"Giving Thanks & Holding Hope" on a (not-so-) ordinary Wednesday

artwork by Holly Moxley

I wanted to post something on Chanukah, one of my favorite times to Remember Jerusalem, but with so much "stuff" filling my inbox, flooding my whatsapp account and spinning my brain, I had trouble sorting it all out and turning it into something meaningful. Chanukah is over now. It's an ordinary Wednesday (Has any day been "ordinary" since October 7?) and I'm still sorting...

Enter D.J. Green, my first cousin, who resides in the southwest of this country, living a very different lifestyle from my own. We are connected by blood and by a shared love of the written word. Deb blogs at www.geologistwriter.com where her well-phrased ideas often strike a chord with me - as did her recent post entitled "Giving Thanks & Holding Hope".

Here is my very slightly edited version of what she posted on November 25. (For the original, click here):

"In the few quiet moments this week, I find myself... 

I was going to continue that sentence, but the pen in my hand simply hovered over the page, stopped by I don't know what... And unlike me, I heeded the pause. Finally, I decided - a period after "myself" was the best end to that sentence. In the quiet moments, I find myself. That was the message I needed to write - to me, for me.... Those words, unspooled on the page, feel like a huge gift. And I am grateful for it. I hope I remember to carry it with me every single day. So, I give thanks for so much that is good in my life, and in the world. And I hold hope - because I choose to hope, rather than despair. I hope for more good, for more love, for more peace - in myself, and in the world."

As she often does, Deb ended her post with a question: "Where/how do you find yourself?"

So, after a rather noisy Chanukah - the holiday of thanks and hope; on this quiet, (not-so-)ordinary Wednesday, here is my answer:  

In the quiet moments, I find myself in places I never would have imagined...

...in the kind face of Shoshan Haran,

a woman my age who was among the second group of hostages freed from Hamas captivity. I might never have related to someone who has dedicated her life to helping farmers in Africa. But now I find myself in her heart of gold. For her release, I give thanks; for her to resume her pre-hostage life unscarred, I hold hope.

...in the sweet smile of Abigail Mor Edan

a 4-year-old American-Israeli, who, too, was released from captivity and reunited with her siblings, her aunt, her uncle and grandparents. But not with her parents who were murdered in front of her on October 7. For her extended, loving family, I give thanks. For her emotionally healthy growth and development, I hold hope.

...in the eyes of Arbel Yehud (age 28) and her brother, Dolev (age 35),

whose fourth child was born while he was - and continues to be - held hostage, with no immediate end to his or his sister's captivity in sight. For them, I hold hope that I will soon be able to give thanks. 

...in the name "Dvir ben Leah", a wounded soldier for whom I have no photo and about whom I know nothing - only that he needs my prayers.

...in duffle bags full of supplies for soldiers

and winter clothing for families who have been displaced from their bombed out homes in Sderot. Bags I helped fill with items I helped purchase. My small contribution to a huge community effort.

For being able to participate, I give thanks. For these efforts to no longer be needed, I hold hope. 

And that is where, in the quiet moments, I find myself - in the hostages, injured soldiers and displaced families of my beloved ancestral Homeland. I am holding hope and yes, I am giving thanks. Because on this emotional Chanukah just passed, I was reminded of the Nes Gadol (great miracle) that happened in the Land of PO (my Chanukah post in 2009, when life was simpler); in the Land where an epic war was won 2,000 years ago and where the lights of thanks and hope still shine brightly today. 

Thank you, Deb, for asking. 

P.S. Just as I was about to hit the "publish" button, this article and video popped up on my screen. The song seemed to me to have been written for this post. Even if you don't understand all the lyrics, it's worth reading and viewing. Click HERE.

Leave...Return...Rebuild...(Repeat...)

So here we are, in the midst of yet another "leave...return...rebuild" cycle of our often turbulent, ultimately triumphant history. Whether we had to leave our Land entirely or "just" our homes in the north or our communities in the south, each time over the past three millenia has been one time too many. Let's pray that this time we will return and rebuild, never to repeat again.

This is not the way I had hoped to introduce my latest book review. But for the past few weeks, much is not the way we had hoped. I thought about postponing the review (again) and instead sharing a sampling of the endless stream of positive memes, inspirational videos and uplifting stories that have been circulating non-stop - but if you're reading this, you've probably seen most of those. And perhaps what we all need right now is a bit of diversion without wandering too far from where are hearts are. "The Return to Yerushalayim", a wonderful work of historical fiction by Yehudis Litvak, accomplishes just that.

