The story unfolds – July 23
Hi folks!
Before I tell you about today, I want to tell you something that I think is pretty special.
If you asked a lot of our campers what Tisha B’Av is before they came to Herzl Camp, many of them probably wouldn’t have had an answer (including yours truly, way back in the olden days of 1988 when I first stepped onto these hallowed grounds). And that’s okay. In fact, that’s exactly why places like Jewish summer camp matter.
One of the great gifts of camp is that our kids don’t just learn about Judaism, they live it and experience it. They begin to understand that being Jewish isn’t just celebrating the joyful holidays. It’s also remembering the difficult ones. It’s recognizing that every tradition, every story, every fast day, every song, and every custom has been carried forward by generations of Jews who believed it was important enough to preserve.
Our campers won’t leave here remembering every date or every historical detail. Not many of us do, I think. But they will leave with something even more valuable…a respect for those traditions and an appreciation that they matter. They begin to understand that these stories are part of their story. Maybe one day they’ll sit at a holiday table with grandparents or great-grandparents and recognize a reference to Tisha B’Av. Maybe they’ll hear someone mention the destruction of the Temples or the Western Wall, and instead of those being foreign words, they’ll have a connection. That’s how Jewish identity is built, not all at once, but piece by piece, year after year.
However, last night at the beginning of Tisha B’Av, during Tochnit Erev, each age group experienced thoughtful, creative programs that helped them understand the meaning behind Tisha B’Av in ways that were engaging and age appropriate.
The evening ended the way Jewish camp so often does through song.
From Eili Eili to Acheinu to Olam Chesed Yibaneh, our campers experienced something that is uniquely Jewish. We don’t ignore tragedy, but neither do we allow tragedy to define us. We remember, mourn, rebuild, and sing. We don’t play the victim, we keep going.
Today we spent time with one of the saddest days on the Jewish calendar. But one of the things that makes Herzl Camp so special is that we can meet every camper where they are in their Jewish journey.
We had campers who observed Tisha B’Av in a very traditional way. Some fasted throughout the day and approached it with the solemnity the day calls for. We made sure they had the space to honor that observance and practice their Judaism in a way that was meaningful to them.
At the very same time, we also remained a summer camp.
Our campers still got to get up on water skis for the first or gazillionth time, climb the rock wall and high ropes course, play World League, create in Amanut, and enjoy all the things that make camp magical.
There was one moment today that really stuck with me. One of our World League teams was missing two players because they were fasting. Without missing a beat, one of the campers simply said, “No problem, we’ll just scrimmage today.” There was no complaining, no eye rolling, and no questioning why. Just an immediate acceptance that their friends were observing Tisha B’Av differently than they were, and everyone adjusted. Then they went out and played hard, laughed together, and had a great time.
That’s pluralistic Judaism at its best. It’s respecting someone else’s practice even when it isn’t your own.
During Tochnit Boker today, for our younger campers, we told the story of Tisha B’Av in an age-appropriate way. Habonim and Amudim walked through a visual gallery that brought the story to life before creating their own drawings from memory. There was something beautiful about that exercise. For thousands of years, Jews have carried these stories forward by remembering them and passing them on. Today our campers became part of that chain.
They then wrote hopes and prayers for themselves and for the Jewish people, just as millions of Jews have done at the Western Wall in Jerusalem, and placed those notes on our own version of the Wall here at camp. It was a simple activity, but a meaningful reminder that even after destruction, hope has always remained at the center of Jewish life.
Our older campers took a deeper dive into Jewish history. They explored not only the destruction of the First and Second Temples, but also the many moments throughout our history when the Jewish people faced enormous challenges, from exile, to the Crusades, to the Holocaust, to October 7th, and asked a remarkable question, what does Judaism actually need to survive?
Working together, they debated what they would preserve if they could only save a handful of pieces of Jewish life. Torah? Israel? Jewish camp? Shabbat? Jewish humor? Acts of kindness? Family? Prayer? Jewish music? It wasn’t about finding the right answer. It was about realizing that every generation has inherited Judaism and then had the responsibility to decide how to carry it forward.
That’s really the story of the Jewish people. At least that’s my take on it. And if I’m being honest (which I always try to be…and I don’t really like when I say that because it could mean that sometimes I’m not), that’s also the story of Herzl Camp.
Every summer we aren’t just teaching activities. We’re helping build proud Jews who know where they come from, who understand that being Jewish includes both celebration and remembrance, and who will someday carry these traditions into their own families.
Tonight, our campers may not remember every historical date they heard today. But I hope they’ll remember how it felt to sit with Jewish history, to honor those who came before them, to respect the different ways their fellow campers/fellow Jews chose to observe the day, and to realize that they are now part of a story that has been unfolding for thousands of years.
I think that’s a pretty remarkable thing for a summer camp to do. So thanks for trusting us to do that and…
Thank you for sending your kid to Herzl Camp!
All is well. Safely rest.
,לילה טוב
Tommy