Shabbat Shalom to You at Home

Another week has come and gone, and now it is the last shabbat of first session. At Galil we make a point to separate Shabbat from the rest of the week through resting as we take a break from our regular schedule.

Shabbat Shira

On Friday mornings we spend our time getting everything ready for Shabbat. We begin with a muffin breakfast, followed by extended Avodah (work time) and Nikayon Tzrif (cleaning cabin) blocks. The deep cleaning is our way of completely preparing Shabbat, during which we'll take a short break from these activities. Our chanichim experience a ritual connection to cleaning machaneh, when they find holiness in preparing for the day ahead.

Lunch in Hyde Park

After Nikayon Tzrif is Madatz Peula, which is usually a treat for chanichim because of the new and fresh programming that our Madatzim bring. Today the peulot with the Madatz involved closing out the session in a fun, messy way!

The Amelim spent their last peula of first session pouring water on each other through classic games like Duck, Duck, Goose with the special effects that only a hose could add.

The Madatz for the Chotrim decided to make their last peula more reflective. Together they looked back on their summers by having the Madatz say a statement like "I really liked meeting new people this summer," and those who agreed would jump in the pool.

The Sayarim had a peula about facing their fears involving shaving cream. The point of the peula was to help the Sayarim combat the way societal norms shape their perceptions and fears. The peula combined the fun of shaving cream with the seriousness of exploring their personalities together.

Since the Bogrim do not have Madatz, they plan their own peulot on Friday mornings. This Friday they followed suit with the messy theme and had a shaving cream fight on the basketball court.

I went around and asked chanichim from different shchavot what Shabbat at Galil means to them. For the most part I got similar answers about relaxing and hanging out with friends, but one answer really stood out to me. A girl in Bonim had trouble articulating how she felt about Shabbat, but the one word she could vocalize was, "togetherness." Seeing everyone standing in a circle in the Kikar, dressed up and singing shabbat songs is such an essential moment. It is in this moment that the sense of positivity is palpable, as madrichim and chanichim start to envision Camp Galil as their community and truly understand what it means for a group of people to find happiness out of being simply, together.

Amelot during lunch