I want to first thank you all for reading this summer.  I leave Israel this Saturday and I think I’m ready to rejoin the world.  This trip has been amazing and I’ve learned so much.  This last week has been jam packed including my trip to Sderot on Tuesday.  I will say that I was a tad apprehensive to go but for 15 NIS how could I pass it up?

I traveled from Tel Aviv to a Moshav just across the boarder from Gaza.  My group stood 500 meters from the wall, in no-man’s land.  I had no clue we’d be so close to Gaza and when I stood there so much of what I’ve learned and read became real.  We went from there to Kibbutz Nir Am and spent some time speaking with a kibbutznick about his experiences living on the kibbutz.  Our last stop was Sderot where we spoke with Noam from the Sderot media center.  We took a bus tour through the city and you could feel the tension.  They haven’t had a “Tzeva Adom,” the warning siren, go off for 2 days but everyone we spoke to told us that it’s just a matter of time before the violence starts again.  I can’t even imagine the stress these people live with on a daily basis.  I was there for an hour and felt apprehensive for some of that time.

This week has been also filled with goodbyes and “are we facebook friends?” as we all try to keep in touch as we leave for our homes around the world.  I look forward to seeing all of you back at Gratz next week!

Shalom!