My volunteering placement for the final trimester is working as an intern at the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs. It is self described as "an independent non-profit institute for policy research and education". They focus on issues of Israel's security, standing in the international community and global anti-Semitism. It is headed by Dr. Dore Gold, former Israeli ambassador to the UN and frequently brings in experts and famous speakers as part of the ICA (Institute for Contemporary Affairs) program. JCPA publishes numerous papers, reports and briefings on all things Israel ranging from the threat of nuclear Iran, to the recent Jerusalem construction issue to relations between the US and Israel. The only thing they do not address is internal Israeli politics.
My friend Tal and I were placed in the marketing department (when I say department I mean a small room with 3 permanent people and several part time interns). At first I was disappointed. Here I was with the perfect opportunity, having just been handed an internship at an institute that seems to be tailored specifically to my interests and they have me putting together mailing lists. But after several weeks I can confidently say that I love how it all ended up. First off, JCPA treats their interns extremely well. Most significantly, they give us free lunch every day. And I don't mean shitty cafeteria food. I'm talking about ordering in delivery of everything from bagels to shwarma to hamburgers. Second off, the people I work with are so nice and accomodating. Sure, part of the time we are still compiling mailing lists but the other half of our time is spent doing something much more interesting. The marketing department is charged with the task of publicizing the institute in every way possible. This includes maintaining the website, facebook page, sending out mailings and most interestingly commenting on news sites, forums and blogs with posts linking back to relevant articles on the JCPA website. The latter is what I help out with. This not only gives me an excuse to have to read the news every day but I also have to be very familiar with the articles published by JCPA. If I had been put into a different department I would have only had to read that which was relevant to their area, here I have to read everything!
Additionally, there are also lecture series and briefings that we are always invited to attend. So far I have sat in on a lecture about American Jewish journalism and another about a survey of the Jewish community of greater Philadelphia (both of which were surprisingly fascinating). However, by far the coolest thing so far took place last Thursday morning. Dore Gold, the President of JCPA, was holding a special briefing for the diplomatic corp and foreign correspondents concerning US-Israel relations in light of Netanyahu's recent visit to Washington. I don't know if it was cooler that I was helping a former ambassador to the UN or greeting representatives of the embassies of Egypt, South Africa, France and Jordan or juggling the microphone between the reporter for the LA times and the Associated Press. And then of course there was what he was actually saying in the briefing.
In the scale of pro-Israel groups, I would rate JCPA very high up there. All of its publications are written by scholars and all very well documented. It's a very busy and packed website but you can read all their published material, watch video clips of lectures and learn about JCPA at www.jcpa.org
(I guess even when I'm not at volunteering I'm still promoting the place.)
Sunday, March 28, 2010
Friday, March 26, 2010
Malchat Hamidbar
Several months ago I was approached by a YC madrich and asked if I wanted to participate in a special program. The conversation at the time went something like this:
Madricha: Laura, do you want to do this?
Me: What is this?
Madricha: It’s this women’s thing. It’s supposed to be very cool.
Me: But what do they do exactly?
Madricha: I’m not sure. I think they do something in the desert.
Me: Who is it for? When is it? How much is it?
Madricha: I don’t really know.
Me: Is there anything else you can tell me about this?
Madricha: Not really, no.
Weeks passed without me hearing anything. Then comes last Thursday when I get a call from someone on the staff reminding me about this “Malchat Hamidbar” program on Friday. After everything I had gleaned about this outing you can understand why I went into it with zero expectations.
We were told a bus would be at campus at 7:20am to pick us up. The day got off on a wonderful note when my alarm didn’t work and instead I was being woken up by a friend telling me it was 7:25 and the bus was here. On the bus ride I was understandably grumpy, tired and hungry. Fortunately, this concludes the depressing part of the story.
As we enter the clearing, I immediately perk up upon recognizing where we were: the Magical Forest (a pine forest approximately half way between Tel Aviv and Jerusalem so named by YJ summer program participants for its mysterious appearance on our bus routes no matter what direction we’re coming from). We were greeted by around 50 Israeli women of all ages giving us name tags, sweatshirts/tshirts and a table filled with coffee, tea and cookies (Jewish women know how to treat you right).
