Spring Break 2018

This spring break was magnificent. This was my last break ever while in college, and it was everything I wanted it to be.
I didn't open a book or my iPad. I didn't look at my calendar (for those of you who know me, you know how big of a deal this is for me) or think about anything school-related.
I actually did everything I wanted to do, and more.

I have chosen to write about my spring break experience for several reasons:

1. It's my very last break in college so it is somewhat sentimental for me. 
2. I am inspired by how wonderful my break was. 
3. There are so many memories that I want to share. 
4. So I can look back at this one day and relish in the happiness. 

My break started off with a nice weekend at home. It was my first weekend in five weeks being home. The weekends before I was going away for Shabbat with friends (while this is so much fun, I needed a break)! Every weekend I went away I was traveling at least an hour each way, so I really felt the need to stay home and relax with my family. The awesome thing was that everyone was home and the weather was perfect. Shabbat was super relaxing and I really appreciated not needing to think about the week up ahead. 

Saturday night, as soon as Shabbat ended, I went up to Rutgers University to see a Russian comedian! I got to see two of my friends that I haven't seen in almost a year! The last time I saw them both was on my birthday, last April! We had been planning to meet up for the longest time but never got until now. After the comedian, I went over to my best friend's house on campus and got to see some more friends who I had not seen the week before- but who I still really missed and couldn't wait to hang out with! It was like a mini reunion and it made me really happy!!!

The next day, Sunday, I went over to the library and got to hang out with some more friends! It is always nice going back to Rutgers because I spent two wonderful years there. I really found myself there with these people, and whenever I am there it is as if nothing has changed. I sat in the computer lab for the first time since I had left the school (little things like that matter to me).

After spending most of the day on campus, I went over to my grandparents' home. They live near campus, so it was really convenient. I got to spend some time with them, which was really nice! I will soon be sharing their stories on my blog! I spent the evening with them talking about their lives in Russia and their immigration stories! I got the idea to write about them a while ago. I think it is important to share our history and to be aware of the struggles those before us had faced. It makes us stronger and more aware of where we are coming from. Then we had dinner and I stayed overnight. The next day I went back home to spend Monday-Wednesday with the family. I took it easy.

Thursday I went to a wedding in Brooklyn with my family. It was a lot of fun and nice to be in New York. I love New York! I feel like I belong there. That night I stayed in Manhattan and the next day chilled out with my sister and her boyfriend. Then I went over to Jersey City to meet up with my friend Rosalyn for yet another Shabbaton! We ended up rooming with two other girls, and all four of us hit it off really well! We had SO much fun together! We spent Shabbat with a bunch of really nice and interesting people. The view from Shabbat dinner (we were on the 11th floor of a building in Jersey City which is right across Manhattan) was incredible. We could see the Statue of Liberty and skyline from where we were. We stayed in a building that used to house Russian Jewish immigrants before resettling them in the city, which was very interesting because it's part of my history (well, sort of, since my parents and grandparents were Russian Jewish immigrants).

Saturday night we got to spend the night in an Airbnb for free! The apartment was so nice and in the perfect location- a 5-minute walk from the train to New York, and right by a bunch of bars and clubs. We went out in Jersey City Saturday night before coming back at around 2am. The next day we went into Manhattan! We got some breakfast before going to the Metropolitan Museum of Art for a private pre-Passover Tour.

There was a decent sized group of us, and we became friendly with the other people in the group- even planning another Shabbaton get-together! My sister came to meet up with me and we all went out for pizza together (even our tour guide)!

Afterward, we went into Brooklyn to meet up with some other people and got to see the best view of the city from the rooftop!!

Taking the Hard Way Out

Over the past several months, as I have been inching closer to my college graduation, there has been a lot to consider and to think about. 

One thing that I am really looking forward to, is possibly moving to the city where a lot of my friends live and where there is a younger scene. I have been giving this idea a lot of thought, and it brings me both a lot of excitement as well as fear. This will be the biggest step I will ever have taken.

Despite all of these fears and anxiety that comes along with taking this big step, I have still been strongly considering this move. Although I could easily just stay home where everything is provided for me and there are so many fewer things that I have to worry about, I would much rather do that which is more challenging. 

Why? 

Well, because taking the easy way out is never fun. You may be wondering what is fun about doing something that is hard. Well, my question for you is what is fun about doing something that is easy? It is during the challenging experiences when we really grow and develop as people. Doing what is easy and playing it safe rarely gives one what to be proud of.

I have also learned from experience that doing that which is hard, is oftentimes what usually brings me happiness and feelings of success. I think back to when I was struggling with shyness and social anxiety. I remember being afraid to talk to people or to ask a question in class. I realized that unless I would do that which I was afraid to do- I would continue to feel powerless, disappointed and simply unhappy. 

Later on, I would regret not having made those moves. I realized that the only way that I could feel good inside was to talk to people and ask questions in class. I realized that the more fear I had to do something, the happier I was when I did them. 

Even now I feel unhappy when I get anxious about things and allow my fear to take over. When I do that which brings me anxiety, I feel much more confident in myself and feel pride. If there is anything that I hate, it is losing an opportunity to make myself better. I am oftentimes very hard on myself and rebuke myself for not having said or done something which I had been afraid to do but knew was the right thing. We all have those moments. I think it is safe to say that I would always rather do that which brings me fear than later on feel that I did not do the right thing. Many times we fear what is right because the right decision is more challenging. 

And so you may be thinking to yourself, "taking the hard way out is not really taking a way out at all." However, I digress. 

When doing that which is harder, you are indeed taking the way out. You are taking the way out because it is what will benefit you in the long run. Doing that which is easy is cutting yourself short. Not that we should always search for things to be hard, but I’m just touching on the idea that the majority of things in life that will bring us pride and joy, will require us to overcome challenges and go out of our comfort zones. Doing that which is challenging conditions us to grow towards our goals and desires, which ultimately come with their own set of challenges. 

So I challenge you to do something you have been wanting to do which you haven't done because you were too afraid. I guarantee that you will feel so much better taking this hard way out into a world of self-fulfillment and internal happiness.