By Brianah Caplan
One of the real treats of our Opening Conference this year was getting to sing in a kumzitz with Yonina. Being a Jewish musician myself, I was so excited to get to spend Motzei Shabbat singing together with them, as well as all my newly formed friends in the cohort.
We started around a campfire outside, but after it began raining, we quickly moved to an indoor space inside the hotel. After we finally got settled there is when the magic really started to happen. Yoni and Nina (the two individuals that make up Yonina) began singing with huge smiles on their face, and they spread to everyone who was sitting in the room.
Truth be told, I’ve been a huge Yonina fan since they first became popular on Facebook and YouTube. I would wait every week for them to post a new video, and always used to save it to watch as I was getting ready for Shabbat on Friday Afternoons.
While getting to hear Yonina was such a blessing, the bigger blessing to me was getting to experience how I best connect to Judaism with all of my friends. Seeing everyone sing, clap, and tap their feet in harmony put such a big smile on my face. For me, it was the first moment where I really felt a strong sense of really felt a strong sense of community with Cohort 6 - most of whom I had met just four days prior.
On a personal level, having this wonderful musical experience to end Shabbat really filled my neshama with so much joy. My favorite things in life are those that blend Judaism and Music together, and having the opportunity to sing with Yonina was truly a special form of that.
