Posts
With all the Yamim Tovim and a family simcha in the middle of them, it has been quite hectic here in the Katz household. We had all been looking forward to the beginning of the Yom Tov season with the arrival of Rosh Hashana and it certainly didn’t disappoint.
I am sure that you are as tired about seeing all the Nofei HaShemesh ads and announcements as are we. However, building anything new is always a source of excitement and beginning a new shul is certainly something to be excited about. With only a few weeks of minyanim under our belts, the new shul had Yamim Noraim davening for the first time and it was a joy to be a part of it.
Having lived in Bet Shemesh for two years now, it was also a bit gratifying to be part of something that had more roots in the 5 Towns than Teaneck (it seems like everyone has a Teaneck association here – especially on our block). With the Rabbi, the Rudoffs, the Paleys, the Eichlers and the Katzes (along with the West Hempsted Weiss’) a big chunk of our core group are former 5 Towners – something which is long overdue.
The response to the shul has also been quite overwhelming. We had anticipated that we would see twenty to thirty people each week, slowly gaining momentum as word got out. Unbelievably, we have not had a week with fewer than 60 people and have gone as high as 100 as well. We even set 110 seats for Rosh Hashana davening, filling 90% of them! The turnouts have been so strong that we are already trying to figure out what we are going to do long term.
Here is reason number 12,432 to move here: MOTZEI ROSH HASHANA garbage pickup. On my way home from cleaning up the shul’s room in the school where we daven I passed a garbage truck picking up the garbage. At 8 PM! Obviously, it is understood that there will be a lot of garbage after a 2 day chag (garbage is picked up several times a week here) and the garbage collectors get a head start on getting things picked up as soon as Yom Tov ends.
Yom Kippur was also quite uplifting. In consideration of Yom Kippur, we change our clocks on Motzei Shabbat Shuva each year herein Israel. With the late start to the chagim in October, this resulted in an extremely early start – and finish to the fast. Since the day was short, we only had a forty five minute break and not a single person felt that anything was shlepped out. Hopefully, as time goes on we will run more smoothly, but there is no substitute for being at “the first minyan” or “the first Rosh HaShana”, etc.
With no time to travel after Yom Kippur in order to make it here for Shabbat, my parents joined us for Yom Kippur (staying through the week after Sukkot) right before Yom Kippur in order to be here for a family simcha on Shabbat. Their arrival marker the beginning of family arrivals and for several weeks Goldie was quite busy with arranging the household, meals and activities for everyone (a job that she did awesomely – as usual).
On Yom Kippur, I had personally woken up with a bit of fever, which would eventually turn into a seventeen day stomach illness (bacterial). On the Shabbat between Yom Kippur and Sukkot my brother Ely and his wife Ilana made a Bar Mitzva for their son Yishai, and I barely made it. I was so sick that I needed 2 IV bags that Motzei Shabbat and really was not well the entire Sukkot.
I am quite thankful therefore that we have teenagers. Yes, they are noisy. Yes, they cost lots of money. No, they never listen. But they can build and decorate a Sukka without Abba’s supervision, which is a priceless thing. Although I did help, Chaim came home from Yeshiva right after the fast and did most of the work putting things together and Chaya charged full speed in leading the kids in decorating the Sukka.
Building a Sukka here is a real change for us. As a kid in Chicago, the fanciest thing you could think of having in a Sukka was HEAT! I remember sitting in the Sukka in a parka, totally freezing my fingers and toes in absolutely horrid conditions. Even in NY, Sukkot was a cool and chilly time of year (October) and jackets and sweaters were the norm – if not heavy coats.
Here in Israel, at least in Bet Shemesh things are so different. We know of a family that has A/C in their Sukka and it is needed. This year, I had expected that getting a mid October start to the chag, we would finally see some normal weather, but that was not to be. We had a fan in our Sukka for the first time (we ate out for lunch the first day of chag and our hosts had at least 6 fans in their Sukka) and we still shvitzed our heads off in there!
Goldie’s brother David and his family came to join us in Bet Shemesh staying in an apartment across the street from us. We consider ourselves very fortunate that they try to come for Sukkot each year, since Goldie and our kids would otherwise see very little of Goldie’s family (I get to see more of them when I travel to the USA several times each year). My siblings all live here in Israel, and I know that Goldie definitely misses her family (especially her parents).
This is the only time the kids spend together each year, so we try to arrange to go on tiyulim together so that they can all bond as much as possible. This year we only spent two days on formal “tiyulim”, spending one day touring the Herodian castle outside Efrat, the Gush Etzion winery and then going on the world’s second largest zipline (“Omega”) (the little kids went on a smaller version and climbed a rock wall) and a second day driving ATV’s in the farmland a few miles north of Ranana (and having an awesome time).
Our older kids spent two nights at the Bet Shemesh festival concert. Each year, the city of Bet Shemesh puts on a 3 day festival during Chol HaMoed Sukkot with hikes and tours during the day and 2 nights of open air concerts by multiple performers (Bet Shemesh resident Lenny Solomon of Shlock Rock fame has performed the past few years). The kids have a great time and people come from all over Israel to be a part of it.
The other highlight of the week was a special seudat hoda’ah that we hosted in our Sukka for our family (and one other couple) in celebration of the one year anniversary of Goldie’s first cancer free scan. In anticipation of the Seuda, Mordechai and I had been learning Mishnayot Sukka and he made his very first ever Siyum on the Mishnayot in the Sukka during the Seuda in honor of Goldie.
It was an emotional evening, but it was not only an opportunity for us to thank H-shem for all he did for us in getting Goldie to this point – it was also our chance to thank my parents for dropping everything and moving into our house for two months while Goldie was being treated as well as thank Goldie’s brother David and his wife Marcia for opening their home to us and all their support with the doctors while Goldie underwent treatment.
