This month’s Israel Spotlight interviewee is Tamar Jonas. Tamar takes pride in sounding tough and saying she is “from the Bronx,” watching others’ confused or shocked facial expressions, and then admitting she is specifically from Riverdale. She and her family daven at Kingsbridge Center for Israel (KCI), and she attended SAR from pre-k through middle school, switching to Ma’ayanot for high school. Tamar is studying in the American program at Nishmat Bet Midrash in Jerusalem, and she plans on staying in Israel to serve in Sherut Le’umi (National Service) either working with Ethiopian families or children taken out of their homes.
Why did you choose Nishmat?
I knew that that I wanted intensive Torah study while being fully immersed in Israeli culture, so Nishmat was the perfect option because I take mostly Hebrew classes and have many Israeli friends. Another reason that attracted me to Nishmat is the diversity that is found here. Nishmat has Americans, Israelis, Ethiopians, yoatzot Halacha (women specializing in the laws of family purity) and people from all over the world and of all ages of whom many are ba’alei tshuva. There are now six Chinese women learning here for a few months while they go through the conversion process, and no one is surprised that they chose to come to Nishmat.
What kind of goals did you have for your year?
My biggest goal coming into the year was to learn a lot of Torah, be exposed to a range of different opinions, grow in my service of God, improve my conversational Hebrew abilities and have fun. It’s hard to accomplish all of my goals with such an intensive schedule (classes start at 8:30 a.m. and go until 11 p.m., with two-hour lunch and dinner breaks), but I am trying!
What has been the biggest highlight of your year so far?
In Israel, there is always a sense of brotherhood because we all share the fear and pain of living in a country where terrorist attacks are a common occurrence. Earlier in the year, a father and son were killed in an attack only a week before a family wedding. The bride and groom, instead of disappearing into their grief, invited the whole nation to their wedding.
Living in Israel is not easy, but seeing the thousands of Jews who came reminded everyone that there is a purpose to our being here and that no amount of attacks can paralyze us from living our lives. That night we danced with strangers that we thought of as sisters.
What kind of challenges have you faced in Israel?
There is no question about it; being away from family has been the most difficult challenge for me. It is hard to believe, but you can learn to live without Amazon; family, however, is irreplaceable. People here are very kind, constantly opening their homes, but nothing is comparable to coming back to your own house filled with loving family.
How has being here been different from your expectations? Did you feel prepared for your experience or did you have culture shock, and how so?
I don’t think I could have expected how much I would miss my family. I assumed that I would be having too much fun to be missing my family but, for me, I’ve learned there is no such thing. I was a little shocked to realize that the gap year in Israel isn’t a fairy-tale. It is an amazing experience but it is still real life.
Where is your favorite place to go for weekends/Shabbat so far?
I don’t know that I have a favorite place, but the Shabbat I spent in the ultra-Orthodox community of Meah Shaarim was one of the most interesting and shocking experiences.
What are you most looking forward to from the rest of your year?
The day-to-day learning is remarkable but I’m also looking forward to all the upcoming holidays because there is something really cool about the whole country celebrating the same thing. I think it will be really cool to celebrate Yom Haatzmaut and Yom Yerushalayim here.
By Tzvi Silver/JLNJ Israel
