The Ins and Outs of Fasting

Monday, 28 September, 2:08 PM
It's remarkable how slowly time goes by when you don't plan your day with meals. I've never done it before, so I've never known this phenomenon. But it's only 2 PM and it feels so much later. We've spent the day so far reading a lot (ironically, I finished Lewis' On Christianity), practicing some Hebrew, looking at photos, blogging for me, and talking of course. Oh, and we read Chapter 19 titled, "Getting Serious: Yom Kippor" out of Judaism for Dummies. They sum up today as a time to "reflect on the previous year, let go of grudges, ask forgiveness from people, and see a bigger picture." Matan learned some new things, too. :)

I'm not praying, but I am thinking and reflecting on the year. We first discussed who we need to ask forgiveness from. And for me, those people are all the ones I am closest to. Because it was with them that my temper was the worst, my patience the shortest. I have hurt my parents before, and I think it's because selfishly I know they will always unconditionally love me no matter what I do. This is no new revelation by any means, but it's not something I think about regularly either. My mom just sent me an e-mail that my parents bought their tickets to go to Taiwan on October 15, leaving 3 months later. I'll arrive on December 16th, and I'm so glad we'll all be there together. As I get older, and even since I've left Cornell, I realize how valuable it is to be together when we can.

The book also included, "Yom Kippur is an ideal time to remember that all human beings make mistakes; the important thing is to continually review your life, learn and grow...By showing up and trying, you fulfill the spirit of the day." Just last night, I was having a bit of a hard time, feeling like life here is so different and foreign than anything I've known. I have high expectations for myself--to feel comfortable socially here, to establish new friendships, to have fulfilling work, to learn more Hebrew...and often I think I forget that these things don't happen in a month, or three, or even a year. It takes time to make a place for yourself somewhere new, especially somewhere as new as Israel is for me. I keep comparing life here to life at Cornell, ignoring the fact that life at Cornell when I first arrived was no picnic either. So, it's nice to get a reminder that I should struggle as a human. Goals sometimes aren't accomplished on time or as you expected, and what counts is your ambition and willpower in the end...the "bigger picture" so to speak.

Last night, after dinner, we took a walk. Matan had told me that biking is huge on Yom Kippur, and I don't think I quite understood him. Barely anyone drives on Yom Kippur, religious and secular alike. So suddenly, in the middle of Tel Aviv, there were practically no cars to be seen. I think we saw three during a 2.5 hour walk. The streets are filled with people on bikes and rollerskates, parents pushing toddlers in strollers, old couples walking hand in hand, kids on every kind of bike/tricycle/rolling thing imaginable. And everyone is just moving along in the middle of the street! We walked in the middle of a four lane highway for a while, and saw absolutely no car the entire time. It's magical--a kid's dream come true. Rotshild Blvd. was hopping with young families, dogs, kids. It is a sight worth seeing. Matan and I talked about what it would take for the US or NYC to do this for a day. It's hard to say...religion and tradition and history are strong influences. Not something you can create out of thin air.

Tuesday, 29 September, 10:57 PM
We broke fast yesterday with bread, grapes and tea at first...I felt funny afterwards, tired and groggy, like when I'm on Benadryl. I didn't expect to feel it so much, but even today I was a bit off. Matan went off to buy some more food last night for dinner, and came back with Honey Nut Cheerios and milk. It was perfect...and forever I will connect my first Yom Kippor with Cheerios!

I went to Kav La'Oved for a few hours today, but the electricity in the building went out so just about everyone went home. By chance, our friend Omer was in Tel Aviv so we ran some errands with him before having a HUGE hummus lunch at Abu-Adam's...with a shot of black coffee afterwards. Matan and I spent the rest of the day doing something we've both been meaning to...BUS-HOP. As in, get on buses without knowing where they're going, get off when we feel like it. We rode on the 4, 13, 16, 26, 27, and 28. I think that was it. 13 was the best--it took us on a huge loop all the way to North Tel Aviv, which neither of us had seen before (actually, it wasn't that exciting, as it's where all the crazy expensive apartments are). I HIGHLY recommend bus-hopping to anyone, anywhere. It was really fun, we saw so many new parts of the city, walked around Florentine (Tel Aviv's Soho supposedly) drinking chocolate milk, and finished the day off with ice cream. Believe me, it's definitely a good use of time.