Michigan State Hillel

Day 5 - Saturday, May 12th

No one can tell you what to expect before coming on birthright. It’s not something that can be described or covered in an informative meeting. I remember walking into Hillel for the first meeting three weeks before leaving. Faces swirled around me; some recognizable, others foreign and new, but all sharing the same feelings as me I’m sure. This is something you have to live for yourself. Even as I write these words down, they stand only as symbols, as markers of more lucid experiences. I had heard testimony from friends describing birthright as something indescribable, something that you have to live for yourself.

I was skeptical of the impact that it would have. How could I just take someone’s word that this gift would have such an impact on my life? It’s like trying to explain to another person how good a piece of pizza from that place down the street is. You don’t taste that piece of pizza through the words of a friend; you taste it for yourself and then make your own opinions. Just like this simple analogy, birthright is very much a visceral and internal experience that must be lived in order to understand it.

Yesterday marked an important step in my understanding of my Jewish heritage. Having my Bar Mitzvah in Israel was a culmination of the feelings and emotions that I have had in these few short days. I stood before old friends and new friends expressing these thoughts in a way I never thought possible.

I sat in my striped hotel room chair with emancipator playing quietly on my iPod, staring into the heart of Jerusalem seeking inspiration for my speech. Remembering the silent chills and warm touch of the Western Wall I began writing down what was in my heart. I remembered this feeling before, but not like this. The afternoon glow blanketing the Holy city awoke words in my head, which quickly made their way from pen to paper.

Writing then is a lot like the moments I have experienced so far in Israel. They came without warning. I expected nothing because there was no way to know what to expect. I suppose in the most simple terms what I am trying to say is that Israel holds different meaning for each individual. For me it has been about discovering what it means to me to be Jewish as well as what it means to make decisions based upon the heart. Everything I have done here has been a shared yet individual experience filled with some of the happiest moments I can remember. I know that I will make the most of the time left here in Israel and will hold these memories being made for as long as I live.

Sam Mikalonis, and the Bus 990 Crew