They then gathered us all onto mats in a small clearing and introduced themselves and what this day was all about. Malchat Hamidbar is an organization that brings together women from all over Israel to go on a weeklong jeep ride in a different remote location of the world each year. Hundreds of women partake in this adventure and every “Malcha” I talked to that day called it a transformative experience. Essentially it’s an extreme ice breaker/bonding trip. Many of the women knew each other from their Malchat Hamidbar trip and it was fun watching them greet and treat each other like old friends. Where do we come into all this? Malchat Hamidbar decided to try a joint program with MASA (the umbrella organization that funds gap programs like Year Course). This is a two part event, with the first being last Thursday and the second being in late May. This first day was dedicated to ice breakers and getting to know each other. We were split into groups in which we spent some time just playing basic ice breaker games and team building activities. Though I have done most if not all at some point in my summer camp career, these were still lots of fun because everyone was enthusiastic to get to know each other.
(I forgot to mention that in addition to the girls from Year Course the bus stopped at the old Judaean Youth Hostel and picked up some 40 girls from Australia who were participating in IBC- Israel By Choice- year program. We were the only two MASA groups there.)
A couple hours in we broke for brunch. I was expecting juice and rolls. Instead these women pulled out all the stops with an entirely homemade pot luck brunch. There was a huge array of salads and pastas and quiches and spreads. There was even soup!
After lunch we had a drum circle lead by a woman who I am told is famous and has played with people like Bruce Springsteen. Somehow what had begun as a drum circle singing Hebrew songs morphed into a huge dance party with a combination of popular English and Hebrew songs. There was an extremely comfortable and relaxed atmosphere. Looking at it from the outside it might seem a little strange: a group of over 100 women dancing to the beat of drums in the middle of a forest but it was seriously cool. Here were people who before this morning did not know each other and by the end the girls were exchanging numbers and the women were all inviting us over for Pesach Seder or Shabbat. (We even got goody bags as we were getting back onto the bus.)
I’m so glad I had the opportunity to take part in this. Though it was only a few short hours, I had the chance to connect with women whom I otherwise would never have met and got to do so in a very unique setting.
Madricha: Laura, do you want to do this?
Me: What is this?
Madricha: It’s this women’s thing. It’s supposed to be very cool.
Me: But what do they do exactly?
Madricha: I’m not sure. I think they do something in the desert.
Me: Who is it for? When is it? How much is it?
Madricha: I don’t really know.
Me: Is there anything else you can tell me about this?
Madricha: Not really, no.
Weeks passed without me hearing anything. Then comes last Thursday when I get a call from someone on the staff reminding me about this “Malchat Hamidbar” program on Friday. After everything I had gleaned about this outing you can understand why I went into it with zero expectations.
We were told a bus would be at campus at 7:20am to pick us up. The day got off on a wonderful note when my alarm didn’t work and instead I was being woken up by a friend telling me it was 7:25 and the bus was here. On the bus ride I was understandably grumpy, tired and hungry. Fortunately, this concludes the depressing part of the story.
As we enter the clearing, I immediately perk up upon recognizing where we were: the Magical Forest (a pine forest approximately half way between Tel Aviv and Jerusalem so named by YJ summer program participants for its mysterious appearance on our bus routes no matter what direction we’re coming from). We were greeted by around 50 Israeli women of all ages giving us name tags, sweatshirts/tshirts and a table filled with coffee, tea and cookies (Jewish women know how to treat you right).
They then gathered us all onto mats in a small clearing and introduced themselves and what this day was all about. Malchat Hamidbar is an organization that brings together women from all over Israel to go on a weeklong jeep ride in a different remote location of the world each year. Hundreds of women partake in this adventure and every “Malcha” I talked to that day called it a transformative experience. Essentially it’s an extreme ice breaker/bonding trip. Many of the women knew each other from their Malchat Hamidbar trip and it was fun watching them greet and treat each other like old friends. Where do we come into all this? Malchat Hamidbar decided to try a joint program with MASA (the umbrella organization that funds gap programs like Year Course). This is a two part event, with the first being last Thursday and the second being in late May. This first day was dedicated to ice breakers and getting to know each other. We were split into groups in which we spent some time just playing basic ice breaker games and team building activities. Though I have done most if not all at some point in my summer camp career, these were still lots of fun because everyone was enthusiastic to get to know each other.
(I forgot to mention that in addition to the girls from Year Course the bus stopped at the old Judaean Youth Hostel and picked up some 40 girls from Australia who were participating in IBC- Israel By Choice- year program. We were the only two MASA groups there.)
