So, another week and a half has past and we are now getting
the hang of our daily schedule. I
start off the day waking up to the simultaneous call of my alarm clock and the
roosters at around 5:45 am. I grab a cup of coffee and then head over to the
chicken coop to feed the chickens and search for eggs. The chickens must be
happy because they give up heaps of huge, white, fresh eggs. I have grown to be
very fond of our flock of hens and their raucous roosters. Like puppies, they all come running up
to me when I arrive at the coop in the morning. I brought them fresh straw from
the giant pile we collected last week and they were so excited to scratch through
it and settle down. Hopefully that
will mean extra eggs soon!
Next, we start avodah, or work, while it is still cool
outside. Work jobs have ranged
from collecting straw from a nearby wheat field, working in the gardens,
clearing off roofs for the rainwater catchment, or preparing domes with extra
insulation for winter. Last week I
got the job of cleaning out these big bottle-shaped barrel containers for use
in the rainwater catchment. To
clean them, I had to take off my shoes and squeeze into the barrel to clean the
inside with a rag, getting covered in mud in the process. It was actually really fun and I
enjoyed singing to myself in the amplified echoes of the barrel. I’ve also had to go clean inside this
big covered pool area used for water storage. I probably got more mud out of the pool in my clothes than I
did with the buckets and rags we were using to clean. When I emerged for lunch, I got some pretty funny
looks. I felt a little like that
scene from Slumdog Millionaire when the little kid has to fall through the
toilets to run and get an autograph from his favorite movie star. My most
recent avodah jobs were to create a drainage hole for our greywater system and
weeding and mulching our community garden beds.
After avodah is breakfast. Our breakfasts usually consist of a variety of fruit and
oatmeal, though my favorite breakfast is called “Bowl of Life”, which is a
mixture of oats and all the nuts, seeds, and fruit you can find, along with
date honey and cinnamon. It’s delectable.
Lunch is always a huge group meal with all of Eco-Israel, as well as the
Shinshinim and other volunteers.
At the beginning of each week, two people are assigned to cook each meal
and we always have a wide variety of delicious vegetarian dishes.
Most of the rest of our days consist of classes. In our agriculture classes we
have learned about the history of agriculture, and how to plant seedlings in
the greenhouse, and about water, and soil. These lessons are expanded in our permaculture classes,
where we have learned about the principles of permaculture and are studying
permaculture design methods. In our most recent permaculture class, we went
around the farm doing analyses of all the greywater systems, figuring out how
they worked and why. It’s amazing
how much thought and planning must go into every little piece of the farm. We
also have a medicinal herbs class, where we have learned methods of drying and
preserving herbs in oils and are learning the wide variety of uses of many
common types of herbs found on the farm.
Soon we will learn haw to make soaps, shampoos and lotions. We also have a class called Land and
People, in which we discuss Jewish and Israeli history and culture. In out most recent class, we collected
all the symbolic foods for Rosh Hashanah on the farm and discussed the prayers
and symbolism of these foods. It was
really interesting and fun.
Finally, we also are taking weekly Hebrew classes. Yesterday’s class went over words and
phrases that can be useful for traveling around Israel. A few of them have
already come in handy, especially now that I am in Jerusalem for the holiday.
I really love all the people I have been getting to know in
the Eco-Israel program. We are quite the eclectic group, all of different ages
and backgrounds, but all with a passion for community and sustainability. I share a big yurt with Gabby, a recent
Duke graduate from Maryland, and Zoe, from South Africa. In my non-biased opinion, our yurt is
the nicest in Eco-ville because it is spacious, with coveted airflow. It’s a popular place for other group
members to hang out after work. Other people on my program include Lisa, Jacob,
and Ilana from California. Ilana,
oddly enough, happens to be one of my good Barnard friend’s close friend from
home. There is also Jesse from Boston, Max from Evanston/Chicago, Jacob and
Karina from New York, Lauren from Miami (who just spent two years teaching
English in Japan), Liam from Amsterdam, and Raul from Brazil.
One of our group members, Max from Portland, Oregon, sadly
had to leave the program a few days ago. He had been feeling very ill since before
he came to Israel and felt like he couldn’t stay on the farm. He will be missed. Because he had to leave, I was
reassigned to his job as the Community Facilitator. This means that I have to run all our meetings, make sure
everyone is accounted for in classes and work, and facilitate any conflicts
between group members. I also am
supposed to coordinate activities with the Shinshinim and the Brazilian
volunteers. It has been a lot of
fun getting to know these other volunteers on the farm. Most nights after dinner we go down to
the Shinhinim house, or the fire pit by the Brazilian’s house, and all sit in a
circle singing and drinking tea while people pass around the guitars, drums and
other instruments. It’s always a
relaxing time that everyone enjoys.
Weekends are the time to explore Israel outside the
farm. Last weekend, a bunch of us
went to Tel Aviv. I spent most of
the weekend on the beach, enjoying the beautiful Mediterranean waters, eating
falafel, and trying not to get hit by balls from the five-zillion people
playing a game called Kadima on the beach. I also did a lot of walking around and exploring the city. My
favorite area was a part of Tel Aviv where man of the refugees from other
counties had settled. There was
just so much life there, with interesting looking restaurants and outdoor
markets and awesome people watching.
Zoe, Jesse and I stayed at the apartment of a former Eco-Israel
participant named Sara, who is in the process of making Aliyah and helped out
during out orientation the first week on the farm. Sara showed us some good cafes and bars and we had a lot of
fun dancing and hanging out in the city on Friday night. It was so strange to be in the big city
after spending two weeks on the farm.
We were so shocked by things like ice water and air conditioning and
toilets that flush! It made us appreciate the little things so much more, but
also appreciate the amazing lifestyle we get to enjoy on the farm.
Right now I am in Jerusalem. I am spending the weekend and Rosh Hashanah with the family
of my friend Matan, who I worked with on the camping staff at Ramah this
summer. He just arrived back in
Israel from four months in the U.S. and actually picked me up from the farm on
his way home from the airport. He
and his father gave me a little tour of the city and then Matan and I went out
to get hummus and limonana with all his friends. The food was delicious and it was so much fun meeting all
his friends, though I was a little overwhelmed by all the Hebrew! I have a new sympathy for all the
Israelis at camp who had to listen to English all the time- it is
exhausting! I tried really hard to
concentrate on their conversations so that I might learn some Hebrew. Hopefully
if I keep this up I will! Matan’s
parents are Americans that made aliyah many years ago, so they speak English at
home, which is a nice break from all the Hebrew. Matan has three older sisters that no longer live at home,
and two baby nephews that will also be visiting for Rosh Hashanah. It will be a full house! I brought the family a bouquet of
flowers and fresh herbs from the farm, as well as freshly picked pomegranates
and a soap and tea made in our medicinal herb house.
Tonight I will be going camping with Matan and his friends before the family comes together for the
holiday. I’m excited to experience
a real Israeli Rosh Hashanah!
One last update: My instructors chose me to be the
representative of the Eco-Israel program at the Masa opening ceremonies. I will
be interviewed and the interview will be shown to thousands of people at the
ceremony in October, where all the Masa participants will come together to
celebrate in a huge event that includes an Idan Raichel concert. I’m a little nervous about it but feel
really honored! I’ll give you
updates when I find out more details.
Shana Tova!