Shmini Atzeret was a terrific culmination to the chaggim. We decided to encourage the dancing by giving out candies or treats only after each Hakafa. We were unsure what to expect, but in a shul full of kids – the kids really took center stage. The hakafot were entirely focused on the kids participation and it was incredible to see them rise to the occasion. Hakafot took fifteen minutes each and with only one Torah to lain from, davening was a bit stretched. But I think that everyone enjoyed and it was a great start.
After Yom Tov ended, Larry Gordon asked me how many 5 Towns pictures I had collected over Yom Tov. I was very surprised to have to tell him that for the first time I did not see a single family during the vacation. So instead, I will take the opportunity to include a 5 Towners picture that I took a couple of months ago.
In early September, our former neighbors Dovid and Faygie Meisels celebrated the Bar Mitzva of their son Yitzchak at the Kotel. Goldie and I were fortunate to attend and I had a group photo taken of all the former 5 Towners in attendance. I didn’t have an opportunity to wish them Mazal Tov in the paper – but now I have.
With the elections coming up (both the municipal elections in November and the national elections who knows when), I look forward to sharing the electoral process with you over the next several months. We have no idea what to expect, so it should definitely be interesting.
Wednesday, November 05, 2008
Monday, October 27, 2008
Welcome 5769 (Article# 93) 10/02/08
With an early column deadline this week, I can only hope that everyone had a meaningful Rosh Hashana. As we headed into Rosh Hashana, we have been quite overwhelmed with details. Details at home, details at work, details at shul; everywhere we turn it seems as if there is suddenly so much to do.
About a week ago our central air conditioning failed. You may be wondering why this is a big deal in the end of September? Well, with temps having cooled off to the mid 70s this week in Bet Shemesh it is still quite hot here. We have friends in Efrat who don’t have a/c at all; they claim it is quite comfortable there even in the summer. We could never do that here (I guess there is a reason the city’s name means “House of the Sun”).
We called the repairman who tried replacing the coolant. We were very impressed because he hit the problem within 5 minutes and had the unit working for us only hours before Shabbat was supposed to begin. Little did we know that the cold air would stop about an hour into Shabbat and the kids would all be shvitzed out.
After a return visit, he discovered a leak in our compressor and recommended a total replacement of the compressor. Our landlord understandably asked us to get a second price quote and – we couldn’t. Apparently, there was only one compressor unit for out type of A/C unit available in our part of Israel and our repairman had already reserved it. No other companies could get a quote on a not in stock part.
This is also the time of year that the kids start going to their chugim (after school activities). Most children here participate in them and each year’s opening month of school is filled with parents and kids busy comparing which chugim are opening, evaluating them and then trying to figure out carpool arrangements so the travel is manageable. And of course our never ending baseball season has not even begun yet (this year it will run October – June, that’s right EIGHT MONTHS of weekly practices and games).
One thing that made our lives easier was the great job with the simanim done by a local take out store, Rottenberg’s. With shemitta being such an issue with produce, it has been hard to find all the different vegetables we traditionally eat on Rosh Hashana. We also had a terrible time trying to buy a fish head (the local fish merchants all had a “to get the head you need to buy the whole fish” policy in effect).
We saw a posting on the email list for Bet Shemesh that Rottenberg’s had “all the simanim” for sale and decided to see what they had. It was amazing. They had precooked all the fish heads and were selling them ready to eat. They also had precooked dishes for all the simanim (except for pomegranate) and had dished them out into aluminum muffin trays – one type of vegetable to a section. They prepared a little card with the proper Yehi Ratzon to say for each vegetable and in case of some confusion as to which veggie was which – they had a map on the back of that little card identifying which section of the muffin tray had each specific vegetable.
I wouldn’t say that people are not helpful here. But most things we do here are mainly self serve. Here are the necessary tools – go do it. Pack all your own groceries. Slice you own bread at the supermarket. A major exception is gas – which still has a full service option at all stations. It was very relieving to see one local merchant making the effort to be extremely customer friendly.
The first month of the year has also been tremendously busy at work. Goldie has become the in house accountant for Eretz HaTzvi (the Yeshiva I work in), and the turn of the school year piles on tons of work for her. My schedule is also busy with tiyulim and programs for our newest students as well setting up programs for our newest alumni who have just entered University. So we are constantly running from task to task all September long.
As if that wasn’t enough, we have had an overwhelming turnout to the opening of the new Shul. Shelly Levine, the real estate broker for the new community tells everyone that Rabbi Rosner “is a Rock Star!!” I’m not sure that I would go quite that far, but it is clear that the new shul has struck a nerve. We have had at least 80 people each of the three weeks we have had Shabbat davening and have reservations for 70 for the Yamim Noraim. I am sure that the interest will abate somewhat as the newness wears off, but if it doesn’t we are going to be severely challenged for space.
Since we are just starting up, we are literally winging things by the seat of our pants. I sat with our President last Motzei Shabbat as we set and reset the seats, laying out different seating configurations in order to squeeze out the maximum possible places. There are so many different details to keep track of and it seems like every time we turn around we find something else we didn’t think of.
Hopefully things will calm down and we will fall into some sort of routine (preferably including doing my regular rotation with the Kohanim of my Mishmar in the Bet HaMikdash). However, it almost feels like the first year when we were fresh of the plane. We had no idea what was happening and any loud bang made us duck.
As we now look forward to the end of the Yamim Noraim with Yom Kippur this week, I want to wish all of you a Gmar Chatima Tova. I hope that my words have given you some sense of closeness to being here and hope that it might have helped you consider joining us here, for a vacation, for a year and yes, for a lifetime. If I have offended anyone with my thoughts and ideas, I apologize and hope that this is the year we can all come together and be a part of a reunited Jewish People in a rebuilt land.
Shana Tova!
