July 12 Day 15

We woke up to Oona singing us a wake up song. We went to breakfast and headed out for the day.

We went to Dialogue in the Dark and it was a remarkable experience. It was very interesting to sense of how people with impaired vision or no sight, live their daily life. As we walked through the rooms we experienced various circumstances including walking through a forest, sailing on a boat and shopping in a market. We then got to have a discussion and ask questions to our guides who were all in fact either visually impaired or have no sight at all. It was quite challenging at times, and overall it gave us an empathetic feel of life without one of the main senses.

Next we went to Ezer Mitzion. During our time there we learned about the amazing contributions Ezer Mitztion provides to society. We learned how they have several homes, camps, programs and many more things for people with illnesses, disabilities and more. In fact, Ezer Mitzion has the largest Jewish bone marrow transplant registry. It was heart-warming to watch the videos of the IDF soldiers meeting the people who they provided bone marrow for, for the first time. Continuing on, the place we were at specifically was a place for children with cancer and their families to stay while the child is having chemotherapy treatments at the nearby hospital. We encountered the various rooms and therapies they provide for the children. Including an animal therapy room. Overall, Ezer Mitzion is a wonderful organization that has an extremely positive impact on Israel and the world.

Later we went to Bar-Ilan University. A lady stood in front of the entire room to do a lecture on Israel and Palestine. She was saying facts about Israel and defending Palestine. Every kid became furious and started yelling back at her their opinions and defending Israel. This lecture taught us that we all care about Israel and would stand up for it when being targeted by others. In the end we all found out that it was an advocacy campaign and the lady didn’t actually believe what she was arguing. Also, some of the facts she said, she encountered people saying firsthand. That’s pretty crazy. To end the day we got some swag from the university and had some pizza.

Overall it was an incredible day!

-Emma Bercovitch and Syd Shapiro