Acceptance

Can you believe that I have been in Israel for almost a month?! I know, I can't either. Most of the original feelings of being overwhelmed have mellowed out and I really feel like I am beginning to settle into my everyday life here. If moving to a different country were like the 5 stages of grief I would be in the acceptance stage. That sounds kind of dramatic and morbid but just go with it. This past week was my first full week in school which was spent observing in the classroom and helping the students in smaller groups. I also got a taste of just how crazy Israeli school children can be when one particularly rowdy 5th grader kept saying "fuck you, bitch" to other students in class. I was of course completely dumbfounded and could only manage to stammer "we don't say that" though I think he got the message from the look of horror on my face. On Wednesday, the principal of the school I am teaching at invited the whole staff to her house for a bbq to kick off the year. Mona (the other fellow that works with me) and I ate a ton and had a great time even though everyone was speaking in Hebrew so we weren't really able to socialize as much as we would have liked. There was also a hired comedian there who told her life story and was pretty funny judging by everyone else's laughter though we obviously didn't understand a word she was saying. On Friday a group of us went out in Tel Aviv for one of my roommates' birthday's and spent the majority of the night trying to find a decent bar which didn't happen. On the plus side, I had actually been to the first bar we went to while I was here on Birthright so it brought back some great memories and made me miss my Birthright fam back home. Today we visited a children's hospital in Tsrifin where we handed out apples and honey and made cards with the patients for Rosh Hashanah. It was a wonderful experience and the kids and their families seemed genuinely grateful for our visit. Tomorrow is my only day in school this week because it's Rosh Hashanah! I am super excited because I am going to have dinner with my friend Gal and her family which will be my first authentic Israeli holiday experience. Ulpan also starts this week which will hopefully help me figure out the difference between savory and sweet burekas at the bakery so I don't accidentally buy mushroom ones when I mean to buy chocolate ones again. Because let's be real, mushrooms are never an acceptable substitute for chocolate. Thanks again for following and Shana Tova!