Worth the Weight

This summer at KH, has tested our limits of what we can accomplish, both internally and externally. This past night was no exception. As shabbos came to close, we journeyed to Caesarea and met up with Rav Yair and Talpiyot. When we got off the bus, we all started going crazy and danced and I thought this night was going to be a fun night, to bond with my peers. I was mistaken. We were told to get into three lines, pairs of two, and keep quiet. The night that was full of ruach turned to a solemn and real tone. We began our journey carrying the stretcher across the beach. The stretcher hurt, it was heavy, our feet were sandy, and the water persistently splashed on our feet. Everyone was aching and wailing. We just wanted the journey to end. As we came to a close, people stood up and said who the person in their life that inspires them to keep going. For me, I now have definitive a definitive answer: the kids. Whenever the pain got tough and I wanted to just go to the back of the line or drop the stretcher, I would just think of one of the kids and try to imagine how much pain they must have in their lives. Therefore, I turned carrying the stretcher not into a physical battle, but an internal one. I hope to carry this experience with me forever as something I can look back on and help me through future hardships. I hope to give the kids my all, because helping them only helps push me further.