By Yoni Siden, Director of Youth Programs at Beth Emet The Free Synagouge in Evanston IL, and Mosh Segel

Mah rabu maasecha Adonai! (How great are your works, Adonai!) is what the Moshavah Aleph chanichim (campers) and tzevet (staff) loudly chant each morning during shacharit (morning t’fillah). And how great the works, indeed! Arriving back at camp yesterday from our second round of out trips (which included hiking, canoeing, cycling, and rock climbing), Mosh campers were ebullient, a little damp, and filled with stories of fears conquered, challenges overcome, and inside jokes whispered. Mosh prides itself in spending time in teva (nature), but they too should pride themselves in living out the Jewish value of chesed (kindness), for out in nature one does not survive without a helping hand. As a new member of Mosh segel (faculty), I was struck foremost by the teens’ deep capacity for collaboration. Falling on a slippery trail? A shoulder was offered to lean on. Nervous about climbing up a sheer rock wall? A crew of supportive Mosh campers was waiting below cheering your accomplishments and pointing out footholds. Bag a little heavy? Share the load with a friend. But it is not, of course, enough for help to be offered; support must be also be received. To watch Mosh chanichim accept help is just as inspiring as watching them offer it – it can be hard to admit that we are fallible, that sometimes we need a supportive hand. Perhaps this too is an example of Adoani’s work, the capacity to give and receive support from a true kehillah (community) when confronting the unpredictable Midwestern summer weather and terrain. As a youth educator, I am deeply inspired by the teens I have the privilege to work with. Young people willing to get a little muddy in the vastness and unpredictability of teva, to reach out to others, and to accept the outstretched hand.