This was an exciting week at Midreshet Moriah. The week began with a visit from Alex Claire, an artist who is most-well known for his Microsoft commercial hit, "Too Close". He told his inspirational story of how he ended up as a frum Jew learning Torah in Israel, while still being a successful musician, coming from a kid hanging out at the pubs in England, trying to break into the music industry. He told us about his struggles, such as turning down the chance to tour with Adele, in order to preserve his religious values. Even when his record label threatened to fire him for not singing on Succot, he stayed loyal to Judaism, and later, after Microsoft bought his song and he started topping the charts, the same label was in a bidding war over him. Alex sang a few songs giving Midreshet a private concert of our own.

The week continued with our Masada tiyul. We all hiked up almost equivalent to 98 flights of stairs, and once reaching the top we got a tour and learned the history and significance as to why it is one of the most visited places in Israel. The school then provided us with a fun barbecue where we had dinner and roasted marshmallows. The day continued with a night hike, where we sang songs under the stars and took yet another stroll through the desert, however this time in the night. It was a great ending to a perfect day. 

To end this week, we greeted new Olim who had just made aliyah through Nefesh b’nefesh, and welcomed them to Israel. We made signs, dressed up in blue and white and cheered them on at the airport to show them our support. They were so thankful and happy to see us during this emotional journey. This morning we received a very special letter from another participant at the airport that morning which strengthened us even more and gave us insight into how much our support meant. We are very thankful to have had that zechut.

Carly Gordon and Sehara Goldzal.