Achikam, Evyasar, Kadmiel and Azaria are some of the fictional characters with whom we will travel from Bavel (Babylonia) back to Eretz Yisrael (the Land of Israel); from the exile that followed the destruction of the first Bais HaMikdash (holy Temple) to the return to the Land and the building of our Second Temple. If you were to guess that it was the younger, heartier generation who were the most enthusiastic about the end of the 70 years of waiting, hoping and praying, you could not be blamed. But you would be wrong. "Life is good here in Bavel", the young people said. "Why would we want to leave?" (Sound familiar?) But their elders remembered life before the Babylonian exile. They remembered the miracles in the Temple and their closeness to G-d and they knew it would be worth the long, dangerous trek. So they packed their bags and much of the younger generation followed, in stages. 

On our journey, we meet Ezra, Nechemia and Zerubavel, some of the real-life personalities who led the way to and through this epic time in our history. Cameo appearances are made by Achashveirosh, King Herod and the Chashmonaim, as we relive the stories of Purim and Chanukah and other victories and tragedies of this 400-plus-year period. 

Each of the 29 tales in this 425-page book focuses on a different chapter in this long, roller coaster ride of history. Mrs. Litvak provides detailed sources at the end of each tale, making her facts easily discernable from her vivid imagination. There are no surprise endings in historical fiction. We know the facts - both joyous and devastating. Rather, the surprises come along the way as we piece together what life might have been like for the average man, woman and child who lived during that time. I was a bit disappointed that the book focuses mostly on the men - but I realize that we probably don't have as much source material about the women. Still, I was drawn in to their struggles (some of which don't seem all that much different than some of ours today) and rejoiced with them in their successes. I began the book as a curious onlooker and finished it as a close family member of each of its heroes. 

As I communicated to the author, I wish this book had been written in time to be the text for my high school Jewish history class. With a few repeat readings, I might yet come to fully grasp the chronology of events from about 370 BCE to 70 CE (approx. 3390-3830 on the Jewish calendar). 

The subtitle of the book is "Stories of Hope and Courage". The many memes, videos and messages I've received in the past three weeks are, too.* When a book will be written about the current "matzav" (literally, "situation" but implying so much more), the stories of hope and courage will be no less amazing - but the title and subtitle will be slightly different: "The FINAL Return to Yerushalayim - Stories of Hope and Courage AND THE ULTIMATE REDEMPTION". Meanwhile, to read this excellent, well-researched work is to Remember Jerusalem for what it was and to imagine what it is to be. Soon, please G-d. Very soon. 

*Here's the most recent one to jump out of my phone: 💖

Of Open Books and Rave Reviews

I so enjoyed writing that book review last month and I appreciate the positive feedback I received from the people who read it. So, yeah, I'm working on another one, to Remember Jerusalem from an entirely different perspective. I'm not giving any more hints except to say that I'm almost done with the book and looking forward to writing and sharing my rave review.

Which makes me think about where we are on the calendar right now, as the Supreme Reviewer prepares to open some pretty important books. With that in mind, I present my updated Rosh Hashanah poem. (It's actually been four years since I posted the last version!) Note: I ran into an issue with the spacing so it doesn't really look like a poem but if you read it out loud, it will sound like one.

Rosh Hashanah 5784

We ponder again the year in review, what was accomplished, what's still left to do. Looking back, we can count all the ways we've been blessed and assess how we've scored on G-d's many tests. So many should’ves and could’ves but didn’t. Surely I would’ve if my heart had been in it. No more excuses! Or at least not as many. Gotta work hard to make hardly any.

What have I learned in the year that has passed? That no two people will take the same path. Be it highway or foot bridge, a road lies ahead. Walk yours with G-d, King Solomon said.

Our heartfelt prayers and beloved traditions see us through challenges and transitions. From day to day, from year to year, our faith and our trust calm every fear.

The years come and go in the circle game. Events ever-changing; the cycle, the same. Like wood being shaped by the artisan's lathe, we marvel at eych ha'galgal mistoveyv.

How do I even begin to say "thank You for all that You’ve sent our way"? For the obvious blessings; the hidden ones, too, gently prodding me to reach out to You.

We'll begin a new calendar, start a clean slate, fill it with good deeds and character traits; with memorable moments and meaningful days, months full of emulating G-d’s holy ways.

We'll look for the signs that come from Above, signs of Hashem's unconditional love. Signs of the times, signs of the seasons, time to make changes for all sorts of reasons.

Yomuledet Sameyach! Congratulations, dear Earth, on the 5,784th year since your birth. What shall we wish you on your special day? Global peace. Gentle weather. Prosperity. Each truly awesome piece of our planet is the work of His hands so that we can man it. Inspiring wonder and veneration, gifts to humanity, to every nation.

Soon the air will turn brisk; the foliage, bright. First, the table we'll set and the candles we'll light. The challahs are baked; the honey dish glistens. The shofar will blow; to its call we will listen.

Ripe pomegranates bursting with seeds remind G-d of our merits, not our misdeeds. The angels are ready to plead every case to the Almighty King Whose judgment we'll face. He will open His books, review them and rave, about every character, how each behaved. How we all tried our best to stick to the plot, about who we are and who we are not. 

