The Opening Ceremony was the first time most of the fellows
met their partners. The Israelis arrived at Temple Emanuel earlier to meet a
panel of rabbis, but when the Americans began to arrive the Israelis were in a
separate room for a Magal Layla (debrief circle). A lot of American
fellows asked where the Israelis were, and they were so excited to be in the
same building with them.
Finally this Israelis came downstairs and met their
partners. For 10 minutes all of us grouped together, talking and hugging our
partners. It was a surreal moment, since after months of talking to partners
over the internet we finally were together in real life. I had spent the day
with the Israelis, but it still hadn't fully hit me that they were finally
here. I was really nervous and really excited.
Eventually we calmed down a little and went to sit with our
families. People got food, and Gabi welcomed the Upper Galilee cohort to San
Francisco. Diller leaders spoke about the importance of the San Francisco-Upper
Galilee partnership, and the San Francisco J.C.s showed a welcome video.
Lastly, at our tables partners and families worked together
to create an outline of our experiences as Jews. We answered questions relating
to our own personal Judaism and drew a web between connected aspects of each
others' Jewish identities. The web was a powerful metaphor for our shared
experiences, and it helped set the tone for the North American Seminar.
No comments:
Post a Comment