Five highly intense days.
We met the UJA team, were dinner guests in people’s homes, met impressive men and women of all forms of Judaism, social activists, people in senior positions in various roles and organizations, NYPD officers, Israeli entrepreneurs, artists, and cultural figures. We held the Social Initiatives Marathon in English on a roof in New York, with a cool breeze blowing. We walked a lot. We felt the New York energy, and mainly the group’s energy! What a great group, truly. It is hard to summarize a personal journey, and a group journey in a different atmosphere, and countless sessions, conversations, and discussions, but there is no doubt that the group journey is so unique in this journey. To experience not only yourself but also the echo of others’ experiences. Experiences relating to content, identity, and world views, within a group that is as diverse as possible (really) is the true Co.Lab experience. As two of the participants testified at the end of the journey:
“There are conditions that can form only within a group, something that generates synergy, the whole is larger than the sum of its parts.”
“The most memorable moment, you ask? It is probably not a moment but more a feeling of togetherness. A rare and elusive together that can be grasped and experienced only in a group of people whose opinion and presence you love and admire. It has been together in excited expectation since the security checks at Ben Gurion airport. Together in sessions and coffee breaks. Together in the excitement of a participant who sees New York for the first time and is blown away by it. This togetherness remains even after the journey. It remains with me.”
