I know I should be over the moon that I have the opportunity to study full time but all I can think about is all the things I need to do and accomplish and where I am deficient.It can't help that I feel like I have to cram as much learning as I can into my time in Israel since I'm older... it's as if for every year over 18 or 22 I am, I have to work that much harder, go to that many more classes, answer that many more questions.Now, in addition to that, I have the practical concerns for certainly I could not forget I have bills to pay, student loans to make good on and hopefully a job when I go home.But how do you suck every drop of learning out of an experience when a third of your brain is devoted to your work tasks that have to get done that day and your mind is dreaming of that delicious garden tub and clean bathroom you left in the States?It's a balance I am constantly striving for while I spend time in Israel learning. I envy those men and women who dedicate their lives to learning Torah or stay in academia all their lives. I watch the women around me with their varying degrees of commitment to classroom learning and I know that while we are all here for the same reason (mostly), many of them would benefit from a program with more experiential classes. Not all of us are built to sit in a chair and learn for hours upon hours a day. I think about myself and my commitment to learn everything these amazing teachers are willing to give over. My face is almost always in the classroom, not only do I try not to miss classes, I dislike missing classes but how do I balance that with my need, my primal need to use my hands for more than note-taking, page flipping, and computer typing? What about the knowledge that I want to sweat and be sore, use my muscles until they ache?
And just as I had these questions, a solution walked into my lap. Go on an archeological dig. I have the opportunity to go up north to the Galilee and dig a 1st Century synagogue. 1st Century people! Let me explain what this means for the normal humans who are not as obsessed with history or archeology as I am...Our Second Holy Temple was destroyed in 70 CE. Prior to the destruction, it was not common that Jews had synagogues. There was only the one Temple in Jerusalem. It was only after this time that Jews rallied around making a local structure with rabbis (this took a lot of time). Therefore, this synagogue was either from the 30 years after the Second Temple was destroyed or one of the rare synagogues built DURING the Second Temple period and to make it even more rare, there have only been 7 found in the world.Here's some info about it from the Israeli Antiquities Authority:
"A synagogue from the Second Temple period (50 BCE-100 CE) was exposed in archaeological excavations the Israel Antiquities Authority is conducting at a site slated for the construction of a hotel on Migdal beach, in an area owned by the Ark New Gate Company. In the middle of the synagogue is a stone that is engraved with a seven-branched menorah (candelabrum), the likes of which have never been seen. The excavations were directed by archaeologists Dina Avshalom-Gorni and Arfan Najar of the Israel Antiquities Authority.The main hall of synagogue is c. 120 square meters in area and its stone benches, which served as seats for the worshippers, were built up against the walls of the hall. Its floor was made of mosaic and its walls were treated with colored plaster (frescos). A square stone, the top and four sides of which are adorned with reliefs, was discovered in the hall. The stone is engraved with a seven-branched menorah set atop a pedestal with a triangular base, which is flanked on either side by an amphora (jars).According to the excavation director, Dina Avshalom-Gorni of the Israel Antiquities Authority, “We are dealing with an exciting and unique find. This is the first time that a menorah decoration has been discovered from the days when the Second Temple was still standing. This is the first menorah to be discovered in a Jewish context and that dates to the Second Temple period/beginning of the Early Roman period. We can assume that the engraving that appears on the stone, which the Israel Antiquities Authority uncovered, was done by an artist who saw the seven-branched menorah with his own eyes in the Temple in Jerusalem. The synagogue that was uncovered joins just six other synagogues in the world that are known to date to the Second Temple period”.
What an amazing opportunity to use my other skills in life and come back to school with a zest for sitting in class. I imagine after a week of hunching over in the sun and dirt, I will enjoy a clean classroom with comfy chairs.
