This article first appeared on MeaningfulMinute.org “The Shul near my house is under construction. The next Shul is a 45-minute drive away. After this summer I just can’t imagine not going to Shul. I know you’re not supposed to drive on Shabbos but is there any way around this? It just won’t be Shabbos without being in Shul.” “How can I find the courage to stand up to the daily antisemitism that I face in school? I’ve always wanted to say something; after this summer I feel like I have to say something.” “My parents are divorced. My mom is more supportive of my Jewish journey than my father.. How can I retain what I have gained this summer? I have been keeping Shabbos all summer and I don’t want to stop, but am nervous about my father’s lack of support. What can I do to make sure I stay strong?” These are some of the questions I fielded at a recent NCSY TJJ Shabbaton in Yerushalayim. Each one of these questions is heartbreaking in its own way, but all point to the incredible journey these teens are on. TJJ is a four-week touring experience in Israel for public school students. Many advisors on the program are TJJ alumni themselves. Rabbi Avi Warman, director of TJJ Southern (the trip I joined), provided the teens an incredible experience. You can see it on their faces. The tagline of NCSY Summer is “Best. Summer. Ever.” Ask these NCSY’ers and they will tell you that this was unequivocally their best summer ever. As Mashpia of NCSY Summer, my responsibility for that Shabbos wa
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