Jewish School-life and a Jewish Life

By Shira Novack
KOC Editor
Binghamton University

This summer I’ve been spending a lot of my time working on various aspects of my medical school application process. It’s been a busy, exciting and occasionally stressful process. As a result of this, I have been continually reminded of the fact that this will be my last year returning to Binghamton and the amazing Jewish community there.

I love the fact that Binghamton not only has a diverse population on its campus, but also has a diverse Jewish population. While at school, I’ve met so many different types of Jews and learned that there are many different ways for people to consider themselves practicing Jews. My interactions with others and my involvement with the Jewish community have shown me new ways of balancing my religious observance with the other aspects of my life. I’ve not only grown as a person at school, but also as a Jew.

I’ve been participating in Jewish life on campus since the beginning of my first year at Binghamton. At the end of my first week, I went to Hillel’s Friday night Conservative services and then went to their free Shabbat dinner in the food court. I still remember sitting down at a table with two other new students and not standing up until three hours later. One of those students and I still spend practically every Friday night together at Shabbat dinner. Last year, I was the co-chair of KOACH, and one of the friends I made at that first Shabbat dinner was the co-chair of Kesher (the Reform college outreach program. The best part is how my friend and I would run into each other on Friday afternoon, setting up for our respective services and then we would reunite at our Shabbat dinner table. All of this involvement for me has solidified the fact that being Jewish is a part of my life; trying to live without it is like depriving myself of some necessary sustenance.

Before I started college, I wasn’t really aware of the obligation to wash hands before meals. Now it’s a tradition I have made my own. My friends and I even have our own little spin on it. After doing our ritual washing of hands on Friday night, we always flick the water at each other instead of drying our hands. It’s a way for us to mark this as something special and it’s fun (something to look forward to at the end of a stressful week).

I’m excited to go back for another year, but at the same time I’ll miss the people who have graduated. I know I still have one year left and I am looking forward to making more memories, as well as meeting more wonderful people through my involvement with Hillel and KOACH. Whatever happens after this year, and wherever I end up, I will bring my memories of my Jewish experiences at Binghamton with me and use them to help find a place for Judaism in my life.

[Posted 8/9/10]