By Robin Du
I was born in Israel and I have visited Israel many times. But the trip I took this past summer was the most meaningful trip to Israel I have ever had. All my past trips have always been to see family; I had never actually seen many of the usual tourist attractions.
Going to Israel with all my friends was a truly inspirational experience. I was privileged to have the opportunity to visit my homeland and see all the attractions I had never seen, and I also was able to witness my friends experiencing Israel for the first time ever.
I remember going to the Western Wall on our first day of touring. I had visited the Western Wall many times before, but this time it was different. Before we got to the Western Wall, our tour guide walked us through the Old City 
of Jerusalem and explained its rich history. I had never learned about the history of Jerusalem in any of my previous visits to Jerusalem, and I was so fascinated to discover all the different cultures that had left their mark on the city. Our tour guide, Ron, took us to his favorite spot overlooking the Western Wall. I remember looking down at the Wall and feeling happy and proud. I saw that one of the other tour groups from my trip had already reached the Wall, and I could see my friend standing about thirty feet from the Wall just looking at it. It was his first time in Israel.
When we finally got to the Wall, I had an experience I will never forget. For some people, the Western Wall is just a wall, but for others it is the holiest site of the Jewish people. Many of my friends were awestruck and simply stood gazing at the Wall for several minutes, while others began to cry. I went up to the Wall and touched it, I felt the coarse stone as I ran my palm over the ancient bricks, and I felt the notes that contained the hopes and wishes of our people. I stood there for almost ten minutes thinking, and that day I realized what the Wall meant to me. I see it as the holiest site in the Jewish world, and a symbol of our people’s perseverance. We have been through so much and we have more than just survived— we have thrived. Countless nations have tried to destroy us, but today, here we stand while they are gone. Like us, the Wall has stood for years and years and has not fallen.
Once I understood what the Western Wall meant to me, I began to pray. I felt that I had to pray at the Western Wall while I was there. Every time we pray, we always stand and face the direction of the Western Wall, even if it happens to be thousands of miles away. I thought to myself, “Thousands of people are praying in the direction of the Western Wall right now, how can I not say a few prayers while I am right here?” I am not religious, so I just said a few small prayers that I knew, the Shema and the beginning of the Amidah. When I finished praying, I went to find my friends. I wanted to be with my friends as we all stood at the Western Wall. There is something powerful about being surrounded by your best friends as you visit the holiest site of your people. My friends and I embraced each other and we were all grateful to be in Israel together.
This visit to the Western Wall furthered my connection to the Jewish people and the State of Israel.
Robin Du, the son of Tamar Hershkovitz and Ziyun Du, is a senior at White Station High School. Memphis Jewish Federation’s Lemsky Endowment Fund provided him with a Teen Israel Experience grant to help offset the costs of his BBYO program in Israel in Summer 2016. All rising juniors and seniors in the Memphis Jewish community are eligible for grants of up to $2500 to attend a recognized teen summer program in Israel. Teen Israel Experience applications for summer 2017 will be available in November at www.jcpmemphis.org/lemsky-endowment-fund.