This weekend we spent the weekend with the בית שאן families who were kind enough to host us. I arrived Thursday night at Ron Malul’s sister’s house. Her family was very welcoming and made me feel so comfortable. After a long night of activities with our Israeli partners, we went to their house where I showered and slept.
Shabbat traditions are very important to families in Israel. Friday night we drove to Ron’s mother’s house where we joined her sister, brother, mother, father, and her sister’s family. We sat down to dinner after saying all the blessings. I felt very welcomed. When Ron’s mother blessed all the children, she included me in the blessings. Israeli mothers feed you no matter how may times you say that you are not hungry. You feel bad because you are not hungry but the mom spent along time cooking all the food so you eat it anyway. There were so many dishes – like schnitzel, fish, challah, cake, to name just a few. Feeling like I was at home was never a problem.
On Saturday I was with the other Israelis from our partner program because Ron does not drive on Shabbat. We went to the Sachnah and swam. Lior then took me to the pool nearby where her aunt and cousins were. The other family made me feel just as welcomed, and we had a lot of fun swimming and relaxing. Ron and her sister’s family helped me with anything I needed from food to a towel. When they were doing Havdalah, the family has the tradition of blessing all the kids to bring in the new week. I was included in those blessings. It made me feel special, and I appreciated it so much. My hosts were totally selfless and caring. It was so interesting to be part of an Israeli Shabbat.