May He grant us good health and joy that is true, contentment and nachas and simchas "by you". Let this be the year that He takes our hands and leads us back Home to our holy Land. 

May we all exercise our right to return, to our Source, to our Land, to the lessons we learn from our Torah, the treasure that keeps us alive as we wait for Mashiach, soon to arrive.

Now we are ready, the holiday's here. May it be the start of a wonderful year. As we don our finest, it is so nice to know that for Rosh HaShanah we're all Good to Go!

Warm Wishes for a Blessed New Year to You
And Rave Reviews for All That You Do!

Living (the Chareidi Life) in the Land

Just as I was beginning to wonder if I will have anything to blog about until our next trip to Israel, I was given the opportunity to review a newly published book. Perhaps this will be the start of a new direction for my blog. And I can think of no better way to begin broadening my blogging horizons than with Living in the Land by Yoel Berman, published by Mosaica Press.

For some time, I have been a subscriber to Reb Yoel’s email group “Avira d’Eretz Yisroel” (loosely translated as “the holy atmosphere of the Land of Israel”). There, and on his website www.aviraderetzyisroel.orgReb Yoel focuses on promoting successful “chareidi” Aliyah from North America – a goal that he shows to be practical, attainable, and worth striving for – by educating and informing his readers about communities, old and new, that are appropriate for American “bnei Torah and their families”. 

Living in the Land gives you all that education and information – then ices the cake with the inspiration and empowerment to take the plunge. The beautiful cover (painted by Yehoshua Wiseman) immediately sends a subliminal message about the colorful spectrum of Israel’s Jewish population. Yet, statistics show that Aliyah from the “black hat” demographic of Anglo Jewry – and from the United States in particular – is underwhelming. This book aims to turn the tide.

Personally, I am hyper-sensitive to the slightest whiff of “If I made Aliyah, you can/should, too.” No one knows enough about what’s going on in another person’s life to tell them where they should be when. While the book does contain a bit of that attitude, its overriding objective is to whet the reader’s appetite to live in the Land and to help them follow through.

To that end, Reb Yoel introduces us to 50 chareidi families who pursued their dream (or didn't even know they were dreaming until their dream came true!) and are now blossoming and growing on holy soil. To read their stories is to celebrate their accomplishments even if, for now, to live vicariously through them. For those who are not yet dreamers, these stories might inspire them to dream; for those who have been dreaming, these stories might inspire them to act; for those who are already in the process, these stories will surely give them that extra shot in the arm to keep their eyes on the prize and fight the forces that are bound to try to hold them back. Even those who are already settled and perhaps starting to take their Aliyah for granted would do well to read this book and renew their appreciation of the brave, life-changing decision that they made.

The author divides his storytellers by their location. Appropriately, first is “The City of Yerushalayim” which allows us to Remember Jerusalem as the Eye of the Universe that it is. Then, he highlights communities “A Short Ride Away” from the holy city. Lastly, we read about the rest of “A Very Beautiful Country”, in which section I was pleased to see my children’s new hometown of Afula well represented. Regardless of where in Israel one is heading, Aliyah is never “easy” whether logistically, financially, physically, emotionally or socially – and sometimes all of the above. But as we know, it is not meant to be. Our sages from time immemorial have told us that one “acquires” the Land through the trials and tribulations of the effort invested. Those who undertake that effort pray that where there is the will, Hashem will provide the way. More often than not, His kind, compassionate, helping Hand is apparent, as we see in so many of these stories. 

But this book is not just “Storytime with Reb Yoel and Friends”. The final section lists, describes and provides contact information for numerous organizations to help plan and execute a successful chareidi Aliyah. These essential resources and the opportunities they offer did not exist when we moved to Israel. I can’t help but wonder where we would be now if they had been available to us then…

One of my favorite vignettes in the book was written by a Breslever chassid. He explains that “There is an important teaching of Rebbe Nachman (of Breslev) to keep in mind – the middah (character trait) of arichus apayim (patience) is a prerequisite for being zocheh to (meriting) Eretz Yisrael...Be excited, but don’t jump into things; you must have bitachon (trust, based on faith) but be careful and calculated.”  

Those (and many other) words of advice in this work might ring true anywhere on the planet. But the rewards for those who heed them in order to find their place in Eretz Yisrael are astronomically greater than outside Israel. Living in the Land is a glimpse into exactly that and it’s worth every minute of the read.

In his preface, Reb Yoel asks that “if you would like to share your own thoughts and experiences for a future volume…please email me…”. May we all merit to be featured in future volumes of Living in the Land – until there is no Jew left in chutz la’Aretz (outside the Land) to need the inspiration and information therein.

Living in the Land can be found in bookstores in Israel and the U.S. or ordered online in the U.S. by clicking here. 

