Greetings from Jerusalem

Well would you look at that. Someone has started another blog. No matter how many times I told myself I wouldn’t do it, no matter how early 2000s it is to write a blog, here I am. I really told myself I wouldn’t do it. Oh well. A lot in the world changed October 7th and I guess you can add “Shayna will start another blog” to that list. For all my new friends out there or for all those who forgot (2020 was a haze I don’t blame you), go check out shaynascoronadventures.blogspot.com. It’ll be a trip I promise. But as much as this crazy year has felt for me like 2020, it’s not. So I am starting fresh. New year new me. Well I guess new year old me because here I am starting another blog. Or maybe new year still my father’s daughter (have you read his blogs from our travels? 10/10 would recommend). Let’s go back in time just a little bit. 

For all those keeping track of my tumultuous journey through rabbinical school, I am in my second year. But I am in the first year year in Israel program. And last year I was a first year with the second years. And this year I’m a second year with the first years. This is what happens when you transfer rabbinic schools after one semester. None of this is really important except you do need to save the date for my ordination in May 2028. Wow it’s crazy how I said let’s go back in time and somehow we have ended up in 2028. Okay back to October 7th. I had just finished the most wonderful two week trip with wonderful Israeli cousins through Slovenia. My little cousin does not speak English so I think I might be the only person who can say I spoke more Hebrew in my two weeks in Slovenia than I ever have in Israel. I met up with my friend from HUC in Vienna. Our Vienna - Tel Aviv flight was scheduled for 2pm on October 7th. Needless to say that flight was cancelled. So I stayed for a few days in Spain with friends from Wesleyan before deciding it was time to come back to Marin. I spent the past two and a half months ish doing rabbinical school on Zoom. 

And now here I am. Back in Jerusalem. It’s surreal. Everything has changed and nothing has changed. The adjustment has been really challenging. First of all I got pretty used to living with my parents over these past few months so being a world away from them is a challenge. But obviously they are coming to visit so I am looking forward to that. And just generally I can really feel the weight of a country at war, even in Jerusalem. It’s heavy. Signs to bring back hostages are posted everywhere. At the restaurant I went to for lunch yesterday, the waitress handed me the “bring them home menu.” I went to the Kotel for a communal prayer to bring the hostages home. The kotel was more crowded than I have ever seen it. The family members of the hostages held up signs and watched as 50,000 people prayed for their family to return. It was íntense to say the least. 

But there is joy too. And there is so much pride. Israeli flags are everywhere. On every street, hanging from every third car, on top of buildings, at public transit stops, and on streetlights. It feels so good to be in a place where I can feel proud of my Zionism. Like many on the Israeli left, I am critical of what is happening in Gaza but here I am able to hold both my criticism of the government and my steadfast knowledge that Israel will and must always exist. I hope to bring that ability to hold multiple truths back to the States and into my rabbinate. 

When my plane landed in Tel Aviv the captain got on the speaker and said “thank you for choosing El Al” which I find hilarious because it is basically impossible to choose any other airline right now. And then he said “אין לנו ארץ אחרת” “we have no other land.” And then I thought to myself: I actually do have another land (The United States of America). And it’s pretty great. I hope in the next five months to come to understand the importance of having a Jewish homeland while living a Jewish life in the diaspora. I might have another land to return to at the end of this year but we as Jews only have the one. And it’s not going anywhere. 

Shabbat shalom from yerushalayim. 

Even the passport reader says bring them home

Walking through the airport

"Bring Them Home Menu"

Prayer at the Kotel for the return of the hostages. There were 50,000 people!

The outside of the Old City