About a week ago our central air conditioning failed. You may be wondering why this is a big deal in the end of September? Well, with temps having cooled off to the mid 70s this week in Bet Shemesh it is still quite hot here. We have friends in Efrat who don’t have a/c at all; they claim it is quite comfortable there even in the summer. We could never do that here (I guess there is a reason the city’s name means “House of the Sun”).
We called the repairman who tried replacing the coolant. We were very impressed because he hit the problem within 5 minutes and had the unit working for us only hours before Shabbat was supposed to begin. Little did we know that the cold air would stop about an hour into Shabbat and the kids would all be shvitzed out.
After a return visit, he discovered a leak in our compressor and recommended a total replacement of the compressor. Our landlord understandably asked us to get a second price quote and – we couldn’t. Apparently, there was only one compressor unit for out type of A/C unit available in our part of Israel and our repairman had already reserved it. No other companies could get a quote on a not in stock part.
This is also the time of year that the kids start going to their chugim (after school activities). Most children here participate in them and each year’s opening month of school is filled with parents and kids busy comparing which chugim are opening, evaluating them and then trying to figure out carpool arrangements so the travel is manageable. And of course our never ending baseball season has not even begun yet (this year it will run October – June, that’s right EIGHT MONTHS of weekly practices and games).
One thing that made our lives easier was the great job with the simanim done by a local take out store, Rottenberg’s. With shemitta being such an issue with produce, it has been hard to find all the different vegetables we traditionally eat on Rosh Hashana. We also had a terrible time trying to buy a fish head (the local fish merchants all had a “to get the head you need to buy the whole fish” policy in effect).
We saw a posting on the email list for Bet Shemesh that Rottenberg’s had “all the simanim” for sale and decided to see what they had. It was amazing. They had precooked all the fish heads and were selling them ready to eat. They also had precooked dishes for all the simanim (except for pomegranate) and had dished them out into aluminum muffin trays – one type of vegetable to a section. They prepared a little card with the proper Yehi Ratzon to say for each vegetable and in case of some confusion as to which veggie was which – they had a map on the back of that little card identifying which section of the muffin tray had each specific vegetable.
I wouldn’t say that people are not helpful here. But most things we do here are mainly self serve. Here are the necessary tools – go do it. Pack all your own groceries. Slice you own bread at the supermarket. A major exception is gas – which still has a full service option at all stations. It was very relieving to see one local merchant making the effort to be extremely customer friendly.
The first month of the year has also been tremendously busy at work. Goldie has become the in house accountant for Eretz HaTzvi (the Yeshiva I work in), and the turn of the school year piles on tons of work for her. My schedule is also busy with tiyulim and programs for our newest students as well setting up programs for our newest alumni who have just entered University. So we are constantly running from task to task all September long.
As if that wasn’t enough, we have had an overwhelming turnout to the opening of the new Shul. Shelly Levine, the real estate broker for the new community tells everyone that Rabbi Rosner “is a Rock Star!!” I’m not sure that I would go quite that far, but it is clear that the new shul has struck a nerve. We have had at least 80 people each of the three weeks we have had Shabbat davening and have reservations for 70 for the Yamim Noraim. I am sure that the interest will abate somewhat as the newness wears off, but if it doesn’t we are going to be severely challenged for space.
Since we are just starting up, we are literally winging things by the seat of our pants. I sat with our President last Motzei Shabbat as we set and reset the seats, laying out different seating configurations in order to squeeze out the maximum possible places. There are so many different details to keep track of and it seems like every time we turn around we find something else we didn’t think of.
Hopefully things will calm down and we will fall into some sort of routine (preferably including doing my regular rotation with the Kohanim of my Mishmar in the Bet HaMikdash). However, it almost feels like the first year when we were fresh of the plane. We had no idea what was happening and any loud bang made us duck.
As we now look forward to the end of the Yamim Noraim with Yom Kippur this week, I want to wish all of you a Gmar Chatima Tova. I hope that my words have given you some sense of closeness to being here and hope that it might have helped you consider joining us here, for a vacation, for a year and yes, for a lifetime. If I have offended anyone with my thoughts and ideas, I apologize and hope that this is the year we can all come together and be a part of a reunited Jewish People in a rebuilt land.
Shana Tova!
Fitting In (Article# 92) 9/18/08
A few days before everyone got back to school, my brother Ely invited us to join his family at the Kotel for our nephew Yishai’s Hanachat Tefillin. Although we have attended other family smachot in Israel, this was the first time that we were able to join as a family, which was cool. With all the Katz siblings living in Israel, we can finally enjoy major events as a complete family, kids and all.
We were joined by Joel and Rachel Maryles who were having a Hanachat Tefillin for their son Yair. Joel is also a former Chicagoan who we have known since we were all babies; Joel’s grandfather responded to an advertisement for a shoichet for the Toledo, Ohio community where my grandfather was the Rav of the community (he succeeded his father in law, my great grandfather, as Rav) anf the Katz’s and the Maryles’ have shared a familial bond ever since. So it was a real treat to share our simcha together here in Israel, especially since we had the chance to see the grandparents, Jack (who helped teach me how to daven for the Amud) and Anne Maryles and have them join us for breakfast in celebration of the dual simcha.
Now that school has actually begun, I have found that somehow our lives seem even more hectic than during the summer. Chaim came home from camp and the next day he started yeshiva – in almost 3 months we have had him home for one Shabbat and a Shabbat meal (and brief visits to watch the Bears play). The other kids all have their new school schedules (Mordechai’s school opened a new building and Batya’s school moved into the old boys building) and with “meet the teachers” nights and the arrival of students at work, it has been quite a hectic couple of weeks.
Of course, the arrival of new students means several things to me. First is having to learn a whole slew of new names. While this used to be the thing I dreaded most, this year’s crew has 7 younger brothers which has helped tremendously. I was also much more deeply involved in the registration process which led to more familiarity with the names as well. Another part of bringing in new students is the “orientation” activities and tiyulim we run to help the guys acclimate to the schedule and the surroundings.
