Pesach B'Aretz

Passover is the time in the Jewish calendar where families get together and remember the exodus of our people from Egypt by reading its story from the Haggadah. For me this festival has always been one that I celebrated in my home with my whole family. It has always been a time to appreciate one and another as well as spend time with each other over the 6 hour adventure. Needless to say this is one of the holidays that mean a lot to me as both an important family moment as well as a meaningful spiritual one. This year was something very different than I am used to and I will try to explain why. I was with my relatives which is as close as it can get to family here so that was step one. We sat down to a seder at Rueven’s house was step two. There was a lot of chatter and distractions make three. That concludes the likeness of this seder. Now what threw me off was the rest. My family here is not religious and so the rituals of the seder were minimal, they also are fluent Hebrew speakers so we read the story in under 20 mins. Once we got to the meal apparently the goal was reached and the rest of the seder did not matter, In total the whole event took 2 hours. After the food was consumed, the kids went downstairs to play computer, some adults sat and watched tv, and the rest stayed at the table and discussed life and politics. I was not sure as to what I was supposed to do since I don’t do the electricity thing on chag, the conversations they were having were a little too high for my Hebrew, and I felt a necessity to finish the seder. So I did just that and sat down with my haggadah and the fourth cup of wine to finish the seder. Unfortunately, this year I could not say L’shana Haba B’yerushalim since I know that I will be back in the states for the next one. I started talking with my cousin Liat and her husband. They are sweet as cherry pie and I really felt a strong connection since they are probably less than 10 years older than me. I found out that my family here really cares about me and even thought they do not see me all the time and I am still getting to know them, there is the connection that Is undeniable.

The next day was something out of a catalogue for Israeli family barbeques. The whole family came over around 11 and we light up the grill to make some delicious meat(hah aim still a vegetarian no worries). All the kids are now well aware of who I am and no longer shy to come up to me and talk. I began to play with Shai some soccer until his younger brother yonaton wanted to play with us as well but did nto really know how to share. It ended with the typical brotherly fight where the younger one cries and the mom comes to reprimand the older one( I remember those days fondly) We all ate together, laughed, read, and enjoyed the beautiful day. For me it was the moment that truly made me feel at home in Israel(the topic of Aliyah came up A LOT). I didn’t want the day to end since It was so incredible. However, I have no control over time and the day winded down and the family all left to go home. I packed up my stuff and once again thanked Rueven and Chaviva for everything that they do for me. I could never thank them enough for taking me in and showing me that I have family here in Israel. As I made my way back to Jerusalem, I realized that it was pesach break and I had free time to finally get out and explore. I have been almost everywhere in Israel but this time I would do it with a brand new perspective. I even recruited a partner in this adventure, my friend simone from lo tan that I met on the MASA shabbaton. The plan was to change all my dirty clothes, get a travel backpack, make my way to Tel Aviv, and then hit the country with my best shot. I had no real plans but to join the country up North since it is the time of the year to take to the Kinneret. I was ready to let adventure take me away to experience all that this wonderful country has to offer. The time had come… CARPE DIEM!!!!