This May, the junior grade led the school in the first wave of trips to the Nova Exhibit downtown. Accompanied by many faculty members and peers, the juniors braved the subway wearing Israeli flags as capes, and hostage necklaces out to the exhibit.

As students who traveled to Israel over intersession on the school mission, we were very anxious about whether the exhibit would be too overwhelming or underwhelming after being at the site of the massacre in Rei’im. The disturbingly accurate representation of the campsite, paired with memories of being at the scene, was extremely intense. Between the tents storing phones and TVs playing voicemails and videos, burnt cars brought over from Israel, and a room with photos of those killed and taken captive at Nova, the exhibit was extraordinarily touching and inspiring. Walls were filled with last words of victims and stories from survivors, and tables were filled with items left at the festival. It was a truly haunting exhibition designed to give viewers the closest feeling to being at the festival itself. 

The exhibit offered a unique glimpse into the festival that being in Rei’im did not. Being at the site of the massacre made visitors feel heavy. It was like the angel of death was hanging around, making another trip to collect the souls lost because there were too many to carry in one trip. The heaviness felt at the site of the Nova Massacre is unforgettable and horrifying. The festival grounds turned memorial shared the stories of too many victims to count and more emotions than are explainable. I anticipated that being at the exhibit downtown wouldn’t make me feel the same. However, the pain I felt at the Nova exhibit was a different kind of pain than the one I felt at the site of the massacre. Both pains were distinct and heavy, but in different ways that overall enhanced my remorse for those affected on October 7. By seeing and learning in different ways, by going to Israel and seeing kibbutzim and the site of the Nova Massacre and by going to this exhibit, paying tribute, and hearing from someone who escaped, my support for Israel and all those affected by the attacks is only heightened. 

Going to the Nova exhibit was one way to say Hineni and show support for Israel after the tragedy of October 7. It is crucial that every student goes to raise their awareness of the horrors that took place at the festival and support Israel. That is who we are as a people and what we as Ramaz students must continue to do to show that we will always stand up for Israel.