Elie Wiesel Journey

When my parents informed me of a possible trip to Israel last spring, I brushed it off. There had been so many times that they had suggested trips that eventually fizzled out when we couldn’t get it together in time. This prospective trip to Israel was different, though: it would include my Dad’s parents, brother and niece and it would occur in tangential celebration of my brother’s thirteenth birthday. I say tangential because my family isn’t really Jewish and we certainly aren’t observant. My Dad is Jewish, he went to Hebrew school and had a bar mitzvah but my Mom is Christian, raised in a church-going household. Having two parents of different religions is quite common in modern times, and so I have never had any internal turmoil in trying to decide between two religions. Since we celebrate both Christmas and Hanukkah, I have mostly just felt content in receiving twice as many gifts as my peers. …show more content…
While I was definitely moved by his writing, there wasn’t a seismic shift in my perception of my own Judaism. But there were certainly remnants of Night that remained on my mind as I embarked on my journey to Israel. With Judaism only marginally related to my life, a trip to Israel did not seem relevant or fun, chiefly because spending time with my extended family is not a favorite activity of mine. But the trip did actually apparate and I found myself in the Newark airport with a pack of Marcuses (and one Brandenburg) awaiting a flight to Tel Aviv. Was I happy about it? Not especially. Was I acting like the responsible seventeen year old that I claim to be? Not at all. But whether or not I was keen on boarding a ten hour flight, it was happening and I would have to handle it one way or