The Trip

My second trip to Israel was nothing short of unbelievable. One thing that I will never get used to is being surrounded by fellow Jews in a country that we call 'home.' If not for Israel, this opportunity would never be available in reality, it would be held captive in the fantasy world that we all talk about every Passover; "Next year in Jerusalem!" Although Passover seders may be one of the few events that still unite fractured American Jewry, we talk about what is a living, breathing entity, with little children no taller than 3' tall speaking marvelous Hebrew and many times, enough English to help confused tourists find their way around the holy city.

Despite the many frustrations I had with the groups' leadership, this trip really blew Birthright out of the water. This time around, I was privileged to do many things I didn't or couldn't do on Birthright. I got to meet up with my family in Beit El twice. I also had my brother and friend with me. We stayed in Jerusalem for the duration of the trip, and living in Jerusalem; i.e. waking up, eating, and other mundane activities feel fundamentally different. For me, it didn't feel like I was under some kind of Sh'china (Holy Cloud) or anything like that, things just felt a little different than usual. There was a different energy inside me. After one of the many very tiring days we had touring the Old City, i was falling asleep on my feet. It had been such a long day, and I had been sweating buckets. But then, as we trekked underground to where the Western Walls' foundation were, I got a shot of energy that lasted me the rest of the night, and I simply cant explain it. I felt like I drank a pot of coffee, but no jitters!

As a group, we stayed at the Sephardic Center and learned at a nearby Aish Yeshiva. When going out to the balcony of the Aish Yeshiva, the Kotel (Western Wall) was in plain view. Later, when I did some research on Aish Ha Torah, I learned that the government of Israel awarded Aish Ha Torah 40% of the land facing the Western Wall. In between classes we would hang out on the balcony and just look at the wall and watch people passing by. The mundane activity of taking a break in between classes was filled with something special, something spiritual.

Going to see neighboring Syria from the Golan Heights was also amazing. Israelis have the unbelievable ability to live next door to people who've tried and tried again to completely destroy Israel through wars of aggression, and at the same time hold peace talks with a willingness to make painful concessions. I whispered to people in my group, this is like climbing the rocky mountains and being able to overlook Afghanistan, or Iraq. In America, our enemies are far away, they might as well be on another planet. With Israel, every decision in war and peace is made with enemies that can clearly be seen from the borders of the country. Our tour guide told us that Israel has technology that enables them to see what Bashar Assad (the dictator of Syria) has for breakfast each morning.

When going to the Dead Sea, we could see beautiful mountains beyond the sea, somewhat obscured by a horizon which made the mountains look surreal. The mountains that we saw behind were none other than Jordan. The Dead Sea was fun, but it was very humid outside and our tour guide only let us hang around for 50 minutes.

Meeting my family in Beit El was great once again. We don't have much family on my father's side, but in Beit El, we have a kind, flourishing, family that is marked by constant simchas such as new births and weddings. Part of one of our visits was spent with our little cousins showing us the many animals near our aunt's house and telling us their names in Hebrew. Our little cousins' English was better than my Hebrew. They showed us deer, goats, rams, ducks, peacocks, & much more.  They take English language classes, and their thirst for knowledge is unbelievable. Aunt Margalit's grandchildren helped tend the garden.

Aunt Margalit filled us in with pictures from the most recent weddings in the family, as well as photos of her family in Israel years ago. Many of the pictures we saw were snapped during various Purim celebrations, and we got to see some very cute pictures of little Gila and little Margalit all dressed up, Margalit as a cowboy with guns and holsters. Aunt Margalit told us how her father was named after my grandfather's father who died while my grandfather was a child. She explained to us all the familial connections of a family fractured by the Holocaust, only to be reunited by a chance visit and our aunts' vigilance. The unspeakable tragedy of the Holocaust could not keep the Jewish people down, and our family is no exception.  

Aunt Margalit's son, Avraham Yitzchak, also showed us computer presentations of pictures collected while serving in the IDF, in Lebanon and in Gaza. The tough conditions, tough training, tough terrain and murderous enemies couldn't do a thing to slow down our cousin and his unit. Avraham Yitzchak discussed the intense conditions he worked in as if he was discussing a grocery list. Many things were inspiring during my trip to Israel, and this was the absolute most.

 

CONTINUED....

Putting the screws on our allies: Change we can believe in?

Charles Krauthammer finds it especially disturbing that the administration is making a point of engaging several prominent antagonists in dialogue, but that it is dictating to Israel.

America will henceforth "start by listening, because all too often the United States starts by dictating." An admirable sentiment. It applies to everyone -- Iran, Russia, Cuba, Syria, even Venezuela. Except Israel. Israel is ordered to freeze all settlement activity. As Secretary of State Clinton imperiously explained the diktat: "a stop to settlements -- not some settlements, not outposts, not natural-growth exceptions."

Back from the Promised Land!!

I just got back from Israel on a trip with not-such-amazing leadership where I got to meet amazing people, including my family in Beit El that I haven't seen since my last trip. I'm super tired, but I'll update this blog after I catch up on tons of sleep. In the meantime, an Eric Hoffer piece....

Eric Hoffer was an American non-Jewish social philosopher. He was born in 1902 anddied in 1983, after writing nine books and winning the Presidential Medal ofFreedom. His first book, The True Believers, published in 1951, was widely recognized as a classic. ISRAEL'S PECULIAR POSITION By Eric Hoffer (LA Times 5/26/68)

The Jews are a peculiar people: things permitted to other nations are forbidden to the Jews.  Other nations drive out thousands, even millions of people and there is no refugee problem.

 Russian did it, Poland and Czechoslovakia did it, Turkey threw out a million Greeks, and Algeria a million Frenchman. Indonesia threw out heaven knows how many Chinese-and no one says a word about refugees. But in the case of Israel the displaced Arabs have become eternal refugees.  Everyone insists that Israel must take back every single Arab. Arnold Toynbee calls the displacement of the Arabs an atrocity greater than any committed by the Nazis. 

 Other nations when victorious on the battlefield dictate peace terms. But when Israel is victorious it must sue for peace. Everyone expects the Jewsto be the only real Christians in this world.  Other nations when they are defeated survive and recover but should Israel be defeated it would be destroyed. Had Nasser triumphed last June he would have wiped Israel off the map, and no one would have lifted a finger to save the Jews. 

 No commitment to the Jews by any government, including our own, is worth the paper it is written on. There is a cry of outrage all over the world when people die in Vietnam or when two Blacks are executed in Rhodesia. But when Hitler slaughtered Jews no one remonstrated with him.  The Swedes, who are ready to break of diplomatic relations with America because of what we do in Vietnam, did not let out a peep when Hitler was slaughtering Jews. They sent Hitler choice iron ore, and ball bearings, and serviced his troop trains to Norway.  

The Jews are alone in the world. If Israel survives, it will be solely because of Jewish efforts. And Jewish resources. Yet at this moment Israel is our only reliable and unconditional ally. We can rely more on Israel than Israel can rely on us. And one has only to imagine what would have happened last summer had the Arabs and their Russian backers won the war to realize how vital the survival of Israel is to America and the West in general. 

 I have a premonition that will not leave me; as it goes with Israel so will it go with all of us. Should Israel perish, the holocaust will be upon us.