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Birthright Israel
trip links U-M
student to his
ancestral roots.
Bobby Gruenberg
ZL:LD
Special to the Jewish News
ZgLDA
14 0 v\i
by
Ann Arbor
I
July25 10am - 5 pm
y?6 10am- 5p
ulyn 10am-3pm
& FALL MERCHANDISE
L
:,00.111 1.ct
a l cidi und isc
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fall Arrivin
6-1116
113793,,
34
July 20 • 2006
wanted to understand what it
meant to be Jewish. I needed an
idea of where I come from. So, for
a college paper, I researched my past
during late nights in the library stacks.
I visited Holocaust museums; I spoke
in depth with my family; I watched
old tapes of my late Holocaust-survi-
vor grandparents; I spoke with rabbis.
All this I did trying to get a whiff of
whatever I was searching for.
After months, all I had was a collec-
tion of history, anecdotes and others'
opinions. But in my own work, I could
make no personal contribution. Then
came my Birthright Israel trip this
May.
It was my first time using sunscreen
above SPF 4. It was my first time
walking in a desert. It was my first
time eating hummus for breakfast. It
was my first time in Israel, yet every-
one I met treated me as though they
have known me for years.
Atop Masada, listening to the his-
torical requiem, our guide said to us,
"Welcome home."
In all my family research I real-
ized the importance of roots. Israel
is where my deepest roots lie. We
may have never stood atop Masada,
but we've been there before. I stared
out as King Herod did over the long
sands and mountains below, with the
Dead Sea in the distance. I was teary
with jealousy of the Israelis: This all
belonged to them. But then I realized,
it's mine, too.
My parents kept asking me how
every Birthright participant returns
raving about Israel. Jewish people are
warm and welcoming, always making
sure you are well fed and comfortable.
Israel hugs us tight and never lets go.
So when our guide says, "Welcome
home it reaffirming of everything
we have felt since landing in Israel.
I'm an alien there, but I'm home
— and this is what makes Israel the
most unique place in the world. The
inaugural trip that every Jew in the
diaspora should aim to make is not a
vacation, it's a return home.
A week after my Birthright expe-
rience, in IvIodi'in, when my host
dropped me off at the bus stop and I
was preparing to say "have a nice life,"
he said, "We'll see you when you're
back in Israel." I could only smile and
accept the goodbye with enlighten-
ment because I don't even wish, I just
know, he's right.
I don't know if I'll make aliyah. I
don't know if I'll come for school. I
don't know if I'll join the army. But
when it comes to Israel, I know one
thing: I'll be back 'home' soon.
Bobby Gruenberg, 20, is a junior studying
English at the University of Michigan. He
is the son of Harry and Deanne Gruenberg
of West Bloomfield.