[Taglit 5-Year Retrospective-part 11 of 11] Shorashim

In the midst of the heat wave, we spent the שבת (Shabbat) on קיבוץ אלמוג (Kibbutz Almog). The day was relaxing, yet it was mentally taxing due to (a) the heat, and the inability to go in the pool, (b) the sadness of leaving shortly after sundown.

You can read the original post by clicking on this paragraph.

The name of our Birthright trip organizer, שורשים (Shorashim) means “roots” in Hebrew. Therefore, I would like to reflect on that both from the Birthright trip, as well as what is happening right now–there is a link in a way!

[Taglit 5-Year Retrospective-part 10 of 11] Union

29 July 2011 was the last day of travelling on our trip (excluding the final airport ride).  Looking back on what we did five years later, I’d like to reflect on the theme of UNION.

Click on this sentence to get back to 2011.

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This day of the trip involved us going to הר הרזל (Mount Herzl), as well as Ben Yehuda Street. The beginning of the day was very somber, at the military cemetery which also included the graves of major names in Israeli history (Golda Meir, Yitzhak Rabin, Theodor Herzl, etc.)

[Taglit 5-Year Retrospective-part 9 of 11] Music in Israel

28 July 2011. We woke up around 03:45, were on the bus at 04:29, hiked Masada, I fell on the way down, and missed the Dead Sea.

I could give a five-years-later reflection on the first six hours of my waking on this day, but I feel like that would be blogging. about. flogging. a. dead. horse.

Another major aspect of the day was music, and I feel that it was seriously underrated in my original account of the day. In fact, the musical aspect of the day may have been one of the greater legacies that remains today! So, let’s talk about it. And then, at the end of the post, I’ll give some of my favorite photos from the day.

[Taglit 5-Year Retrospective-part 8 of 11] A Place in Time

On 27 July 2011, we traveled about the Negev desert, and seemed to have a lot of time on the bus. Therefore, I wanted to comment on time, as a reflection from what happened on this day.

Click on this sentence to read the original entry.

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In reflecting on the trip five years later, I see one of the themes of July 27, 2011 was TIME. I’ll give a few stories and reflections on those stories. The themes will be Don’t Rue, Long 40 Minutes, and Is This Thing For Real, or Is It Just This Place In Time?

[Taglit 5-Year Retrospective-part 7 of 11] Sinat Chinam (and Ahavat Chinam)

Five years ago, we went to תל אביב for an Israeli resources fair (an unexpected itinerary change), went to the שוק (market), and also יד ושם (the Holocaust memorial). The original journal entry is clickable: this sentence.

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As I mentioned yesterday, today’s blog post will be a bit of a heavy topic: שנאת חינם (sinat chinam: baseless hatred). Unfortunately, it seemed that the Holocaust (and World War II for that matter) was grounded in baseless hatred. Thus, I want to reflect on it, as well as thinking about what I saw in the museum five years ago.

A look at the exterior of the Yad Vashem museum.