Journey to Israel Brought Inner Peace, Strength by Caroline Spiegel, BMYA '22

 

I am a rising senior in high school, and I cannot even begin to express how grateful I am to have gone on this trip.

 

I moved to Florida about a year ago and joined the Shapiro Teen Engagement Program (STEP) to meet new people, get more involved in my community, and engage in the Jewish community. From this group, I formed an amazing bond with The Jewish Federation of Sarasota-Manatee’s Jessi Sheslow, who spoke to me about Bob Malkin Young Ambassadors and encouraged me to apply. I was accepted – and faced my fear of long plane flights to be able to visit Israel.

 

This was my first time in Israel and I could not have asked for better people to go with and for a more enriching experience. I learned a great deal about myself, about the culture and people of Israel, and how to better advocate for the country.

 

I vividly remember stepping out of Ben Gurion Airport, once we landed and changed into new clothes, and was just completely in awe that I was in Israel, the country that I had been so excited to visit for months. I stopped in my tracks and just took a moment to breathe in the air and notice everything around me, from the people to all the signs in Hebrew. That first day in Israel was nothing short of amazing. We learned about biblical nature at a nature reserve, saw Israeli Defense Forces grounds, had a great, relieving nap after 13 hours of travel, and ended the day with dinner at the Machane Yehuda Market. There was one thing in particular that I noticed this first day that became a constant for this trip: Everything was so beautiful.

 

It is difficult to describe my feelings on day five, when we visited Genesis Land, where we rode camels, learned about biblical life and had a delicious dinner. Genesis Land is in the Judean Mountains, and it was so beautiful. The only words that can even try to encompass my feelings are “pure happiness” as I sat down on my own on a wooden bench staring at the mountains. It seemed as though even when my eyes got dry I didn’t want to close them and miss an opportunity to engrave the image of the mountains in my mind. This time by myself was so important and empowering. I reflected on myself and the place I was in. When Jessi came over to me and sat down next to me, I started crying. I didn’t understand how peace and love didn’t thrive here because that’s all I was feeling. I hated the thought that there was so much hatred and conflict in Israel. While every day of this trip was in its own right absolutely magnificent, day five impacted me in a way beyond my understanding.

 

One of the key aspects of this trip was learning how to become leaders. One of the ways I accomplished this was by “taking control” of day nine, a Friday. I spoke to the group about the significance of our itinerary and some of the expectations for the day. For the evening, we went to Tel-Mond, Sarasota’s sister city, and met so many Israeli teens. I had a spectacular Shabbat dinner with an Israeli family, who shared their values, stories and customs with me. I felt so welcomed by everyone, and the teens and my host family were wonderful. Tel-Mond is quite different from Sarasota, not just because it is smaller in size, but also because of how close-knit the community is. This was one of the first things I noticed. There was a huge sense of family between everyone, seeing how the older teens were mentoring the younger children. I loved seeing the sense of purpose in everyone. It is truly unlike anything I have experienced, and I am so glad I had this opportunity.

 

I came home with an immeasurable amount of knowledge and life lessons from my experiences in Israel. I am dedicated to using what I learned about Israel, Zionism and the Jewish homeland to spread awareness, peace and love. I did not witness any hatred between Israeli and Arab groups on my trip. In fact, I witnessed harmony between these two groups.

 

I want to educate people on the Jewish homeland to encourage peace within Israel and an acceptance of its existence. I want to speak to people about how fantastic my experience was, and most importantly, I cannot wait to go back again to continue learning and enjoying the land.