WHO-ARE-YA?!?

If you're looking for a relaxing, easy-read break from your Pesach (Passover) preparations, this won't be it. But if you'd like some points to ponder as we enter into the holiday of freedom and redemption, come along with me for the next few minutes... 

In my last post, I casually mentioned that the time it takes to drive from Afula to Jerusalem could probably be cut in half if not "for reasons I might go into another time". Well, that time is NOW. Less than two months ago, I would have explained the detour (see purple line in photo on left) as necessary to avoid cities like Jenin, Shechem (Nablus) and Ramallah, all "Palestinian" cities along the most direct route from Afula to Jerusalem (see purple line in photo on right).* One does not travel that road unless one must because, simply put, he might not make it out in one piece. *Click on maps for a closer view.

Hallel and Yagel Yaniv, Hy"d

But now there's a new kid on the block - Huwara. Huwara? Who-Are-Ya?!? I had never heard of the place until two young, handsome brothers were shot dead for doing nothing other than traveling the only route from their home town to Jerusalem. Gone from this world. Plucked from the prime of their lives. May G-d avenge their blood.

I thought: "Gee, maybe I should follow up on that blog post of mine and explain why we went miles out of our way to get from Afula to Jerusalem. But I didn't. Two weeks later, David Stern, an ex-U.S. Marine, driving that same road through Huwara, with his wife and two young children in the car, was shot multiple times.

David Stern and his bullet-ridden car

Miraculously, he and his family lived to tell the tale. "You have to write something", I told myself. I started to but couldn't find the words - just a picture in my mind of my recent dinner at a fine restaurant in Afula where Arab women in their colorful, stylish hijabs sat at tables near mine, savoring meals served by friendly Israeli waitresses. I wish I had taken a photo. How nice for them to be able to go out to eat in Israel proper without a care, without a worry that some Israeli is going to shoot them in the head... Is there any city or town in Israel that a "Palestinian" would be afraid to drive through because he might be killed just for being there? 

Elon and Uri, in hospital

Less than one week after David Stern's near-death, two more Israelis - this time, soldiers - were seriously wounded in a Huwara terrorist attack. (Read about it here.)

WHO are these HUWARAns? And why, when I googled "Huwara", what came up first was the report of a rampage by Israelis on their town??? One had to read well into the piece to find a short sentence about what prompted the rampage. Whoever posted this on Wikipedia gave the world a totally biased, insanely slanted, completely messed up account of what has been happening in the once sleepy "Palestinian" town of Huwara. And the Wikipedia post certainly didn't mention the candies that were distributed to and enjoyed by the local population after each attack. If they were shouting "Hooray for Huwara - we're finally on the map!" they were right. They now join Jenin, Shechem and Ramallah as a place an Israeli dare not drive through unless he must.

As you may have noticed, I put "Palestinian" in quotes throughout this post. Click here to read why. And even if, for most of my readers, I'm preaching to the choir, I think it is important that when we Remember Jerusalem and the circuitous route we sometimes have to take to get there, we remember WHO's WHO in the holy Land. WHO ARE THEY? WHO ARE WE? May we merit to be who we were meant to be and to live in peace where we were meant to live. 

And that is my Pre-Pesach-Procrastination for this year. May G-d send consolation to the Yaniv family, complete recoveries for David, Elon and Uri, and blessings to you and yours for a happy, healthy celebration of freedom filled with hope for the ultimate redemption. 

How Green Is the Valley

Dateline: Tu b'Shevat, 5783

Place: Afula, "capital city" of Emek Yizra'el (the Jezreel Valley) 

Northern District, ISRAEL

I am actually typing this from my desk in Baltimore, MD, USA but just 24-hours-fresh-off-the-plane from two wonderful weeks spent with our children and grandchildren who have been living in Afula for exactly six months now. (Happy Anniversary, Kids!) What a treat, what a joy. And though we did not manage to be in the holy Land on Tu b'Shevat, I took the following photos this past Friday from the tippy top of Afula, overlooking Emek Yizra'el. At the end of a week of blessed rainfall, there were more greens to be seen than one would find in the Crayola Ultimate Crayon Case of 152 colors. These photos are the backdrop to how we are spending our Tu b'Shevat today. I hope they will enhance your mini-holiday as well. 

No Tu b'Shevat photo essay would be complete without a blossoming sh'keydiah (almond tree), this one standing side-by-side with an olive-green (of course) olive tree...

When in Afula, I Remember Jerusalem from a short 57 miles north ("as the crow flies"). Unfortunately, we can't take the shortest route for reasons I might go into another time but we did make the 85 mile drive to spend 24 hours in the holy City. More about that another time as well. For now, while it is still Tu b'Shevat in Israel, best wishes from Yours Truly - and my sweet Tehilla - for a Tu b'Shevat Sameyach!