A couple hours in we broke for brunch. I was expecting juice and rolls. Instead these women pulled out all the stops with an entirely homemade pot luck brunch. There was a huge array of salads and pastas and quiches and spreads. There was even soup!
After lunch we had a drum circle lead by a woman who I am told is famous and has played with people like Bruce Springsteen. Somehow what had begun as a drum circle singing Hebrew songs morphed into a huge dance party with a combination of popular English and Hebrew songs. There was an extremely comfortable and relaxed atmosphere. Looking at it from the outside it might seem a little strange: a group of over 100 women dancing to the beat of drums in the middle of a forest but it was seriously cool. Here were people who before this morning did not know each other and by the end the girls were exchanging numbers and the women were all inviting us over for Pesach Seder or Shabbat. (We even got goody bags as we were getting back onto the bus.)
I’m so glad I had the opportunity to take part in this. Though it was only a few short hours, I had the chance to connect with women whom I otherwise would never have met and got to do so in a very unique setting.
Sunday, March 14, 2010
A Yerushalayim Shabbat
This weekend I got to experience the essence of Shabbat as the "Day of Rest" in the most beautiful city in the world.
Friday I spent all day shopping and cooking for Shabbat. As sunset neared and I wasn't finished cooking nor had I showered and changed yet, I got that frantic look that I have seen every Friday afternoon in my aunt's house as Shabbat approaches and no one is ready. I loved that feeling of rushing around cooking and cleaning and showering and changing and racing with the clock to finish before Shabbat started so I could get to services in time. All the craziness made Shabbat feel even more worth it. Because the second you step into shul and Shabbat begins a sense of calm falls over you knowing you have no real obligations or work for the next 25 hours. There is something to be said for this tradition of crazy mayhem that observant Jews go through every week. Walking into Kabbalat Shabbat services, all clean and dressed up, this feeling of tranquility settles in that is made all the more sweeter by the extra work you had just put in to get ready for Shabbat.
My friends and I walked over to Shira Chadasha. I went there once for a Saturday morning service during my Schechter 8th grade Israel trip and have always said that was the best service I had ever been to. It is rare to be able to say that something is even better than I remember it, but leaving services the other night I was able to say just that. The members are of predominantly Anglo descent (that is to say that everyone around me spoke English), and there was equal representation of all ages from babies all the way to their grandmothers. There was a fairly even mix of women with covered heads and not. The gauzy, semi see through mechitzah split the room evenly down the middle (usually in these cases the men's section is significantly larger than the female's). We arrived 5 minutes into Kabbalat Shabbat and already the room was so full we weren't able to find seats together. But the uniqueness of this congregation goes beyond merely the make up of the room. I have never before participated in a service with so much neshama or ruach. Every prayer that was sung came straight from the heart. The tunes, many of which I was already familiar with, were made all the more beautiful because EVERYONE was singing. (One of the biggest disappointments for me in Orthodox services is how reluctant women are to pray and sing out loud.) The natural harmonizing and enthusiasm with which they approached each prayer was uplifting. It is absolutely beautiful.
Next up: dinner. The thing with our apartment is that our dining room table is this small round nothing, not big enough for all of us to fit around. So when we do have apartment meals we end up spreading out a blanket on our porch and basically having a picnic. Shabbat meal was very nice. Now that we are no longer in middle-of-nowhere desert our options on places to go for food have expanded exponentially. The most important result of this being that we have found a bakery that makes the most wonderful challot I have found this year (remind me very much of the ones we get back at home, just a little less cakey). I had made shnitzel, ground meat, stir fry, and rice. Two other roommates had made roast potatoes and a salad. Oh...and the day before I had made apple pie for dessert. Suffice to say that we had enough food for leftovers for Saturday lunch and then some. The rest of the night was spent in a leisurely manner with some singing, card playing and reading.
Saturday morning and afternoon was spent lounging around in typical Shabbat like fashion. Late afternoon, Ilana and I headed out for a walk with our goal being to go to the Kotel in time for havdallah. Walking directly and with purpose one can get from Beit Ar-El (the Year Course campus where I live) to the Kotel in under an hour. We took our time, stopping in Gan Hapa'amon (Liberty Bell Park) and taking a few extra detours, arriving at the Kotel 2 hours after we left and right in time for Maariv.