Many of these are tiyulim that I will never tire of. Any visit to the old city is a special occasion. Visiting it with newly arrived students in anticipation of a special year of growth in learning is much more so. I have been to the Ir David excavations and water tunnel four times in the past 2 years and it is exciting each time I go. To walk in the places we have learned about in Tana”ch helps establish a true connection and is something that cannot be duplicated elsewhere. Hopefully the students will find it interesting as well.
The morning of our tiyul to Ir David, I traveled by train to the Yeshiva. Although I would normally work on the computer on the train, since I was going on the tiyul, I had only my knapsack and a drink. To occupy my time on the train, I took one of the free daily newspapers that are distributed at the station and prepared to enjoy reading the ads (since I never understand the paper).
However, an article about the Yerushalayim mayoral elections caught my eye and before I knew it, I had both read it AND (to my amazement) understood it. It was really amazing and somewhat relieving to see tangible evidence that my Hebrew skills were improving. I tried to read other articles and I would guess that I was able to understand more than half of them. I still can’t understand the news on the radio (they speak too quickly) but progress is progress.
Unless you have been on vacation in Alaska all year, you probably know that we have had some famous 5 Towns olim this year. Well, this past Shabbat we had the inaugural minyan for Bet Shemesh’s newest shul (we still haven’t decided on a name yet). We had been anticipating the opening for weeks and once Rabbi Rosner moved into his house we had a big push to get started. Since we plan on eventually buying a home in the new neighborhood, Goldie and I decided early on that we would be joining the new shul once the Rosners arrived and minyanim started.
Former 5 Towner Joshua Rudoff had arranged shiurim and was instrumental in getting everyone together. I was able to help make the connection with the administration of Mordechai’s school (which is right next door to the new neighborhood) and we suddenly had a home (at least for Shabbat and Chaggim). We put out the word that there would be davening and silently prayed that we would get at least 20 people (so it wouldn’t be a total disaster) and tried to cover all bases in making arrangements.
There were definitely hiccups (like finding out the room we were supposed to be in had no A/C) but we got everything set and showed up Friday night. And were overwhelmed. We had something like 30 men on Friday night (it was a standing room only crowd) and before we went home we decided to add more chairs in case more people showed up the next morning.
On Friday night the Rudoff’s hosted an Oneg Shabbat for the shul at their home, which also had a couple dozen people (I left early – so there may even have been more). So we were confident that we would see an OK turnout the next morning and were pretty happy about it.
Shabbat morning we were once again overwhelmed. I would guess that in the end we had something like 100 people davening with us (men, women and children) – the crowd was worse than standing room only – we had people setting up chairs in the hallway. It was great to see so many people come to see what the buzz was about and to meet several of our Hebrew speaking Israeli neighbors who were thrilled to finally have a minyan close to their homes.
Rabbi Rosner spoke in a very understandable Hebrew and made sure to intersperse it with a small amount of English translation to make sure that even the new Olim had a chance to understand him. The whole experience was simply terrific, and definitely uplifting to the people who worked to organize everything. As part of the Shabbat, Goldie and I sponsored a simple Kiddush after davening and it was a bit embarrassing but also quite exhilarating when we realized that so many people had turned up for the minyan that we would not have enough food.
It was a long time coming, but I think that finally we might be seeing some progress toward making the long term acclimation to our surroundings. The language is much less of a barrier than it used to be and in many ways we have adjusted our expectations to better fit the Israeli system and psychology. We will always be different, extremely different from the majority of Israelis. Yet somehow we are definitely becoming more like them.
We were joined by Joel and Rachel Maryles who were having a Hanachat Tefillin for their son Yair. Joel is also a former Chicagoan who we have known since we were all babies; Joel’s grandfather responded to an advertisement for a shoichet for the Toledo, Ohio community where my grandfather was the Rav of the community (he succeeded his father in law, my great grandfather, as Rav) anf the Katz’s and the Maryles’ have shared a familial bond ever since. So it was a real treat to share our simcha together here in Israel, especially since we had the chance to see the grandparents, Jack (who helped teach me how to daven for the Amud) and Anne Maryles and have them join us for breakfast in celebration of the dual simcha.
Now that school has actually begun, I have found that somehow our lives seem even more hectic than during the summer. Chaim came home from camp and the next day he started yeshiva – in almost 3 months we have had him home for one Shabbat and a Shabbat meal (and brief visits to watch the Bears play). The other kids all have their new school schedules (Mordechai’s school opened a new building and Batya’s school moved into the old boys building) and with “meet the teachers” nights and the arrival of students at work, it has been quite a hectic couple of weeks.
Of course, the arrival of new students means several things to me. First is having to learn a whole slew of new names. While this used to be the thing I dreaded most, this year’s crew has 7 younger brothers which has helped tremendously. I was also much more deeply involved in the registration process which led to more familiarity with the names as well. Another part of bringing in new students is the “orientation” activities and tiyulim we run to help the guys acclimate to the schedule and the surroundings.
Many of these are tiyulim that I will never tire of. Any visit to the old city is a special occasion. Visiting it with newly arrived students in anticipation of a special year of growth in learning is much more so. I have been to the Ir David excavations and water tunnel four times in the past 2 years and it is exciting each time I go. To walk in the places we have learned about in Tana”ch helps establish a true connection and is something that cannot be duplicated elsewhere. Hopefully the students will find it interesting as well.
The morning of our tiyul to Ir David, I traveled by train to the Yeshiva. Although I would normally work on the computer on the train, since I was going on the tiyul, I had only my knapsack and a drink. To occupy my time on the train, I took one of the free daily newspapers that are distributed at the station and prepared to enjoy reading the ads (since I never understand the paper).
