Hello, my name is Harrison Lieber. I was born in Miami Beach and have lived there my whole life. I am a sophomore at Ransom Everglades, a private high school in Coconut Grove, Florida. I, along with my family, am orthodox Jewish. After I applied and was accepted to Ransom Everglades, my parents and I decided I would go there, even though I would miss out on getting Jewish education. Since elementary school, my only real Jewish education was preparing for my bar mitzvah and going to synagogue every shabbat. My dad, throughout the past five years in middle school and high school has shared his passion of Israel with me. Coming here for four months always seemed a little bit crazy, but once I got the fellowship, I knew I could not pass up on such a great opportunity. Being here for a whole semester gives me the opportunity to do so many new and interesting things. I have the chance to make a whole new set of friends, although if I had to guess, I would say these kids will be more like family by December. I have only had five Israeli History classes so far and I already know so much more about Israel’s government and history. When I hear things about Israel while in the United States, or really anywhere but Israel, it seems so distant. Being here in Israel and visiting these historic sites really brings everything to life. Seeing things first-hand makes it hard not to feel a personal connection to our Israel and our Jewish history. There are also all of these little things that come along with doing a semester abroad that you don’t get to experience from just being home. There are a lot of responsibilities that come with living with other kids instead of your parents; you need to learn to really take care of yourselves. It is very hard for a group of teenage boys to keep a room clean, but it is something we know we have to do to stay healthy, and well, clean. Also, not everyone has the same schedules so that affects when certain people have time to do things. Some days, when I have classes all day, I need to get all my work done in the afternoons, after dinner. When I am doing my homework and a bunch of my friends are hanging out, it is hard not to put my homework on hold. I am slowly learning to be more focused and dedicated to taking my time and getting my homework done right. I have been trying not to use up all of my spending money on all of the amazing kosher food in Hod HaSharon, which has proven difficult as well. I am sure that by the end of this trip, every single kid will know very well how to use an ATM machine. I am so excited to see what else I get to learn and experience on this trip and I am so happy to be here, in Israel, spending my semester with AMSHI.