On September 24th I will be embarking on a journey that will pull me away from Tel Aviv and bring me back to the city that will forever hold the most special of places in my heart; Jerusalem. I will be moving to East Jerusalem for one month to being a riveting internship at the Palestinian Israel Journal, a co-owned journal dedicated to bringing information on the Palestinian Israeli conflict from each side and perspective. I would love to dedicate this whole post to talking about the journal, since it is so fascinating, but I think it would be better to let those interested read up on it for themselves. I invite anyone interested to look at these websites and see what an amazing project this journal is. I feel so blessed to say that I am now apart of this establishment dedicated to furthering the peace process in the region.
http://www.pij.org/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palestine–Israel_Journal
The interview went swimmingly well, and I loved hearing about all of the projects that will soon be taking place at the journal. Along with conferences, radio shows, and another quarterly issue, there are chances for interns to travel, research, write, blog, and be as involved as they care to be at PIJ. Knowing my personality I think it is safe to say that I will be doing all that I can to gain as much experience, exposure, and knowledge as I can. The great thing about Jerusalem being so close to Tel Aviv is the fact that I will get to continue my internship during the school year and really grow with this organization. For the first time I truly feel like my life's direction is becoming clearer. I still don't know what I am meant to do, but I know that the things I will be partaking in here in the Middle East will get me to where I am meant to go. I truly believe that everyone has a a purpose, and I feel like I am on the exact track to discover what mine is.
I feel truly blessed every day to be here in a place that I love, studying what I love, and working towards a goal that I am so passionate about. I can't stress enough how much I hope that all of the loved ones in my life have this same kind of feeling about what they are doing. I know now, more than ever, how important and crucial it is to follow your dreams regardless of what the world around you may think. There was once a time, though it's hard to believe, when I almost gave this all up for something that now is only a shadow of a memory. I shudder to think that I almost missed out on all of this, and can only thank God that I was given the clarity to see that my dreams should never have to be sacrificed for anyone or anything. We only have one chance at this thing called life, and it is a slap in it's face to not take every amazing opportunity that comes your way. As I look back on the last 26 days that I have been here, I have a profound joy in knowing that I am living and breathing my father's advice; DO EVERYTHING. MEET EVERYONE. DON'T CLOSE YOURSELF OFF. Each day here has brought me a new adventure, and, God willing, each coming day will be equally filled with new excitements.
Now it is off to look for apartments in Jerusalem, study for my test tomorrow, and get a good night sleep. Today was a big day and I have so much to be thankful for! Tomorrow is Dana's birthday so we are venturing out to the Namal (port) of Tel Aviv for some celebrations, Susanna and I are planning another trip to Jerusalem for a big arts fair, and Wednesday I will be going to Caesarea for a Jazz festival with the other overseas students. Such an exciting week ahead :-)
Until Tomorrow Then <3,
Jordana Simone
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