However, an article about the Yerushalayim mayoral elections caught my eye and before I knew it, I had both read it AND (to my amazement) understood it. It was really amazing and somewhat relieving to see tangible evidence that my Hebrew skills were improving. I tried to read other articles and I would guess that I was able to understand more than half of them. I still can’t understand the news on the radio (they speak too quickly) but progress is progress.
Unless you have been on vacation in Alaska all year, you probably know that we have had some famous 5 Towns olim this year. Well, this past Shabbat we had the inaugural minyan for Bet Shemesh’s newest shul (we still haven’t decided on a name yet). We had been anticipating the opening for weeks and once Rabbi Rosner moved into his house we had a big push to get started. Since we plan on eventually buying a home in the new neighborhood, Goldie and I decided early on that we would be joining the new shul once the Rosners arrived and minyanim started.
Former 5 Towner Joshua Rudoff had arranged shiurim and was instrumental in getting everyone together. I was able to help make the connection with the administration of Mordechai’s school (which is right next door to the new neighborhood) and we suddenly had a home (at least for Shabbat and Chaggim). We put out the word that there would be davening and silently prayed that we would get at least 20 people (so it wouldn’t be a total disaster) and tried to cover all bases in making arrangements.
There were definitely hiccups (like finding out the room we were supposed to be in had no A/C) but we got everything set and showed up Friday night. And were overwhelmed. We had something like 30 men on Friday night (it was a standing room only crowd) and before we went home we decided to add more chairs in case more people showed up the next morning.
On Friday night the Rudoff’s hosted an Oneg Shabbat for the shul at their home, which also had a couple dozen people (I left early – so there may even have been more). So we were confident that we would see an OK turnout the next morning and were pretty happy about it.
Shabbat morning we were once again overwhelmed. I would guess that in the end we had something like 100 people davening with us (men, women and children) – the crowd was worse than standing room only – we had people setting up chairs in the hallway. It was great to see so many people come to see what the buzz was about and to meet several of our Hebrew speaking Israeli neighbors who were thrilled to finally have a minyan close to their homes.
Rabbi Rosner spoke in a very understandable Hebrew and made sure to intersperse it with a small amount of English translation to make sure that even the new Olim had a chance to understand him. The whole experience was simply terrific, and definitely uplifting to the people who worked to organize everything. As part of the Shabbat, Goldie and I sponsored a simple Kiddush after davening and it was a bit embarrassing but also quite exhilarating when we realized that so many people had turned up for the minyan that we would not have enough food.
It was a long time coming, but I think that finally we might be seeing some progress toward making the long term acclimation to our surroundings. The language is much less of a barrier than it used to be and in many ways we have adjusted our expectations to better fit the Israeli system and psychology. We will always be different, extremely different from the majority of Israelis. Yet somehow we are definitely becoming more like them.
Summer's End (Article# 91) 9/04/08
Larry Gordon mentioned that this week’s 5TJT is his “Back to School” issue and no one is happier that school is back in session than Goldie and I. The last few weeks have been unbelievably busy with kids and gearing up for a new year. Since we have been crazily running around, enjoying a week with the kids and getting ready for the new school year, I haven’t had the opportunity to complete an article.
It is amazing to see how many people go away for some sort of break in the last two weeks of August each year. Hotels fill up, buses and trains are absolutely jam packed with people. Hiking trails are flooded with people, the beaches fill up and there are kids everywhere you turn.
Many people take time off this week (I know it was a major factor for us) simply because their children would be home and bored out of their minds. With the majority of summer activities wound down, there aren’t many choices to keep them occupied. So we (along with the rest of our office, which closed for a week) took advantage of the time to squeeze in some family time with the kids.
We decided to take the kids on a series of day trips, experiencing parts of Israel that we knew where there, but are not really able to enjoy during the rest of the year. Each day was programmed in advance and we really tried to make it fun.
We started the week of with a day at Superland in Rishon L’Tziyon. Think Adventureland in Farmingdale – but larger by about 60%. As is our norm, we arrived 20 minutes before opening in order to beat the crowds (which began to thicken at about 2 PM, but never materialized to the magnitude that we had anticipated in advance). Chaya, Batya and Mordechai had all been to Superland, so they had an idea of exactly what rides they wanted to go on, and it was a pretty good day (especially when you consider that by using points off my credit card the admission tickets cost us absolutely NOTHING).
There were a couple of things that really stuck out to us as different from the US (aside from everything being in Hebrew). The first was the atmosphere of the park. It was very relaxed and casual. The management sets plastic chairs for the customers to enjoy throughout the park, and people bring their ice chests full of food (we did), pick out a spot and enjoy a leisurely time relaxing.
We were also struck by the fact that we had finally found somewhere we couldn’t eat. The park, being open on Shabbat could certainly not earn Kosher supervision and none of the food stands had anything to eat. We had brought our own food and snacks, but it was strange to not be able to eat there. We had forgotten what it was like.
On Channuka we had gone to the Cholon Children’s Museum and experienced their “Dialogue in the Dark” exhibit, touring the totally dark exhibit with our blind guide and getting a better understanding of what the world is like for the blind (if only for a limited time and in a limited way). We had enjoyed the day so much that we decided to return to the museum on Monday for their “Invitation to Silence” exhibit, conducted totally in silence with a deaf guide (well, at least I did it with Batya and Chaya – Goldie went on a kids tour with Mordechai and Moshe).
While it was definitely less of an overwhelming experience, we were definitely intrigued by the entire exhibit (which is conducted while wearing sound eliminating headphones) and took a lot out of it. I highly recommend it. I am also very impressed by the way that the Cholon museum divides its’ tours by age group. While it is certainly a bit inconvenient to split the family up, each group is able to take much more out of their day because their tour is specifically geared to them. This keeps the “This is so boring” comments to a minimum.
