Our last few weeks of OTZMA we had a lot of final ceremonies, a final tiyul, and a lot of activities to wrap up the year. It’s hard to wrap up an experience like OTZMA, an experience that has had such a tremendous impact on my life and everyone around me, but in the end I think these past few weeks have really given me a chance to sum up my journey on OTZMA and look forward to what will come next.
Our final journey started with a final ceremony in Jerusalem to formally sum up the year, where people from the partnerships came and each city talked about their experiences on OTZMA. I may have had a song here or there, and it was a really great opportunity to hear about everyone’s different experiences throughout the program. Then we finished our internships and I had a final party there to sum everything I was doing, but they couldn’t keep me away for to long because I had to come back again later to celebrate a birthday and say another goodbye. After that we embarked on our final tiyul, where as an OTZMA group, we spent a few remaining days together, sharing our final thoughts, analyzing the year, and getting some quality bonding time before we are no longer just an egged bus ride away from each other. We had some fun hikes and swims in the north, getting some last opportunities to work as team, bond, and enjoy the beautiful natural land and sea of Israel.
At night and over the Shabbat, we had activities and discussions to prepare ourselves to go back to the “real world” and to try and figure out what we will take from this year on OTZMA. I came to the realization that what was so amazing about this year and especially the last 6 months was that I was able to put together 2 different “me’s”- regular world me and “camp-world” me. Being in Israel and being a part of the OTZMA community, as well as being in the Beit Shean community and at my internship with YJ has given me the opportunity to really be everything I now know I can be. I never thought that songs from camp, coloring everything orange and blue, and basically just living my life with spirit and fun could fly in the real world and be considered appropriate, but clearly I was wrong. This year I have been immersed in communities that appreciated me for these very reasons, for ability to not be constrained by what most of the world deems normal behavior and to just have fun with everything- whether it’s a new English lesson or the endless process of a payoneer card. If there is one thing I have learned from my year on OTZMA about myself, it’s that I can be the goofy girl from camp in the real world, and I don’t have change or out-grow any of the things I love to do. This year has given me a lot to think about and after everything; I realize I’m not willing to settle. I want to be a part of a community where I can be 100% myself and not have to fake my way, doing what’s normal and expected. I’m not going to settle for an ok job, or halfsies relationships, or be a part of a community where I don’t feel comfortable being the person I want to be. The possibilities are out there for everyone to be extraordinary, everyone just has to find their niche, and I have found mine. Now that I have- I won’t settle for anything less amazing.
Our final tiyul ended with our final final final ceremony over-looking the Tayelet where different people gave their blessings to the group and we said our goodbyes. It was sad to say goodbye to everyone but kind of remarkable to see how people have grown over the past year and see what a family of Otzmankim we have become. That night most of the people flew back to the states, while a few stayed in Israel for various reasons, I stayed an extra week to wrap up my loose ends, say goodbye to some people in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, take one last trip up to Beit Shean and end back at my internship and say my final goodbyes there. It was great for me on a personal level to be able to go back the visit the communities I was working with and friends I had made along the way, but weird to do so without my fellow Otzmanikim. People that are back in the States have been saying that OTZMA seems like a dream, and that they are back home where they left off and it’s hard to imagine the whole year has happened, but I don’t want that to be the case. I want to be able to take everything I have learned and experienced this year and use it in my future endeavors. As I sit her in the Ben Gurion Airport, watching the really cool water fountain that a county with major water issues chooses to display, I can’t help but think a- Israel stop wasting so much water and b- there is no way I can go back to the States and forget this year happened. This year has been not only rewarding for me on a personal level, but I have made so many friendships that I can’t imagine losing, I have so many more people now to skype with and come back and visit in Israel. My connection to Israel and my Jewish identity is based now on so much more than the holidays and rituals, it’s based on the people I have met and the experiences I have had with those people. Whether it’s my fellow Otzmanikim or everyone I have become close with in my volunteering and internship, I can’t wait to continue all the friendships I have started. The ending of OTZMA, is not really ending, it’s the beginning of a new chapter. What will come next- we will see.
Jerusalem roomies getting ready for a hike!
OTZMA 25 and all our personalities =)
Our last 0's up!!
Celebrating at our final tiyul!
