This weekend was easily the most bittersweet weekend of my life. This was my farewell weekend, and I was determined to leave with a bang. Friday I took all my stuff to the shipping yard in Brooklyn so that it could be boarded onto a boat and become my lift. It was quite the "balagan" and all I have to say is be prepared to scream in Hebrew and don't ever try to drive a U-Haul though Manhattan.
On Shabbat I gave the Dvar Torah at my shul, KOE on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. This week's parsha could not have been more appropriate. I spoke about Jewish continuity, the theme I created from Parshat Pinchas, and focused on the need to a strong presence in Eretz Yisrael in order to ensure continuity. I picked this up from the scenes where Moshe is placed on Har Nevo and told he will not enter Israel; and the story of the Bnot Tzelaphchad, 5 orphaned sisters who fought for their share in the land of Israel, not out of greed, but out of ahavat ha'aretz. In fact, so awed am I by that story, that when I had to choose a hebrew name (I didn't have one) I chose Noa, the youngest of the 5 sisters. The talk was well received and aftwerwards many people came up to me, with tears in their eyes, and shared their dreams of aliyah. I pray that at least one of them uses those tears and makes their dream a reality.
Saturday night I had my goodbye party. It was incredibly bittersweet. It was so hard to say goodbye to all my friends, not knowing when I'll see them again and knowing with certainty that I'll lose touch with many of them. On the other hand, its hard to be sad when I'm making aliyah in 5 days! Still, I won't lie, I cried myself to sleep that night, especially after saying goodbye to one someone who meant a lot to me.
Sunday morning I had brunch with my chevrah, the girls I went to yeshiva with in Israel 6 years ago. I would never have thought it then, but we have all stayed in touch and remained extremely close friends. Although I will miss them terribly, I know that most of them will end up moving to Israel one day soon, and we'll see each other again frequently. Besides, as I tearfully told them, Israel has been incredible to me as far as friends go. The last time I lived there I made a circle of friends that will never break and created a lifetime of love.
After brunch we all went to the park to chill out on the grass. Though this is a little more Irish than Jewish, I took it as a great sign when one of my friend's husbands reached over and plucked a 4-leaf clover out of the grass! Just as we were discussing aliyah, the highly-recognized symbol of luck appeared!
Some of the goodbyes were more interesting than others. There was one in particular that, although too personal to share with all of you, reaffirmed something that I have always believed in. LIVE LIFE WITH NO REGRETS! It is a horribble feeling to wake up one day and say to yourself "I wonder what would have happened if...." Don't wonder --- DO! Im lo achshav, eimatei? If not now, when? Don't wait for the "right" time, or the "right" opportunity; it will always be right and it can always be wrong. It's your attitude that makes the difference. Seize the day before someone else makes a decision for you.
This is my last entry before I leave, so the next time I write, it will be as Noa Resi Hirsch, citizen of Israel.
L'hit!