Sunday Tisha B’Av

Transitioning from Shabbat to Tish B’av is a bit odd, but it highlighted for everyone just how important Shabbat is and how we priorotize it when there is a conflict. The eating had to stop by 7:34 pm camp time, so we said Birkat hamazon after our “fast shira” at seudah shlishit. Our leather shoes remained on and we continued to sit on the benches, as we sang slow shira and listened to a riveting story about the preemptive strike the Israeli Air Force conducted in June 1967 which kicked off the Six day war.

After Shabbat was officially over, we said ברוך המבדיל בין קודש לחול and then went to switch our shoes. After maariv, seated on the floor of course,  we said the bracha over the candle and explained that the bracha for havdalah (over grape juice) will be made before breaking our fast Sunday night. We walked from the outdoor Beit Knesset to the Indoor Beit Knesset, along a path lined by tzevet members holding torches. Everyone was singing על אלה אני בוכיה  as many camp stone alum can remember. The chairs had all been taken out of the Beit Knesset immediately after Shabbat, so we all sat on the acrpet around lanterns for light. Eicha was divided among a few readers. and each chapter was introuduced by one of our Roshei Tzevet. After Eicha the younger Aleph and Vav campers went to sleep (Kaytana left when shabbat was ending and had a maariv and Eicha reading right away, so those youngest campers could egt into bed). The older eidot went around to some stations organized by Machal in which they watched a skit of a shiva home for one of the tragedies from our history.

Kima was at 8:30 Sunday morning, with tefilah at 9:15. The younger chanichim were given breakfast after tefilah, and then everyone gathered at the Indoor Beit Knesset and walked around, eidah-by-eidah, to a few sites to watch skits about the kinnot written by the Beit Midrash and performed with some help from other tzevet.  After a short break we were able to daven Mincha already. Following Mincha, each eidah had a short sicha/shiur and then the whole camp participated in a “Chatufim Project” during which each eidah learned about one of our hostages  – in depth with lots of personal details shared about the hostage’s life – and then wrote letters to the families which will be brought to them.  The rest of the afternoon was spent resting with an option for a movie, until we had shira in the Indoor Beit Knesset, followed by maariv, havdalah, a break-fast snack of brownies and juice…and only then, when everyone was calm, did we proceed to the Chadar Ochel to have dinner 🙂

May our tefilot be a merit for Am Yisrael, and may the mourning we did inspire repentence that will bring us all closer to the geulah! Shavua Tov and B’sorot Tovot.