Family, Friends, and Caring

With everything that has happened over the week I was unsure of what the next day had to bring. Unfortunately, it was not great the following day since a friend of mine that I met here Jason Rich decided that Israel was not for him and left the program to go back to Binghamton in New York. I bid him farewell at the gate it is the last I have spoken to him. I know he will be alright in the states and I wish him well. I had no time for a long goodbye since the weekend was fast approaching and I needed a place to go. At first I planned on going with Josh to his friends in Efrat and have a nice Shabbat there since I have never been. However, my plans changed that morning since I got a called from Flora Mor-Yosef who is the mother of my neighbor back in America Shoshi Geffner. She is one of the sweetest ladies in the world. Last time I was in Israel on Nativ I spent many shabbatot at her house in Bet Shemesh. I have come to know the family here and kind of been adopted as their own. I made the decision that morning to see her and booked it out of the cfar ASAP. I made my way to Machne Yehuda to pick up some delicious challah and wine to bring since I have been taught it is wrong to come empty handed(even thought they say you don’t need to being anything). As the time was winding down I got the second to last bus out of Jerusalem and arrived at Flora with some time to relax before the holy shabbath began.

Shabbat at Flora’s is one of the most exciting events that takes place in the country. It begins so simple with having all the food in the Machsan(storage/shelter…there is no equivalent in English) staying warm since dinner is not for a couple hours after Shabbat is let in. We take some time to talk and catch up on life(of course it is served with tea and cookies). She tells me all about the kids and I let her know how things are in America and school. It is cut short since Synagogue is beginning and I am off to experience some Moroccan davening. It is very different than what I am used to but it somehow carries its own beautiful melody that flows throughout the entire service. Once done it is back to the house for round 2 of tea and hanging out. Dinner is not for an hour since the kids are coming from Modi’in and it takes a little time. So some reading of the paper(can’t understand all of it anyways) is attempted and then one by one the family strolls in. It is adorable how the family spends the Shabbat together. In total it was 3 generations, 16 people, and food to feed an army. I reintroduced myself to everyone but they remembered me from last time I was here 2 years ago. They asked me if they should speak in English for the night and of course I said NO because I wanted to work on my Hebrew and let the family dynamic stay the same. Dinner was so much fun everyone was eating, laughing, playing. I felt right at home as if it was my own family. The next day was a slight repeat with just as much food, a little less family members and more time at shul. I savored every second I was away since it was the getaway from school I needed. I was sad that Shabbat was ending and I would have to make my way back to Jerusalem.

I did need to get back though to meet up with my amazing cousin kaylee(I tried to see her at least once every week). We have been working on our relationship over the past couple months since we are living in the same city. I took her out to dinner at Kadosh(a lovely dairy restaurant that everyone should try). We were able to catch up and she told me how she is going back to the states to visit friends in NYC and then back to LA before spending Pesach with the family in Cancun. She is a very lucky girl to be able to go see everyone. I am so proud of the mature women she is turning into; it makes me laugh at the past and how we used to not get along. What a way to end my Shabbat…Semester here I come!!!