Glimpses of Goodbyes: Gratitude, Growth, and Getting Involved at YU

It’s hard for me to say goodbye.

To the opinions editors, I apologize again for sending this in so late, it’s

hard for me to say goodbye.

A few years ago, a close friend of mine showed me a trick to prepare to say goodbye to a significant part of my life. It goes like this:

Imagine.

Imagine you're on your way back from graduation. You've driving in the car/taking the train back home with those who've celebrated with you, and you get back home.

You walk inside your room, walk to your bed and lie down face up, looking at the ceiling fan turning. You take a deep breath and the amazing day behind you has started to settle in your mind as you reflect. You've just finished your undergrad academic career. You’re remembering the amazing day you’ve just had at Madison Square Gardens, the hard work and effort you put into your last set of finals, the senior dinner and those last moments with your friends walking the halls of YU for a final time. And then you realize that all of this is behind you now, and all you can do is relive the moments through your memory.

Now stop imagining.

We still have these moments ahead of us. We can still cherish each and every moment and every relationship we’ve made. Embrace the few weeks left as ones that are both the end of an era and ones that now also herald a new and exciting one. 

As I have started to reflect on the time I’ve spent at YU, perhaps the greatest highlight of the mark I’ve tried to make at YU has been my involvement with student council. For three years, I had the privilege of serving as a representative of my peers and working alongside a talented and dedicated team to make a positive impact on our campus community. Through this role, I have honed my leadership and teamwork skills, and have learned the importance of communication, collaboration, and empathy. I have also hydrated many individuals with free cases of water. It has been a truly transformative experience, and I will always be grateful for the friendships and memories that I have made through this organization.

There’s a powerful idea in Masechet Moed Katan 28a shared by Rav Nachman to Rav in a dream that the greatest of us leave this world like removing a piece of hair from a bowl of milk. I hope I can get to that point eventually, but for now, I will keep saying: it’s hard for me to say goodbye.

Congrats to the Class of 2023,

David Lifschitz

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Photo Caption: Yeshiva University Senior grade graduating at Madison Square Garden