Wednesday August 2
Today’s shiur was about government, leadership and the Va’ad Arba Aratzot which was a body of governemnt set up by the Jewish community in the Poland region during the period we are learning about. Again, different ages related at various levels, but everyone talked about qualities of leaders and why we need to have representatives to make decisions and policies. There are always a few sources and each shiur teacher decides how to teach/use them. We are so proud of the tzevet who have been teaching the chanichim every day!
The Village has opened here in Camp Stone! For those who do not know about “the village: we have a special corner of the forest, beyond the indoor beit knesset, where we have special activities for the cahnichim that relate to hands-on activties and projects that relate to tochnit each session and involve some “lost arts” like glass blowing, blacksmithing, and baking in a brick oven. This session our Village is named Ferrara, an intellectual and artistic Italian city that attracted the greatest minds of the Italian Renaissance in the 15th and 16th centuries. The activities in the Village this session include metal trivet making with our blacksmith (with 25 interlocking joints, symbolizing Jewish interconnectedness in the diaspora), mizrach signs in glass-blowing (no matter where Jews lived in the diaspora, Israel was always the direction towards which they prayed), baking empanadas (and learning about sephardic vs. ashkenazik tradition the blessing we make before eating them), printing with an old printing press and so much more! One could spend hours and hours touring and creating in the Village. each bunk has a few visits and slowly, slowly works its way through each of the nine stations. Your kids will have A LOT more to say about that magical corner of camp.
Bunks had 6 peulot of activties today – a full day! They enjoyed archery, rollerskating, football, baseball, gaga, slip n’ slide, ceramics, music, high ropes, time at the refet (our petting corner of animals here at machane – see a tour from a few years ago by Avner Fleischmann, our directors’ son: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AhxZNcme–E ), swimming, agam, horse-back riding, bracelet-making, baking and much more! Ask your children what their favorite peulah is.
At shekem today (the afternoon snack time where each camper receives one ice cream or candy treat, in additon to some fruit or vegetable), the chanichim watched a group of Roshei Eidah discuss the possibility of a Messiah arriving (that issue will continue tomorrow with a shiur on Shabtai zvi, a false messiah in the 17th century) Could it happen?
Tonight’s night activity was Junk Wars – each bunk was told to “pack for Mashiach” and bring lots of things to Indoor World…Then they all heard a prompt (for example “something Mashiach would use to enter Yerushalayim”) and each bunk sent a representative to run forward with something that they felt was the best response/prop. The Roshei Eidah judged each round for a winner. This was a fun game that was a perfect blend of everything we value here – working together, creativity, good ol’ shtick and fun, tochnit (i.e. the topic of the month) and…Indoor World 🙂
Kaytana experienced The Exodus today!! In their tochnit, they are up to the middle of Sefer Shemot and Yetziat Mitzrayim….so…. they baked matza in the Village’s brick oven, had a seder with 4 cups of bubbly grape juice 🙂 and were chased by Pharoah on his ATV as they ran through the Yam Suf (a tablecloth of sorts spread out over something the Amish built…don’t ask!). Their night tochnit was…of course: the movie Prince of Egypt!!
Machal hiked 8 miles today on a trail called Tracy Ridge, in the Allegheny Forest. They camped out for the night and grilled hamburgers!
