Every year at the Passover Seder we sing Dayyeinu, that “it would have been enough.” But what is really “enough”?
Rabbi Menahem Leibtag offers a compelling idea that based on Dayyeinu’s placement in the Magid (storytelling) section of the Haggadah, the song is actually about recognizing that each experience of the Jewish people is enough for us to praise God with song, which follows immediately after in the Hallel (praise) section. In other words – none of these things individually would have been enough to save us, but each and every one of them is more than enough to justify us singing God’s praise.
This week, we asked some of our 2024 Rashei Eidah (Unit Heads) to share moments at camp that highlight how the support we provide to each and every individual has the exponential impact of creating a magical praiseworthy experience for our entire community each summer.
Rosh Garinim (Entering 4th/5th Graders)
Sophie Kaufman
When I think about the moments at camp that are worthy of praise, the first things that come to mind are the “bigger” moments: Kabbalat Shabbat by the lake, singing the himnon Ramah (Ramah song) at the end of each camp-wide event, watching Nivonim storm the lake at the end of Yom Sport. These are beautiful moments at camp that are, without a doubt, worthy of praise.
The smaller moments, however, often get overlooked. The everyday interactions between campers, seeing the small ways they support each other, are deeply important and also worthy of praise. I see this in many different forms throughout the summer: a cabin cheering for their cabin-mate who is nervous to get in the lake for the swim test; a child spilling some food in the chadar ochel (dining room) and kids rushing to help clean it up; a camper who forgot the right clothes for a certain activity, and all of their friends offering everything they have in their madafim (dressers). My time at Camp Ramah has taught me to find moments worthy of praise in the mundane. These seemingly insignificant moments are everyday occurrences at Camp Ramah in Wisconsin, and fill each and every camper with a sense of pride, confidence, and Jewish joy.
Sophie Kaufman is Rosh Garinim. This is her second year as a Rosh Eidah, and her 5th year on staff! She is so excited to be back on the kikar.
Rosh Machon (Entering 10th Graders)
Chuck Appel
Camp is such a great place to see community support and praise. In particular, I see this idea manifest itself during Yom Sport each summer. Yom Sport is a day of sport and competition, but it is really about coming together with your team to support whoever is participating, ultimately culminating in a camp-wide relay race as the final event. The captains all gather around the fire trying to burn the rope, their team behind them chanting their names, until the rope finally breaks and they are praised with cheers and screams. Looking back on my own Nivonim summer, I was a captain for adom (red team) and I remember that feeling of the rope finally breaking and the entire team erupting in a huge roar of cheers. For me this is the perfect example of our supportive Ramah Wisconsin community.
Chuck Appel is Rosh Machon at Ramah Wisconsin and can’t wait for what is going to be a great summer!
Rosh Solelim (Entering 7th Grade)
Micah Plofsky
I will always remember my first summer on staff during summer 2021. One day my campers were on the agam (lake). I wasn’t planning to be there with them that day, but for some instinctive reason, I joined anyway. It was at the start of the summer and one of my campers still had not taken the swim test. It was his goal that summer to at least complete the test. It wasn’t easy, but my co-counselor and I sat on the edge of the docks and attempted to convince him to give it a try. The moment he climbed down the ladder filled us with such pride and joy. This support for one of my campers is something that will always stick with me and motivates me to find ways to support all of our campers in reaching their goals.
Micah Plofsky is excited for Kayitz 2024 and can’t wait to be Rosh Solelim and see you on the kikar!
These reflections are just a small glimpse into the many praise-worthy moments we see at camp each summer. We look forward to all that we will experience this summer to embody our summer-long theme of kol yisrael areivin zebazeh, we are all responsible for one another.
