My Time At Keshet

Hey folks,

I wanted to take the time to write a little about my time at Keshet school these past five months. Last week, I had to say many goodbyes, to the students that have become such a huge part of my life and the teachers that have become my colleagues. On Monday, our English teacher organized a large staff party for us after school, supplying us with amazing food, a generous Body Shop package, and a speech about our dedication throughout the program to kids who needed our help. It was especially touching and rewarding to hear her note that she never in a million years would have expected 22 year old guys to volunteer five months of their life to teaching in a country with kids as stubborn as Israelis, as we could be skiing, partying and doing much more selfish things with our money and time. But I consider my time at Keshet time well spent, where I made a difference, learned a lot about myself, made friends with the families of some of my students, and gained a more worldly perspective on the education system. The next two days, our students held parties for us and showered us with gifts and letters about how much they would miss us. I played guitar for them and said my goodbyes, sad to know that I would probably never see them again despite the one-on-one connections I made over the course of almost half a year. These are some of the things I will miss about Keshet:

1. The million high-fives I got every day just wandering into the school and from class to class, kids beaming from ear to ear, just happy to see us.
2. The chants of "Max ve Boris" whenever we did something unexpected in front of the students.
3. The amazing Shabbat dinners I was invited to in the last month by students who wanted to give back to us.
4. Our English teacher Gaby, who definitely used us to our full potential and didn't allow us to slack off like some other volunteers in our program. I got a lot more out of the opportunity because of her high expectations.
5. Our chance to speak Hebrew and learn from the kids. They were always willing to give us suggestions for improvement.
6. Working with Boris, a hell of a character and so many memories together.
7. The English songs about barnyard animals that got the kids so riled up... I LOVE MY ROOSTER!
8. The feeling of contributing lasting memories to the kids and setting a good example for them. I had kids tell me that they wanted to be like me and help people and there is no more rewarding feeling than that!

That is just a handful of the things I will miss, there are countless more! Like I said in my last post, this experience has further affirmed my desire to work with children and I can't wait to explore new opportunities in the education/speech therapy field when I return home.

Ciao for now,

Max