NCSY Stollel (Week 2)

The NCSY Stollel is growing slowly. It is not easy here in Beit Meir but we're certainly getting closer.

:::

I have continued taking pictures of the Tolna Rebbe (U.S.) and his sidelocked son. They are definitely on to me, but that will not deter me from my mission.



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Rav Schachter arrived this week.

Some kid went up to him after davening and asked him, "So how long have you been in Y.U.?" (Insert Rav Schachter voice) "Since my bar-mitzvah," he replied.

Rav Blachman also came for the first time this week. He gave his loss of Jewish identity shiur where he discussed that we are so far from what the national identity of the Jewish people was supposed to be:

"You'll daven without real kavanah. You'll say "hashiva shofteinu" but you wont even think for two minutes what it really means. You'll think of the kavanos of the Ari, that's easier. Up there in the heavens, atzilus, beriah, yetzirah. YOU WANT MALKOS ON YOUR FREAKIN' BACK OR DON'T YOU?!"
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Other highlights of the week include a tiyul to the North where an NCSYer pulled Rav Sobolofsky (henceforth to be referred to as "a certain YU Rosh Yeshiva") off his raft while kayaking in the Yarden. "You just reserved yourself a nice spot in hell," was the response he received from an onlooking observer.

The North Tiyul continued in Tzfat where Witty collided with certain YU roshei yeshiva at the Arizal mikveh. We received a tour of the city by the holy tour guide, R' Mordechai Zeller, who was to say the least, not feeling the NCSY game.

After telling the story from the Shivchei HaAri, where the guy puts the ring on the finger in the ground in the cemetary in Tzfat and is mikadesh a corpse, some camper tried to show how the story wasn't true based on a halachik problem with the story.

"Listen, theres yiddishkeit and then there's chassidishkeit," he responded. He started to walk away mumbling under his breath, "You guys are all litvaks, right?"

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Our trip continued on to our own waterpark where certain YU roshei yeshiva were seen tubing and swimming. (Yes, pictures were taken. No, pictures will not be posted.) Dovi F. was in his element performing dolphin tricks and posing for his big fight.


I managed to sneak away for a little and take some pictures of the beautiful land...

In general, its interesting carrying a camera everywhere. I always hope that nobody is around to give me weird looks when I sometimes carry it into the mikveh area on my way to davening in the morning. I carefully face it towards the wall in order that nobody has a chashash of any self timer-tricks.

While on the topic of creepy camera antics, I've found that whenever I'm sent on an NCSY mission to photograph teenagers from the Five Towns playing an assortment of sports, i often end up wandering off and taking pictures of israeli children with flowing peyos. Is that creepy? I don't mean to do it in a creepy way but they just make for better pictures. Nonetheless with the "good touch/bad touch" talk at the orientation and the constant reminder not to touch campers, I feel like in the world we live in taking pictures of children could be one of those things classified as borderline.


That's it for now. Shabbos is to be spent in Yerushalayim with some Stollenicks (AP HaLevi, Ben Oded, Thriller...) and hopefull we'll make it to Rav Machlis at some point. Hope everyone is staying strong and still staying indoors.

Until next week...
a guten Shabbos to one and all from Zion.