Errashadiya, Morocco- Day 2

Today, Tuesday, was our day of community service. From about 9:30 am until 3 pm or so we helped restore a 370 year old shul in the city of Errashadiya. 

After the daze from the paint thinner odor wore off and we got the paint off our hands, we made a quick stop by the date souk in Errashadiya. 

From there we drove another few hours to Erfoud where we loaded jeeps just as it got dark and drove almost an hour through desert. Somehow we ended up at our hotel, which seemed to be an oasis right on the edge of the Sahara. We’re waking up early to watch the sunrise while playing in the sand dunes of the Sahara.

While I sit under some of the most magnificent stars I, or I assume anyone has ever seen, I thought I would share some thoughts, per critique of my lovely sister. She told me to try to make these blog posts more personal, and the best way to do that, I think, is to give you guys not only an insight to our adventures, but to also give you some insight into the many, many thoughts flowing through my head.

So here are some thoughts I wrote down in my phone so I would be able to share them with you. (And I decided to sprinkle in some pictures of Morocco because I want you to see them, but I don't know where else to put them)

While on these trips, in these countries, doing things I never thought I’d do in a million years, I am extremely happy. There is nothing else I would rather be doing with my year. There is nothing better to be doing with my time, and there is no better time to be doing what I’m doing.

The growth each of us on Kivunim is going through is immense and even though we’re all doing the same thing, we are all growing in 36 different ways.

The best part of this year, arguably, is that we have an entire year to stimulate our brains like they’ve never been stimulated before. We are constantly exposed to 3 languages at one time, we are learning about different religions and cultures while also learning about our religion and culture, and we get to have first hand experiences in places like we’ve never seen before. Being able to have thoughts like these, among hundreds or even thousands of others, for an entire year is something we may never get again, and for this I am so extremely appreciative I cannot even begin describe how grateful and happy I am.

"I realize my ignorance the more I travel." -PG