Addy here, reporting on the pre-Shabbos vibes at Snorkel and Study 2015.
My friends at home always joke that getting ready to go out is as fun as the actual party. Well, Shabbos is the same. When you’re surrounded by women, with no chit chat of boys to distract you, getting ready for Shabbos is festive and stress free.
Each of us thinks about how we’ve progressed throughout the week, mentally preparing for the reflective time that is Shabbos. I think about each of the classes I went to and how they will inform my Judaism. I think about the honor of talking one on one with Rabbi Manis Freidman. I think about his total humility. I think about each of the women who stood up and told their stories of confusion, joy, and growth in Judaism. The ones who cried in the way you do when your finally with family. As I write this, the women around me powder their faces, polish nails, and ponder how this blue-skies-Shabbos might bring us all even closer together.
One humble housemate of mine, Molly, talks about how she started hosting people at her house after Shabbos. She brings the women at her Chabad house to her apartment to “nosh” and have “dmcs” or “deep meaningful chats” after services. What began as a few close friends has turned into her “mishpacha” or “family”.
This community all stems from Molly, who is so humble and giving you would never know she had revolutionized her campus. She is the one who, will look over knowingly at you, when she can tell a class has hit a soft spot in your heart. Her excitement rumbled through the apartment, through me, and hopefully throughout this whole Shabbos.