Meet
Liz!
Liz
Cornell is a fellow Mayanot student and intern coming from New York City. After
graduating from Lehigh University in Pennsylvania as a computer engineer and clothing designer, Liz went on Birthright at the beginning of the summer and has been in
Israel since then. At the end of the summer, Liz will return home to start
working at the Free People Headquarters as a women's fashion designer.
Growing
up, she was raised Reform, going to Hebrew School since 3rd grade and having a Bat
Mitzvah at the age of 12. After that it was her choice whether or not to
continue her Jewish studies. As she did continue to learn, she realized that
there was so much more she wanted to know about Judaism that she hadn't yet
learnt.
When
she got to college, she lost touch a bit with her Judaism. However, in her last
year and a half of college she got involved with Chabad on her campus and once
again remembered what it was she loved about being involved in a Jewish
community, and decided she wanted to come to Israel and learn more about Judaism,
and develop an even greater connection to the land and the Jewish people.
Through
her Rebbetzin Dit Greenberg, Liz learned about Taglit Birthright Israel:Mayanot, and
decided it would be a great way to come to Israel. However, she knew she wanted
to stay longer then just 10 days, but didn’t know anyone else staying. She was
told about the Mayanot Internship opportunity and decided it
would be a great way for her to experience both working and learning here in
Israel. It sounded like the best of both worlds, a way for her to get
great experience for her resume and very hands on, in terms of Jewish
learning.
Now
Liz is here living in Israel for the first time. She finds it “really cool”
that she can call Jerusalem home and that it is so easy to get to the Kotel and
the Shuk. Living in Israel, it amazes Liz how easy it is to be Jewish. Back in the states, she had experienced anti-Semitism and usually
doesn’t go out of her way to stress that she is Jewish. Being here, everyone
around is welcoming of the fact that she is Jewish. Liz is also constantly struck, by how beautiful the
country is. The thing that is amazing about doing a longer program, is that it lets her
see more and get to know people more. She loves living in Israel, rather than
living on a coach bus!
Before
coming, Liz only knew that it would be a month of learning and a month of
internship. She didn’t really know what to expect from either, but decided to
keep an open mind and see where this program would take her. She knew she
wanted to learn about the Israeli/Jewish culture and how the two are
intertwined. About a month in, the learning is by far Liz’s favorite part of
the program. She wishes she could stay and learn longer. She has loved every
minute of the classes and is pleasantly surprised that she will “quote a lot of
the stuff [she’s] learning throughout the day” and ties it into her daily life.
As
for a favorite class? Liz loves the nigun (melody) class, every other
Wednesday. For her, growing up, “a lot of prayer and connection to religion was
through music” so niggun class is a way to get back to that type of meditation
and prayer. Of all of the nigunim we sing here, her favorite is “Nigun Ha’Baal
Shem Tov” a song that is normally sung after Havdalah. But she also loves Halacha (Jewish Law) with Rabbi Elchanan Cohen, a Yeshiva 1 class that provides a fascinating textual insight into
different aspects of Jewish daily life.
As
for the daily life here in Israel, Liz goes to all of the classes. She will
wake up for Chassidut (Jewish mysticism) in the morning and then either go to the rest of the
classes at Mayanot or she will go to her internship. She will come back for afternoon class and then use
her break to sight-see and cross things off her Israel to-do list. In the
evenings she returns for night classes, which are optional but Liz loves them
just as much, and then Liz is free for the rest of the night. Sometimes at
night there are formal events like Fabrengens, (an informal gathering with inspiration and learning), or there is capture the flag, or other times it is just hanging
out together as a group and reflecting.
Liz
loves the fact that people on the program tend to all be open minded and that
it gives her a deeper understanding of the country. She now feels like her
perspective on Judaism has changed a lot. Learning more has made her want to
incorporate more into her life. She knows she can’t immediately change and that
growth takes time but she now knows what's important to her.
Through
her time here, she is seeing the value of Shabbat and making certain blessings,
being more appreciative of what she has, rather than take anything for granted
and realizing gratitude is a big part of happiness and recognizing the
spirituality in the everyday can really help a person grow. Liz also
knows that this is just the beginning of her journey of self exploration.
One
important lesson she’s learned, is to have Jewish pride and to return home with
confidence and happiness in being Jewish!
Written and interviewed by: Jennie Maibor, Current Mayanot Women's Program Student.