The circus came to Bet Shemesh this year. Setting up a couple of tents and a ticket booth in an empty dirt parking lot, all Bet Shemesh was talking about the circus, how to get cheap tickets, if the show was appropriate, was the night a good value, etc. Once again using points to get a discount, Goldie took Chaya, Batya and Mordechai along with my brother’s wife Jenny and their son Nachi to the circus Monday night while Ozer and I watched the preschoolers.
I had actually planned to write for the paper that night, but as I sat down to the keyboard I got a call from Aliza that I certainly was not waiting for. Apparently she had fallen and sprained her ankle at camp. As she was on the way to NY for a week long visit with her grandparents, we arranged for her to be seen by a doctor in NY (turned out to be a tiny fracture). It was very frustrating to try and deal with such problems from 6,000 miles away, but big kudos to Goldie’s parents who really came through in getting the appointments and arrangements squared away.
On Tuesday we went to Park HaYarkon in Tel Aviv. Park HaYarkon is a huge park with a lake, lots of different play areas, amusement and water parks across the street, a couple of mini zoos and a whole bunch of other attractions. Our kids played on the huge wooden jungle gyms they had and we rented a golf cart for a tour of the park. After a couple hours of fun, we headed off to the beach to get some relief from the amazing heat.
Our little kids had never been to the beach so this was definitely exciting for them. They had a great time getting wet and splashing in the waves, but the highlight for them was building in the sand. They literally spent hours with their bucket and shovel and the discovery of a complete seashell was a major event.
On a previous trip to Tel Aviv we had discovered a mehadrin Chinese restaurant a block off the beach and we treated the kids to a nice dinner there. The owner of the restaurant used to own a business in the 5 Towns and had recognized me on our previous visit (and also made sure to come by and say hi again this time). I am not sure how he arranged it, but the kids were entertained by the blackout that hit halfway through dinner and having to eat our dinner (literally) by candlelight.
My brother’s arrived on Wednesday. I had forgotten how much stuff can be crammed into the shipping container and could hear in their voices how overwhelming the task of unpacking seemed. As a renter, knowing that I am probably going to have to move again at some point in the next couple of years, it scares me a bit.
By Wednesday we were also pretty tired. My other brother Ely had just returned from “summering” in the USA with his family, so we decided to pick up his kids and take everyone for bowling, dinner and a movie. We stopped for dinner at the new mall in Modiin, eating in their food court. What a great time! Once again surrounded by kosher restaurants (all except the McDonalds), we let the kids choose where and what they wanted and ended up with a whole smorgasbord of food (we had to split the table into the milk side and the meat side).
On Thursday we were ready for another full day and took our nephew Nachi with us to explore Yerushalayim. We had planned to see a “puppet” (more like paper doll) performance in the Train Theater as well as take a trip in the Time Elevator before going to the Malha Mall for a free live show by a popular children’s entertainer. What we didn’t plan for was the crowds.
We got into the puppet show without too much of a problem. However, when we headed to the Time Elevator before lunch to buy tickets for later in the day, they were all sold out. This was a definite disappointment and left us scrambling for something to do with the kids for a couple of hours. Capitalizing on the fact that we were close to Ben Yehuda, we took them window shopping and people watching while picking up a couple of odds and ends. We completed the day with a kids show and dinner at the Malha Mall food court.
We spent the last week of the summer getting ready for school and the new Yeshiva year. Here in Israel, with no “Labor Day” weekend, schools regularly open on September 1 and the “last minute” nature of Israelis means that many many people are out and about buying their school books and supplies at the same time. The government does not provide free text books, so we definitely spend a lot of money each year (6 kids means a lot of books to buy), but we will still gladly pay for them when we consider how much less our tuition bills are.
September also brings thousands of new teens for their “Year in Israel” experience. Being in the “Yeshiva” business, the end of the summer means that we get to meet and greet a new group of students who will be spending a year of their lives with us.
Each group brings with them a certain sense of uncertainty. As a veteran of Elementary and High School education, I am used to having the students around for 8-12 years and getting to know both them and their parents. Working with High School graduates who come for no more than two years is very different from what I had been used to.
If your son or daughter has joined us here in Israel for the year, we hope that they have a terrific year of growth and enjoyment.
Special Mazal Tovs go out to our neighbors Dr. Mark and Yosefa Kraus on the marriage last week of their daughter Tziona and to Larry and Esta Gordon on the birth last week of their grandson.
It is amazing to see how many people go away for some sort of break in the last two weeks of August each year. Hotels fill up, buses and trains are absolutely jam packed with people. Hiking trails are flooded with people, the beaches fill up and there are kids everywhere you turn.
Many people take time off this week (I know it was a major factor for us) simply because their children would be home and bored out of their minds. With the majority of summer activities wound down, there aren’t many choices to keep them occupied. So we (along with the rest of our office, which closed for a week) took advantage of the time to squeeze in some family time with the kids.
We decided to take the kids on a series of day trips, experiencing parts of Israel that we knew where there, but are not really able to enjoy during the rest of the year. Each day was programmed in advance and we really tried to make it fun.
We started the week of with a day at Superland in Rishon L’Tziyon. Think Adventureland in Farmingdale – but larger by about 60%. As is our norm, we arrived 20 minutes before opening in order to beat the crowds (which began to thicken at about 2 PM, but never materialized to the magnitude that we had anticipated in advance). Chaya, Batya and Mordechai had all been to Superland, so they had an idea of exactly what rides they wanted to go on, and it was a pretty good day (especially when you consider that by using points off my credit card the admission tickets cost us absolutely NOTHING).
There were a couple of things that really stuck out to us as different from the US (aside from everything being in Hebrew). The first was the atmosphere of the park. It was very relaxed and casual. The management sets plastic chairs for the customers to enjoy throughout the park, and people bring their ice chests full of food (we did), pick out a spot and enjoy a leisurely time relaxing.