I have been to the Kotel many times (though this was the first time so far on Year Course). A few things that made this trip unique:
Friday I spent all day shopping and cooking for Shabbat. As sunset neared and I wasn't finished cooking nor had I showered and changed yet, I got that frantic look that I have seen every Friday afternoon in my aunt's house as Shabbat approaches and no one is ready. I loved that feeling of rushing around cooking and cleaning and showering and changing and racing with the clock to finish before Shabbat started so I could get to services in time. All the craziness made Shabbat feel even more worth it. Because the second you step into shul and Shabbat begins a sense of calm falls over you knowing you have no real obligations or work for the next 25 hours. There is something to be said for this tradition of crazy mayhem that observant Jews go through every week. Walking into Kabbalat Shabbat services, all clean and dressed up, this feeling of tranquility settles in that is made all the more sweeter by the extra work you had just put in to get ready for Shabbat.
My friends and I walked over to Shira Chadasha. I went there once for a Saturday morning service during my Schechter 8th grade Israel trip and have always said that was the best service I had ever been to. It is rare to be able to say that something is even better than I remember it, but leaving services the other night I was able to say just that. The members are of predominantly Anglo descent (that is to say that everyone around me spoke English), and there was equal representation of all ages from babies all the way to their grandmothers. There was a fairly even mix of women with covered heads and not. The gauzy, semi see through mechitzah split the room evenly down the middle (usually in these cases the men's section is significantly larger than the female's). We arrived 5 minutes into Kabbalat Shabbat and already the room was so full we weren't able to find seats together. But the uniqueness of this congregation goes beyond merely the make up of the room. I have never before participated in a service with so much neshama or ruach. Every prayer that was sung came straight from the heart. The tunes, many of which I was already familiar with, were made all the more beautiful because EVERYONE was singing. (One of the biggest disappointments for me in Orthodox services is how reluctant women are to pray and sing out loud.) The natural harmonizing and enthusiasm with which they approached each prayer was uplifting. It is absolutely beautiful.
Next up: dinner. The thing with our apartment is that our dining room table is this small round nothing, not big enough for all of us to fit around. So when we do have apartment meals we end up spreading out a blanket on our porch and basically having a picnic. Shabbat meal was very nice. Now that we are no longer in middle-of-nowhere desert our options on places to go for food have expanded exponentially. The most important result of this being that we have found a bakery that makes the most wonderful challot I have found this year (remind me very much of the ones we get back at home, just a little less cakey). I had made shnitzel, ground meat, stir fry, and rice. Two other roommates had made roast potatoes and a salad. Oh...and the day before I had made apple pie for dessert. Suffice to say that we had enough food for leftovers for Saturday lunch and then some. The rest of the night was spent in a leisurely manner with some singing, card playing and reading.
Saturday morning and afternoon was spent lounging around in typical Shabbat like fashion. Late afternoon, Ilana and I headed out for a walk with our goal being to go to the Kotel in time for havdallah. Walking directly and with purpose one can get from Beit Ar-El (the Year Course campus where I live) to the Kotel in under an hour. We took our time, stopping in Gan Hapa'amon (Liberty Bell Park) and taking a few extra detours, arriving at the Kotel 2 hours after we left and right in time for Maariv.
I have been to the Kotel many times (though this was the first time so far on Year Course). A few things that made this trip unique:
- There's something very special about walking to the Kotel and not just taking a bus to the Yaffo Gate. The other time that I had done something similar (on Machon) it had been spectacular but had been part of the program. This was a trip I took with a friend on our own initiative.
- I had never seen the Kotel more empty. I had no trouble getting right up to the wall and even got to daven all of Maariv without interruption.
- At one point while at the wall I was sandwiched between a young Orthodox woman on my right and an old Indian Christian woman on my left. I thought that was seriously cool.
- During my visit, a woman was lying prone on the ground. I had initially assumed she was praying and was just extremely emotional. Soon though, women started crowding around trying to ascertain her condition by shaking her, splashing water on her face etc. Within minutes a few of the police/soldiers on patrol are there calling מד"א (Magen David Adom), a man has jumped right over the mechitza, another comes through the more conventional entrance. Somehow it seemed word had spread and every person with medical training was coming to lend assistance. Less than 15 minutes after the incident began the ambulance had come and gone. Shabbat had only been over in those last 5 minutes. This is one of the most clear examples of how Judaism values health and life above all else.
