My life's next journey...

It has been too long since my last entry. I blame the absense on my inability to translate my feelings and current life situation into coherent sentences. Numerous times I tried to write an entry but couldn't string together the first sentence. I'm usually wordy, not wordless! Even now, as I sit here at work trying to write this entry, I'm not sure where to start and what to say.

Ok - in case you haven't heard, I found the most AMAZING graduate school. It's called SIT (School for International Training) Graduate Institute. Check out the Web site - www.worldlearning.org. I stumbled upon the program and then applied a couple of weeks later. I've since been accepted and am in the process of figuring out my finances. I'll either be moving to Vermont for the program this September or the following year. I truly feel as though I've found a way to combine my passions and I'm excited for my future!

Below is my admissions essay. Feel free to comment!!!!

“Your enthusiasm inspires people,” says the fortune in my wallet.

Nestled between bank cards and folded bills lies the message that is the guiding force for my life. If I carried my passport with me every day, I’d place the fortune amidst the colorful stamps that fill its pages. Intercultural experiences have ignited my passion within and have propelled me on a journey to inspire others to experience life beyond the comfort of their home. A Masters in Intercultural Service, Leadership and Management from SIT would enable me to work in an environment in which I could encourage intercultural exchanges and inspire social change.

With an American mother and an Israeli father, I was raised in a culturally-rich and diverse environment; every effort was made to expand my horizons far beyond the almond orchards and dairies of the rural California farm town in which I grew up. I did not always have the opportunity to venture to different parts of the world, but my parents had and through their eyes, I traveled the globe. As a child, I trick-or-treated for UNICEF, ate gyros at Greek festivals, danced at Native American powwows and brought falafel to school for “favorite food” assignments. At home we discussed world issues and cross-cultural opportunities, and I was taught to believe that with experience, knowledge, understanding and respect, I could make a difference in the world and that peace is possible.

I learned to appreciate my colorful upbringing, to embrace it and to expand upon it. After graduating from the University of California, Irvine with a B.A. in Psychology, I set out to experience life abroad. I made a conscious effort to immerse myself in new surroundings as a participant in the life of the community, rather than as a tourist.

In 2005 I moved to Greece and obtained my certificate for Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) from Via Lingua in Corinth, Greece. I was then assigned to teach English in a fishing village on the Greek island of Evia. My Greek students taught me about their culture and customs and I taught them English.

I then moved to Israel where I enrolled in an ulpan program at Kibbutz Yotvata. I spent six months working and learning Hebrew with people from more than 10 countries.

Those six months were among the best of my life. Kibbutz Yotvata is located in southern Israel, not far from the Jordanian and Egyptian borders and miles from the conflict and civil unrest of the Gaza Strip. Date palm trees were scattered throughout the land and the enchanting desert mountains changed color at sunrise and sunset. I lived in a desert paradise.

My fellow ulpanists were just as colorful as my surroundings. Kibbutz Yotvata attracts people from all over the world: Sweden, Germany, Austria, Russia, Argentina, Brazil…the list goes on and on. In the beginning, we relied heavily on English and communicated through hand gestures and facial expressions. Some had flawless English, others could barely be understood, and a few spoke no English at all. The beauty of the ulpan program was that half the week was spent learning Hebrew.

Through total immersion in Hebrew, we learned to communicate with each other and to navigate the streets of Israel. If we didn’t know the Hebrew word, we threw in English. Through stories about life in our respective countries, I learned about other cultures and life in other parts of the world.

Kibbutz Yotvata, where many of the permanent members of the kibbutz are from other countries, presents a microcosm of cultural understanding in the middle of a war-torn country. Kids run free, many languages are spoken and doors are left open. At times, I was so caught up in life in this colorful desert oasis that I didn’t think about the strife on the other side of the country. When soldiers came home to the kibbutz after facing weeks of conflict and cultural unrest, I was shocked back to reality.

The situation in the Middle East has always been an issue close to my heart. My Israeli father has lived most of his life in America, although he served in the Israeli army and knows the Arab-Israeli conflict first hand. My mother spent her twenties traveling throughout the Middle East collecting traditional Palestinian dresses, learning to cook Lebanese food and speaking Arabic. Although my mother looks Middle Eastern and is very interested in the culture, her grandparents were Russian Jews.

Both my mother and father believe in the importance of cultural understanding and I believe most people in the Middle East want peace. In September, 2003 my mother and I participated in the Oseh Shalom/Sanea Al-Salam Peacemakers Weekend at Camp Tawonga near Yosemite National Park. It was Camp Tawonga’s first Jewish Palestinian family peacemakers weekend. Through dialogues, I learned about how the conflict in the Middle East affected people of all ages and ethnicities. The experience remained fresh in my mind while I was living in Israel.

I left Israel with a profound love for language, cultural exchange and with friends around the world. Since my return to the United States in 2006, I have searched for ways to expand and take advantage of my experiences abroad. Back in California, with visions of inspiring people via travel writing, I enrolled in the Extension Certificate Program in Print Journalism at UCLA. Upon completion of the program, I moved to New York with the goal of immersing myself in the publishing industry.

During the short time I’ve lived in New York, I’ve interned at a travel publishing company, tutored and served as a substitute teacher in inner city schools, and worked at The Museum of Jewish Heritage. I hear a handful of languages in the workplace and on the street. Living in New York City among people from around the world, I’ve come to realize that there is more I can do to inspire people than simply writing about my own experiences. Itching for an educational and meaningful opportunity abroad, I looked into the Peace Corps. While searching the Peace Corps website, I came across SIT.

The courses SIT offers, the diverse student body and faculty, and the overall atmosphere and mission of SIT intrigue me. Through courses such as “Cultural Activism” and “Intercultural Communication” I will be able to draw upon my past experiences and cultivate my passion. Exposed to SIT’s outstanding courses and a culturally-rich environment, I anticipate contributing to classroom discussions and making good use of the intercultural atmosphere.

Ultimately, I would like to manage exchange programs that emphasize intercultural understanding and service, and to implement programs that will enrich the lives of everyone involved. I am enthusiastic about the cultural awareness that comes from traveling and experiencing other cultures. It is through such experiences that peace is possible. Getting a Masters in Intercultural Service, Leadership and Management from SIT would enable me to make a difference, one passport stamp at a time.