Things are definitely calming down here and I'm getting used to the routine. Nevertheless, I do have some updates and adventures to share. Last week proved to be a challenging one. It seems that my two weeks of effortless effort were only temporary. That is, I pushed myself in learning and in socializing for two weeks, thinking that I was already acclimated, and then I ran out of steam. So I had to make it through the week even though I was tired all of the time, and my mood was not ideal. But, of course, I wasn't the only one, so I had people to commiserate with. I was still enjoying my classes, I just also was in a state of mental overexertion and discomfort. However, they did give us a much appreciated afternoon off in order to rest, due to the customary late-night prayers said before and after Rosh HaShana.
I did try a couple of new classes this week. I switched to "Confronting Modernity", which is a class in which the teacher mostly guides the discussion and lets the students talk. That should be reliably interesting. I also joined a class about women's obligations and lack thereof, which is mostly just information instead of philosophical discussion. I chose that one because I've had the "women in the torah" philosophical discussions so many times that I just wanted information that I could mull over by myself, "uncontroversially". The other class I switched into was the drama class! I'm so glad I decided to, even hough I'm giving up a class on Holocaust Studies, because I think it will really help me let off some steam. The class I was in worked on charade-like games, becoming comfortable with each other, and then creating spontaneous tableaus of scenes in the Tanach. It was really amusing and fun.
Now for Rosh HaShana. I was placed by the seminary in a yishuv (basically, a big neighborhood) calle Bet El. It was a very nice holiday. I'll try to give you the highlights. First of all, the seminary provided us with a bus for transportation, which ended up being a huge blessing, because travel before Rosh HaShana is insane, and everyone who wasn't going to Bet El was frantically trying to reach their destinations from early friday morning. But not us! A friend and I stayed with a South African family, who had two sets of twins and two younger children. Yes, that's six kids. Once we got used to the insanity, we really enjoyed ourselves. The family was a little more religious than me, but for the high holidays it was a nice atmosphere to be in. The yishuv is so cute - they have their own little zoo and a pond, and a bunch of different schools. It was really very pleasant to be there. And I got a nice mix of spirituality and rest. I did come across a certain revelation that has helped put my mind at rest. You have to understand that being in a seminary involves thinking about priorities quite a lot. And recently, I was getting uncomfortable constantly scrutinizing myself. So here's what I realized: Judaism is there to guide me. And God wants me to be happy. Keeping that in mind, I can work toward growth in areas that give me fulfillment, for example, treating others with respect, or appreciating everything you have, while simply putting aside, at least temporarily, parts of Judaism that make me feel uncomfortable. It's a little hard to explain in words, but if anyone wants clarification I'd be happy to do so.
So, my new goal is to appreciate everything around me. Sounds simple but impossible, right? It is. But I'm going to work on it. Today is a fast day because of Gedalyah, a leader of the Jews in Jerusalem, who was killed by non-Jews and Jews together. So we mourn for him and for the ideology that was lost on those who killed him. Because of this, though, we only had a half day of classes, and now I get to sleep and rest for a whole afternoon. So that's the plan. Shana Tova UMitukah! I wish you a sweet and happy year!!
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