47.0°,
Mostly Cloudy A spark called NCSY
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This entire weekend, organized and run by educators who understand education, has been a study in organizational efficiency and excellence. There is a sense of focus, a direction of intent, that is so clearly defined, so finely tuned, that watching the program unfold, one feels the appreciation usually reserved for watching skilled craftsman or artisans at work.
Every word spoken, every speech given, every smile, every handshake, every game, every activity - they are created with the same goal in mind - and like a passerby who sees a group of people staring intently in one direction - one is compelled to follow their gaze.
That's the feeling of an NCSY Shabbaton. You are awed by the artistry of Judaism being reduced (and elevated) to its purest, most basic form - and then transmitted with efficiency and passion by a staff of educators who are masters of their craft.
Then, there are the faces. The faces tell a story that no words ever can. I won't even try to describe it. To do so would be to taint the purity of the experience. You simply must see them for yourself. In the middle of Zemiros or Bentching, during Havdalah, these faces tell the story of a little spark, and how it has somehow managed to survive the very worst that history has thrown at it.
NCSY cradles that spark, in cupped caring hands, and gently blows and wills it to life. The spark glows into an ember. The ember flares, and soon flames are burning brightly. The many advisors I met who were themselves, the product of NCSY’s transformative process, bear that testimony well.
I feel privileged to have been there to see this, to experience this; to know that it exists is a comfort and I have been changed as a result of my time there, as well.
Like I said. At an NCSY Shabbaton, it is very easy to believe.
Yaakov Gold was the Licensed EMT at New York NCSY’s Spring Regional Shabbaton in Camp Romimu, which was held on Friday, May 27th – Monday, May 30th. For more information about the work that NCSY does, please call (516) 569-6279 or email nyinfo@ncsy.org.
Every word spoken, every speech given, every smile, every handshake, every game, every activity - they are created with the same goal in mind - and like a passerby who sees a group of people staring intently in one direction - one is compelled to follow their gaze.
That's the feeling of an NCSY Shabbaton. You are awed by the artistry of Judaism being reduced (and elevated) to its purest, most basic form - and then transmitted with efficiency and passion by a staff of educators who are masters of their craft.
Then, there are the faces. The faces tell a story that no words ever can. I won't even try to describe it. To do so would be to taint the purity of the experience. You simply must see them for yourself. In the middle of Zemiros or Bentching, during Havdalah, these faces tell the story of a little spark, and how it has somehow managed to survive the very worst that history has thrown at it.
NCSY cradles that spark, in cupped caring hands, and gently blows and wills it to life. The spark glows into an ember. The ember flares, and soon flames are burning brightly. The many advisors I met who were themselves, the product of NCSY’s transformative process, bear that testimony well.
I feel privileged to have been there to see this, to experience this; to know that it exists is a comfort and I have been changed as a result of my time there, as well.
Like I said. At an NCSY Shabbaton, it is very easy to believe.
Yaakov Gold was the Licensed EMT at New York NCSY’s Spring Regional Shabbaton in Camp Romimu, which was held on Friday, May 27th – Monday, May 30th. For more information about the work that NCSY does, please call (516) 569-6279 or email nyinfo@ncsy.org.
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