Thanks for taking the time to read this blog and I apologize for this very lengthy entry... I'll try and keep 'em shorter next time!

Shana tova and Happy New Year to everyone!

Ulpan Aleph Bet

Anyone who knows me knows how much I love speaking in other languages. I've always been a huge proponent of expanding one's horizons and boundaries through learning a second (or third) language. Since I started learning Spanish when I was 15, it has been a passion of mine and I speak it whenever I get a chance. I want to give a shout out to the greatest Spanish teacher in the entire world, Senora Clarissa Adams-Fletcher. Check out her page.

Back to the theme of "Why I made aliyah?": a huge reason was to learn Hebrew and really know and understand the language. Living in Israel is great, but it will be even better when I can read, write and speak Hebrew fluently.

Where does one go to learn Hebrew you ask? Well, ulpan. Ulpan is a time-tested method to teach Hebrew quickly. It is an intensive studies program that typically lasts 5 months. The levels range from beginner (aleph) to much higher levels (dalet, hey). I love ulpan! I am in a beginner's class (kita aleph) and study five days a week, *Sunday - Thursday. *(The Israeli work week runs Sun-Thurs. This deserves an entire post of its own and will be written soon:).

This is how a typical day begins for me: I wake up, get dressed and head over to the delicious bakery which just happens to be on my block. I get some rugala for me and my friends (see picture from previous post) and head off to class. Class runs from 8:15-1:00 with two breaks.

The ulpan itself is represented by dozens of countries and languages. The most common languages heard are Russian, French, English, Portuguese, Spanish and several others. Breaks are definitely one of my favorite parts of the day because I get a chance to talk to so many different people who are here for so many different reasons. Some are new olim (immigrants) like me, although many are not. Some are here studying for a few months, here for work, and more. I've met several girls who moved here to be with their Israeli boyfriends who they met when the Israelis were on a trip in their country. Many people at ulpan are Jewish, many are not. It is quite the eclectic mix.

Whoops! Almost forgot to write about the class itself. I have another great language teacher, Ayelet. In Israel, teachers are only called by their first names, at all levels of education, from elementary school through university. Ayelet pushes us to really absorb the language and to try and not think in our native languages. I've only been in ulpan for less than two months, but yesterday when I read a whole paragraph in Hebrew without vowels and understood it, I felt pretty good. Also, I'm following Hebrew conversations fairly well and it's only a matter of time before my big mouth gets to participate in 'em.

This makes blog post number 2. Some people have complained that I took too long to post this one. I'll try and write this weekend (which starts tomorrow night!)