On Friday night, Rabbi Soskil shared one of his favorite shabbat stories, encouraging others to do the same. I shared the shabbat that I spent in Israel with my eighth grade class. Abel, another Hungarian, shared a shabbat with his brother, where they didn’t have any place to go because his brother’s yeshiva had an out-shabbos. They were then invited to a stranger’s house for shabbat with others, including BalTshuvas and a Buddhist. Sitting next to Lillu, I thought she should say something. This was her first shabbaton, her first time doing anything Jewish outside of her school. I told her that she should stand up and share why this shabbat is extremely special for her. At first, she immediately shook her head; she was very shy. A few more people shared their stories, and then I turn and see Lillu standing up. She was sharing her experience, her first shabbat, that I was able to be apart of with her.
Saturday night, the last night of our trip to Hungary, flashed before our eyes, but at the same time it felt like we have been there for much longer. We sang, we danced, we ate s’mores and sat around the bonfire. We were happy. As the night got darker, we slowly began walking to our rooms. “Molly, I want to thank you,” I turned to see Lillu looking at be, trying so hard to hold back her tears. I was confused, what was she thanking me for? “You helped me break out of my shell,” she tells me. I soon realized she was talking about her shabbat story that she shared on Friday night. Lillu explained that she has always been a shy person, a quiet person, but on this shabbaton, she was able to step out of her comfort zone, sharing her opinion and speaking to an entire room of students and teachers. After Lillu expressed herself, I hugged her. We stood outside, past our curfew, hugging for a long time. I never wanted to let go because in that moment we became sisters.
As I travel back to Baltimore, I realize that I won’t be the same person I was when I left for Budapest. On this trip, I knew I would make amazing friendships. However, what I didn’t know is that these friendships would impact me, as an individual. Helping Lillu “break her shell”, I learned the true value of friendship, the ability to help each other grow. When Lillu thanked me, we both grew as individuals. Lillu’s thank you comment will never be forgotten, because it taught me that friendship allows people to pull strength from each other and the ability to learn and grow together.
