Levitucus 19:3

I think Leviticus 19:3 is not only my most cherished verse of the chapter, but I think it's the one that I hold closest to my heart. "Each of you must respect your mother and father, and you must observe my Sabbaths. I am the Lord your God" This verse is broken up into two different parts, the first, honor your parents, and the second, honor Shabbat. For me, the two don't sync up in my life so closely. But when I think about Shabbat, I get taken back to the dozens of camp Shabbats I've spent with my best friends, and for those memories I have my parents to thank. I don't celebrate Shabbat at home too often because my family gets so busy during the week that our weekends are either packed, or we're all too tired to do anything. So, when I have the opportunity to celebrate Shabbat, I really try to soak it all in. I've noticed that some of my favorite memories are the camp Shabbats; everyone is dressed in white, and excited for dinner, dancing, and singing. My favorite memories revolve around those Shabbats, and the joy that they bring me. God tells us to honot Shabbat, and when I'm given the opportunity to, I find myself so happy, so peaceful, and so thankful. When God sasy to honor your parents, it reminds me of how lucky I am for my parents, and for the opportunities, like camp and EIE, and I am so appreciative of them for all that they allow me to do. It is because of my parents and their support of allowing my Jewish identity to grow that has shaped me to be the person I am, and has given me a fairly clear picture of what I want to do with my life.

This picture is the classic camp Shabbat, and it's this moment that reminds me of Leviticus 19:3. First of all, it's Shabbat which is absolutely beautiful and peaceful, and it's in these moments that I am so appreciative for my parents. Because I'm Jewish, I feel like it is an honor to my parents by celebrating Shabbat and keeping my Jewish identity strong so that it last throughout my life and onto my future generations. Being able to experience Israel together has allowed me to realize how luck I am to be here, how lucky I am to have this opportunity to spend Shabbat together, and enjoy this life-changing experience together. It relates to Leviticus 19:3 because it shows the importance of celebrating Shabbat and the importance of appreciating your parents. This picture shows just how magical and amazing Shabbat is, and how beautiful it is which conntinues to remind me how lucky I am to be able to spend time at camp, here in Israel, because that gives me the chance to celebrate Shabbat. But what is more important is how to appreciate how lucky I am to be here in these moments, these moments that shape who I am. These moments, Shabbat at camp, give me a whole new meaning to how amazing camp is, but more importantly, how a amazing Shabbat is, and without the support of my parents, I wouldn't have these moments, these memories, these Shabbats. I would not be able to be the person I am, and do the things I've done without the support of my parents. So when God says to honor your parents, and honor Shabbat, I find that it is so important for me to do both, because by celebrating Shabbat, and proudly showing off my Jewish identity, I am at the same time, honoring my parents.