It was a wonderful Shabbat here in Yerushalayim and I can only hope there will be many more to come.
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Toto, I don't think we're in Arad anymore...
I have officially moved and settled into my third and final trimester of Year Course where I will live in the Baka neighborhood of Jerusalem for the next 3 months.
A quick reflection on my time in Arad:
Many participants couldn't stand what they thought to be the isolation and monotony of living in Arad. I very often also refered to where I lived "middle-of-nowhere-desert", but despite any disparaging comments I may have made about Arad I absolutely loved living there. The way life is lived there is so different than anything I'm used to. Growing up in New York City I'm used to the hustle and bustle on the street. I'm used to walking quickly and purposefully from place to place. I'm not used to recognizing people on the street and stopping to say hello, or crossing the street and having to stop for a car being driven by someone I know. I'm not used to a city without a single traffic light. I'm disoriented when I walk up the biggest street in the city and passing less than half a dozen cars.
I found Arad peaceful. It was very much what you made of it. Arad didn't have the luxuries of the cultural life available in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. And so we had an informal "Girls Night" once a week, hosted at a different apartment each time. We planned Garin Tzedek nights for the entire section. I ran Sports Night with the Sudanese kids and taught English classes two other nights. Some nights we would all go hang out at Muza or Kadim (the two local restaurant/bars). Some nights there were activities planned by the madrichim like paintball or a movie. But more importantly than the ways we found to occupy ourselves was the atmosphere within which we did them. Everything was laid back and relaxed. No one rushed anywhere (which meant that YCers did not show up until at least 20 minutes after the requested time). For some, this manifested itself as laziness, for others it allowed for personal reflection. One of my favorite things was walking a few blocks from my house into the desert and just sitting.
Long story short, I loved living in Arad. But three months was the perfect amount of time. I would never live there permanently and was excited to make the move back to a city.
Now I'm in Jerusalem where they speak more in English than Hebrew, where there are at least 2 cafes and 3 falafel stores on every block and where every American kid coming to study for the year lives. Looking back at this past week since we've moved to Jerusalem I'd say that most of us have probably eaten out more than in our own apartments just because of the sheer novelty of all these possibilities. I'm also feeling this compulsion to go out and experience the city and that sitting in my apartment would be a waste of an evening.
I'm really looking forward to these last three months and love that I'm ending my year here in Jerusalem.
A quick reflection on my time in Arad:
Many participants couldn't stand what they thought to be the isolation and monotony of living in Arad. I very often also refered to where I lived "middle-of-nowhere-desert", but despite any disparaging comments I may have made about Arad I absolutely loved living there. The way life is lived there is so different than anything I'm used to. Growing up in New York City I'm used to the hustle and bustle on the street. I'm used to walking quickly and purposefully from place to place. I'm not used to recognizing people on the street and stopping to say hello, or crossing the street and having to stop for a car being driven by someone I know. I'm not used to a city without a single traffic light. I'm disoriented when I walk up the biggest street in the city and passing less than half a dozen cars.
I found Arad peaceful. It was very much what you made of it. Arad didn't have the luxuries of the cultural life available in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. And so we had an informal "Girls Night" once a week, hosted at a different apartment each time. We planned Garin Tzedek nights for the entire section. I ran Sports Night with the Sudanese kids and taught English classes two other nights. Some nights we would all go hang out at Muza or Kadim (the two local restaurant/bars). Some nights there were activities planned by the madrichim like paintball or a movie. But more importantly than the ways we found to occupy ourselves was the atmosphere within which we did them. Everything was laid back and relaxed. No one rushed anywhere (which meant that YCers did not show up until at least 20 minutes after the requested time). For some, this manifested itself as laziness, for others it allowed for personal reflection. One of my favorite things was walking a few blocks from my house into the desert and just sitting.
Long story short, I loved living in Arad. But three months was the perfect amount of time. I would never live there permanently and was excited to make the move back to a city.
Now I'm in Jerusalem where they speak more in English than Hebrew, where there are at least 2 cafes and 3 falafel stores on every block and where every American kid coming to study for the year lives. Looking back at this past week since we've moved to Jerusalem I'd say that most of us have probably eaten out more than in our own apartments just because of the sheer novelty of all these possibilities. I'm also feeling this compulsion to go out and experience the city and that sitting in my apartment would be a waste of an evening.
I'm really looking forward to these last three months and love that I'm ending my year here in Jerusalem.
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