We the people...

"...it will foster the development of the country for the benefit of all its inhabitants; it will be based on freedom, justice and peace as envisaged by the prophets of Israel; it will ensure complete equality of social and political rights to all its inhabitants irrespective of religion, race or sex; it will guarantee freedom of religion, conscience, language, education and culture; it will safeguard the Holy Places of all religions..." — Israeli Declaration of Independence, 14 May 1948

Last Tuesday I had the privilege of visiting the Israeli Knesset. The Knesset is Israel's parliament. They are housed in an amazingly beautiful building in Jerusalem. A friend of mine, Avi Mayer (whom some of you might know from his twitter fame or from his talk at the #IsraeliAmazing kick-off event), was participating in a meeting with the Immigration, Absorption, and Diaspora Committee to discuss the need for more coordinated public diplomacy between NGO's and the Israeli Government. Although the entire meeting was in Hebrew, I was able to understand quite a bit of what they were speaking about. I really wish I were able to understand it entirely because many comments made were directly related to the advocacy I do on campus! Avi even gave me a little shout out! (For those of you who are interested, and speak Hebrew, here is a video of the entire meeting. Avi's comments begin at 35:56 and my shout out is at 40:49. For those of you who don't speak Hebrew, or don't want to watch the video, here is a Jpost article about it.) Of course, being the Israel nerd that I am, I got really excited seeing members of Knesset walking in the same halls as me. I really enjoyed getting to witness a piece of Israeli democracy first hand. It is interesting to think about the fact that not everyone in the world gets to experience democracy. Not everyone has the right to choose to participate civically in society, or to choose who will represent them in that arena. 

We also briefly visited the Jewish Agency offices where a lot of really great work is being done for Israel and Jews around the world. I got to see Natan Sharanksy's office (unfortunately he was out so I wasn't able to meet with him), where Ben Gurion's office was and where Knesset used to meet. The visit really made me think about what I want to be doing with my future. The more I see/do/learn the more sure I become that my future career will have to be Israel related. And more than that; I have to be doing something constructive for Israel. I'm not even nearly 100% sure what that will eventually be, but there are many choices available to me. 

3 Challenges

“The Holy One Blessed Be He said: ‘The Land of Israel is Mine and the Nation of Israel is Mine, it is fitting that I give what is Mine to those who are Mine’” (Midrash Tanchuma ibid.)

A week from today I will step out of an El Al airplane and into a nation I've come to hold so dear. I can only imagine what it will be like and what I'll be feeling, but right now I'm feeling extremely excited! I'll be leaving the endless winter of Portland for an endless summer (if only I could say this literally). I'll get to see dear friends, make new ones, try new foods, see new things, and hopefully improve my Hebrew speaking skills (all while getting a mega tan).

Going to Israel is not merely a trip; it is a long awaited and important journey. Israel has been a very important part of my life for the past year and I anticipate it will be for the rest of my life. That being said, I've set 3 general challenges for myself for this journey:

1. Faith, Culture, and Connection: Since going to college I've become a lot more connected to my Jewish faith and culture. I feel a part of a very important history and people. Some of this has to do with a spiritual connection and part of this has to do with deeply entrenched traditions. Israel is the holy land for many people, and is the home of the Jewish people specifically. There is no other place in the world to feel the divine presence and connection to each other. I feel this connection all the way from America, but I believe being in Israel will provide me special opportunities to contemplate my meaningful pursuit of my Jewish faith, my connection to the Jewish people, and how this will be carried out in my future life. I want to challenge myself to really engage in these aspects, think on them, pray about them, and feel the Jewish presence of Israel while I am there. 
2. Advocacy: A common symptom of becoming an Israel advocate it to not vocalize criticism of Israel. This is not because we think Israel is perfect, but rather a reaction to having it's criticism thrown in our faces all the time. During this journey through Israel I want to challenge my views of Israel from real experiences. I want to visit the West Bank and refugee camps and Bedouins and Druze. I want to see the "wall" and the fence and go through checkpoints. I want to visit settlements. I want to visit bomb shelters and speak to children who live through code red sirens. I want to visit Haredi neighborhoods. I want to imbed myself as much of Israel as possible so that when I come back I can be the best advocate possible, drawing from my own real experiences. 
3. FUN!!! Of course my 3rd challenge for myself is to really have a great time. The last 4 years of my life, being in college, learning to be an adult, moving around, finding myself, has all been very intense. I am finally going to be on a huge journey of my own choosing without any true obligations aside from those I give myself. I can't wait to be with friends, make new ones, and soak up the Israeli sunshine!

I hope you'll follow my journey here on this blog. I'll try to post photos and updates as much as possible. You can also email me to ask specific questions (or give me a mailing address for post cards).