As the Beth Tfiloh students gather with the SSG students on the final night of our Shabbaton, a sense of unity and friendship arises in the form of a bonfire. At this moment in the cold and dewy evening in Leanyfalu, Hungary, we want nothing more than this special time we have. We met each other just a week ago, yet we all couldn’t be closer friends. All the memories we made, all the inside jokes and all the truly incredible experiences only added to the special feeling we all felt that night.
After a meaningful and fun Shabbaton we are all excited to spend our last night together. Emotions are high, and so is our adrenaline. We didn’t sleep the whole night, and we just wanted some time and activity so we could relax and decompress before our journey back to the states. Gathered around a bonfire, the BT students and SSG students shared a feeling of love, happiness and compassion for the journey and memories we have made together. With the speaker blasting music and all these emotions in the air, what else could we do but sing and dance! Wrapping our arms around each other, trying to hold on to this meaningful time, the song All of Me by John Legend starts to play. Without an ounce of doubt, we were all chanting the words in unison. Some people were laughing, some were crying, but most importantly, we were all together.
Suddenly, the meaning of this trip had popped in my head. It’s not about where you go, or what you do, but it is about who you spend time with, and the relationships you build that make a trip so meaningful. Nothing described our experiences and feelings more than this song we sang together. Because of the special bonds and memories, we made, we knew it would be hard to let go and say goodbye. So, this song was not only important to me, but also important to everyone in that circle because this was our way of saying goodbye. The reality of leaving the people we spent so much time with and loved so much was coming true and although it was sad, this was the last a final moment we had together as a group and we will always remember that “All of Me, Loves all of You” -John Legend. ~ Ethan M.