We were also struck by the fact that we had finally found somewhere we couldn’t eat. The park, being open on Shabbat could certainly not earn Kosher supervision and none of the food stands had anything to eat. We had brought our own food and snacks, but it was strange to not be able to eat there. We had forgotten what it was like.
On Channuka we had gone to the Cholon Children’s Museum and experienced their “Dialogue in the Dark” exhibit, touring the totally dark exhibit with our blind guide and getting a better understanding of what the world is like for the blind (if only for a limited time and in a limited way). We had enjoyed the day so much that we decided to return to the museum on Monday for their “Invitation to Silence” exhibit, conducted totally in silence with a deaf guide (well, at least I did it with Batya and Chaya – Goldie went on a kids tour with Mordechai and Moshe).
While it was definitely less of an overwhelming experience, we were definitely intrigued by the entire exhibit (which is conducted while wearing sound eliminating headphones) and took a lot out of it. I highly recommend it. I am also very impressed by the way that the Cholon museum divides its’ tours by age group. While it is certainly a bit inconvenient to split the family up, each group is able to take much more out of their day because their tour is specifically geared to them. This keeps the “This is so boring” comments to a minimum.
The circus came to Bet Shemesh this year. Setting up a couple of tents and a ticket booth in an empty dirt parking lot, all Bet Shemesh was talking about the circus, how to get cheap tickets, if the show was appropriate, was the night a good value, etc. Once again using points to get a discount, Goldie took Chaya, Batya and Mordechai along with my brother’s wife Jenny and their son Nachi to the circus Monday night while Ozer and I watched the preschoolers.
I had actually planned to write for the paper that night, but as I sat down to the keyboard I got a call from Aliza that I certainly was not waiting for. Apparently she had fallen and sprained her ankle at camp. As she was on the way to NY for a week long visit with her grandparents, we arranged for her to be seen by a doctor in NY (turned out to be a tiny fracture). It was very frustrating to try and deal with such problems from 6,000 miles away, but big kudos to Goldie’s parents who really came through in getting the appointments and arrangements squared away.
On Tuesday we went to Park HaYarkon in Tel Aviv. Park HaYarkon is a huge park with a lake, lots of different play areas, amusement and water parks across the street, a couple of mini zoos and a whole bunch of other attractions. Our kids played on the huge wooden jungle gyms they had and we rented a golf cart for a tour of the park. After a couple hours of fun, we headed off to the beach to get some relief from the amazing heat.
Our little kids had never been to the beach so this was definitely exciting for them. They had a great time getting wet and splashing in the waves, but the highlight for them was building in the sand. They literally spent hours with their bucket and shovel and the discovery of a complete seashell was a major event.
On a previous trip to Tel Aviv we had discovered a mehadrin Chinese restaurant a block off the beach and we treated the kids to a nice dinner there. The owner of the restaurant used to own a business in the 5 Towns and had recognized me on our previous visit (and also made sure to come by and say hi again this time). I am not sure how he arranged it, but the kids were entertained by the blackout that hit halfway through dinner and having to eat our dinner (literally) by candlelight.
My brother’s arrived on Wednesday. I had forgotten how much stuff can be crammed into the shipping container and could hear in their voices how overwhelming the task of unpacking seemed. As a renter, knowing that I am probably going to have to move again at some point in the next couple of years, it scares me a bit.
By Wednesday we were also pretty tired. My other brother Ely had just returned from “summering” in the USA with his family, so we decided to pick up his kids and take everyone for bowling, dinner and a movie. We stopped for dinner at the new mall in Modiin, eating in their food court. What a great time! Once again surrounded by kosher restaurants (all except the McDonalds), we let the kids choose where and what they wanted and ended up with a whole smorgasbord of food (we had to split the table into the milk side and the meat side).
On Thursday we were ready for another full day and took our nephew Nachi with us to explore Yerushalayim. We had planned to see a “puppet” (more like paper doll) performance in the Train Theater as well as take a trip in the Time Elevator before going to the Malha Mall for a free live show by a popular children’s entertainer. What we didn’t plan for was the crowds.
We got into the puppet show without too much of a problem. However, when we headed to the Time Elevator before lunch to buy tickets for later in the day, they were all sold out. This was a definite disappointment and left us scrambling for something to do with the kids for a couple of hours. Capitalizing on the fact that we were close to Ben Yehuda, we took them window shopping and people watching while picking up a couple of odds and ends. We completed the day with a kids show and dinner at the Malha Mall food court.
We spent the last week of the summer getting ready for school and the new Yeshiva year. Here in Israel, with no “Labor Day” weekend, schools regularly open on September 1 and the “last minute” nature of Israelis means that many many people are out and about buying their school books and supplies at the same time. The government does not provide free text books, so we definitely spend a lot of money each year (6 kids means a lot of books to buy), but we will still gladly pay for them when we consider how much less our tuition bills are.
September also brings thousands of new teens for their “Year in Israel” experience. Being in the “Yeshiva” business, the end of the summer means that we get to meet and greet a new group of students who will be spending a year of their lives with us.
Each group brings with them a certain sense of uncertainty. As a veteran of Elementary and High School education, I am used to having the students around for 8-12 years and getting to know both them and their parents. Working with High School graduates who come for no more than two years is very different from what I had been used to.
If your son or daughter has joined us here in Israel for the year, we hope that they have a terrific year of growth and enjoyment.
Special Mazal Tovs go out to our neighbors Dr. Mark and Yosefa Kraus on the marriage last week of their daughter Tziona and to Larry and Esta Gordon on the birth last week of their grandson.
Thursday, August 21, 2008
Welcome: Part III (Article# 90) 8/14/08
For those of you who have wondered where I have been these past few weeks, I had a ten day business trip to the USA and had written – but not gotten the articles in by deadline time. Some of the following is a bit old, but....
