This will be my last post for the next two to three weeks, as I will be starting my basic army training (Marva) this Monday!!!!!!!! More about that later though...
Last Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, Arad played host to a historical cultural event! After 12 years, Volume Arad (aka The Arad Festival), the biggest music festival in Israel returned. First, some history: The Arad Festival has been a staple of Israeli cultural society for decades. It combines food, festivity, and music, and brings together the greatest bands in Israel for three days of concerts and celebrations. Unfortunately, 12 years ago, the concert got out of hand when three teenagers were trampled to death in a stampede to see the famous band, Meshina. Since then, funding for the festival was cut and for 12 years, the famous festival streets lay silent...BUT THIS YEAR IT RETURNED!!! This week, the usually quite and quaint streets of Arad were filled with people from all over the world, and music filled the air for 36 hours!
Admittedly, some of the hype turned out to be, well, hype, and we were disappointed for the first day or so, but once things got going, it was amazing! The last night was Woodstock reincarnated. Almost ever Year Courser went to a concert called Made in Israel and embraced the spirit of the night with singing and dancing and mayhem. It was a truly incredible.
After the festival, our Madrichim took us on an overnight camping trip in the desert culminating in a relaxing day on the beach. I loved it! It was the perfect way for everyone to be together before all the Marva kids head off to base. At the same time, it was a tad bittersweet. Even though I'm still making friends, it still feels strange to know that we're not spending the rest of this semester with the rest of Section 3. On the other hand, saying goodbye was also a little relieving, at least for me, because I'm hoping that Marva will give me a chance to become much closer to a small group of people, rather than feeling lost in the crowd.
After a long, late night conversation last night, I've come to a realization which I think will get me through this year with a lot more comfort and a lot less anxiety. Every past Year-Courser says that Year Course is the most incredible year of your life. Regardless of whether or not that's true, the fact is that it's a year of LIFE. Going on a summer program, or going on a study abroad program, while enlightening and fun, is not LIFE. At orientation, the director of Year Course told us that we were not on a study abroad program, we were in an Israeli immersion program. While I understood what he meant, I don't think the implications of it hit me until last night. For the first time since we arrived here, I don't feel the need to have a good time all the time because life isn't like that. Back home, there were great days and miserable days, people I loved and people I avoided, things I enjoyed and things that bored me, and times of elation and times of depression. I know now that it's okay for Year Course to be the same thing, and in fact, it SHOULD be the same thing. In my disillusionment, I came on Year Course expecting the excitement and constant joy and energy of my previous summer experience. Now, I know that that was ridiculous to expect! While seeming slightly obvious, this revelation has changed my opinion of Year Course and helped my general emotional turmoil so much. I can only hope that with this new knowledge, I can go forth into the rest of Year Course with a much more open and relaxed mind. I think I'm going to be okay.
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