Yom HaZicharon and Yom HaAtzma’ut

by Erika Apel,      grade 10,        Ontario

Yom HaZikaron was one of the most powerful things of this semester. Being able to commemorate Yom Hazikaron in Israel was an experience that I will never forget. We stood in silence with all of Israel in memory of fallen soldiers and victims of terror for two minutes. We got to go to a community ceremony, called a Tekas, in the town of Mevasseret-Zion where we heard testimonies of mothers who have lost their sons, wives who have lost their husbands, and more. I was especially moved by the son even if we didn't understand all the words, the emotion was easily conveyed. We also got to go to a ceremony at our home Kibbutz Tzuba where we could see the direct connection with fallen soldiers and the kibbutz. Commemorating this holiday in Israel was truly remarkable.

The most interesting thing I experienced on these days was the quick switch from extreme sadness to joy. From fallen soldiers who fought for our independence to celebrating the independent state we have today. We went to the ceremony at Tzuba, one second we were singing sad songs and the next we were dancing and celebrating. We then went to Jerusalem’s Ben Yehuda Street where we danced with hundreds of other teenagers. All of the stores throughout Israel are all decorated to celebrate and all festivities are in full swing.

One of the highlights on Yom Haatzmaut was joining in on a tradition that thousands of Israelis do which is go to the beach and have a picnic. We had Macabbia competition on the beach where we played many different games. We filled up buckets with water using only our shirts and the ocean, we bobbed for apples and much more. We then had a barbeque lunch and had free time on the beach. It was very interesting getting to see how Israelis celebrate this holiday and celebrate among them. Participating in these very important holidays gave us a beautiful insight into Israeli culture.