I came to Israel this summer through Boston Birthright Israel Onward, a program that places college students in internships and was housing this year’s participants in central Tel Aviv. I was going to intern at the Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies, where I would be researching topics related to Israel’s regional security and policy issues. Beyond the internship, I was excited to tour the country, spend time with my cousins in Jerusalem, and enjoy all that Israel has to offer. My family prioritized spending time in Israel throughout my childhood, and I’ve jumped at every opportunity to visit and support the country since Oct. 7, 2023.

The first week of the program felt normal. I met my roommates and adjusted to living in our apartment, spent time on the Tel Aviv beaches and explored Jaffa, and began my internship. But by the end of our first week, we heard rumors that Israel may strike Iran — and soon. In the early hours of June 13, the rumors were proven true, as I was awoken to the sound of an alert on my phone announcing that the war had begun.

A blur of uncertainty followed the outbreak of the war. The Shabbaton that Onward had planned in Jerusalem for that weekend was canceled, and we spent Friday and Saturday in and out of the safe rooms in our apartments as Iran launched barrages of missiles at population centers throughout Israel. The typically loud and lively street outside our apartment, Rothschild Street, was eerily quiet as most residents stayed close to their bomb shelters rather than milling around outside. A few friends and I ventured across the street to a coffee shop — we only went as far as we knew we could return from in case of a siren — and talked with several Israelis; most of them did not radiate fear, yet apprehension and uncertainty were in the air.

After Shabbat, our Onward madrichim informed us that we would be bussed to Eilat for an indefinite amount of time; a few days later, we were told that the program was canceled and we would be given the option to leave the country by boat to Cyprus. The choice to leave the country — which I made after many hours of consideration, much to the understandable impatience of my madrichim who had requested a quicker decision — was incredibly difficult. I had plans to visit my cousins in Jerusalem the following weekend, and I knew they would open their house to me if I had chosen to stay. But I also had to think about the bigger picture of the summer, and I knew that I would be back. So, an impromptu vacation was planned; I’m now spending time in Cyprus and Greece with the goal of returning to Israel later in the summer.

I’ll carry many lessons from this experience. I’ve learned how quickly things can change, and how important it is to find meaning in the remains of plans that fall apart. More significantly, I’ve been reminded, once again, of how deeply I love Israel. My disappointment about leaving wasn’t mainly about losing my internship or missing out on some beach day with my friends (though those losses stung, too). What weighed more heavily on me was the feeling of being pulled away from my family, from the opportunities to support Israel and its people, and from spending time in the country that feels like a second home. But, I know that if the opportunity presents itself, I’ll be back before this summer’s end.

This post has been contributed by a third party. The opinions, facts and any media content are presented solely by the author, and JewishBoston assumes no responsibility for them. Want to add your voice to the conversation? Publish your own post here. MORE