What Really Makes An Experience?

It's been a year since I spent a semester in Jerusalem and I miss it like crazy. Even after a year, people ask me what it was like, but I'm usually at a loss of what to say. In my messy collage of adjectives, however, one thing consistently comes up: how wonderful my fellow students were. No matter what you see and do, what truly defines your travel experience are the people.

(Jeru Reunion, November 2015)

This past weekend I had a reunion with my Jerusalem family and the instant connection we all had even after a year is what life really is all about. Travel is wonderful, learning about other cultures is inspiring, and life-changing experiences are abundant, but there is nothing like traveling with people, experiencing life-changing moments and forming an eternal bond with them.
As it says in The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, "To see the world, things dangerous to come to, to see behind walls, to draw closer, to find each other and to feel, that is the purpose of life" (italics added). If I could go back to Jerusalem, I would, but without these people, it would not be the same. Even during the experience, as evidenced in my journal, getting to know these wonderful people was one of the most important things I experienced.

(Jeru Crew at the southern Temple Mount excavations, October 2014)

Looking back from the eternities ahead of us, I'm sure we will all agree that this life would not have been the same, would not have been as rich, if it were not for the people in our lives.