Somehow, we seem to have made the Nefesh Bnefesh welcoming ceremony for new olim an annual event for us. As new olim two years ago, we were overwhelmed by the support and raw joy we were showered with upon our arrival. I do not think that we will ever enjoy a flight to Israel as much as we enjoyed that flight.
Last year, we joined the crowd and welcomed former 5 towners Kiki and Gary Schickman, whose son Gabey was our son Mordechai's best friend through preschool. Seeing the ceremony as greeters instead of participants gave us a totally different perspective. It was great being there and I would definitely recommend that everyone, even if for some crazy reason you do not move to Israel, everyone should attend a welcoming ceremony at least once just to witness the emotion and outpouring of love displayed.
This summer the countdown began quite early. On a trip to Chicago last winter, my youngest brother Ozer and his wife Jenny told me that after several years of planning, they were going to finally be making Aliyah this summer. The news was hush hush at first, but eventually it went public and the excitement began to build. Especially at the Katz house.
I have an older sister and younger brother already living here, so these are not our only relatives in Israel. However, my brother will be living right down the block from us and that really fired the kids up. The oldest ones are looking forward to babysitting and helping out, while the younger ones are thrilled to finally have “local” cousins (we live on a block with tons of young families and many of them have local relatives).
No matter what the reason, the countdown began quite early on and the kids never tired of asking how many more weeks and days were left to the big day. My brother came to town for a pilot trip in the Spring, and helping him find a place to live and identify the right schools and preschool for his kids gave us a small role in the process as well.
It is hard to be that older brother sometimes. I found myself wanting to have him follow in my footsteps and make similar decisions that we made. Schools. Doctors. City to live in. I think part of that desire comes from a need to have someone else affirm our decisions as sound and appropriate choices. We all have similar feelings about the schools our kids go to or perhaps the shul we are members of. I think it is a major part in why olim are so passionate about their choice and in encouraging others to follow our lead.
We woke up nice and early to get to the airport before 7 AM as recommended by NBN. It was a good thing we did; the plane landed a half hour early. They made some changes to the program and ceremony. Most of them were slight changes that didn't really make a big difference one way or another (ok – I have to admit the kids enjoyed the iced coffee machine). However, the most significant change is one you can all be a part of.
Using the wonders of technology, rather than sit around waiting for the olim to make their way from the plane to the ceremony building, NBN had set up large screen televisions and were broadcasting the entire welcome live to the entire world. For us in the airport it helped build anticipation. We saw pictures of the departure from NY and then watched the landing and taxiing of the plane. We got to see the disembarking of the first few passengers (and heard a tremendously heartwarming story of the oldest oleh on the plane, a woman who had been turned back from making Aliyah aboard the Exodus – only to fulfill her dream so many years later). And of course, we headed out to greet the olim as they got off the airport buses just outside the welcome terminal.
However, we were not alone. Through the internet, my parents were able to watch the same scenes. They had been at JFK saying goodbye the day before and after arriving back home in Chicago they logged on the computer and there we were. Live and on camera, they got to see some of us as we waited and then my brother as he arrived. They got to watch the entire welcome and share in the moment – even though they were so far away. There is no doubt that seeing how they are embraced here helped ease some of the pain in letting go.
They got to watch the reunion of a man they had met at the airport who was going to live with his daughter who has lived here for 30+ years. We were just across the aisle as he walked through the crowd and was halted by a scream of “ABBA!” and mobbed by his daughter and family. Goldie and I could not help but think of the same moment happening in our lives as we wait in the hope that our parents (especially her father who has dreamed of living in Israel his entire adult life) will join us here.
After the ceremony, which is becoming shorter each year, we headed home and welcomed them once again as they arrived from the airport. For the next several weeks they will be living with us, waiting for their container to arrive from the USA. Because of the tremendous increase in exports, they had their shipment delayed a couple weeks and aren't sure when their things will arrive. While many families arrive here alone and sleep on air mattresses and use toaster ovens until their belongings arrive – we are happy to provide them with a softer landing.
It is interesting to watch as they open bank accounts, choose cellphone plans and express their befuddlement at how the world works here. We remember being in those shoes not too long ago and watching this young family adapt and assimilate, we are constantly reminded how far we have come in just two short years.
I was actually supposed to leave for a trip to the USA on the same day that Ozer and Jenny arrived here. At the last minute I was able to put off my departure a week to help Goldie with the arrival and help everyone adjust to their new routine. I was in Chicago and New York for 10 days and there is one thing that I can say with certainty, “THERE WAS NOT ANY SNOW WHILE I WAS THERE THIS TIME!!!”
As is usual, I was sick the day before my trip. I think I may be developing an allergic reaction to being outside of Israel (and I only say that half jokingly). With a full schedule of alumni events and meeting scheduled, I popped a few antibiotic pills and headed off (via Delta's new service to Atlanta – which I hated) to experience the galut in its fullness once again.
Although it was an eventful trip, I really only want to share a single thought that came to me while I was here. It is something that many people had tried to impress upon me before I made Aliyah but I hadn't really understood until I experienced it myself. It is how severely we Jews of Israel lack the sense of Achdut that used to be one of the showcase attributes of our country.
In the days of old (25- 60 years ago) we did not fight as much among ourselves. Chareidi, religious zionist, non religious – no matter what your religious beliefs were, we all stood together. Our national sense of gratitude at simply being alive gave us a shared sense of purpose that allowed us to coexist in harmony (at least for the most part). That sense of peaceful coexistence is something that we seem to have lost, yet you here in galut seem to have retained.
I am not saying that everyone in Israel always got along nor that there are no divisions between Jews in the diaspora. Clearly there are disagreements and hard feelings all around and there have always been such. However, you are able to set aside your differences much more easily than we are and still get along and care about each other.
This hit home on Erev Shabbat as my niece and I shared a few hours together picking up our American “supplies” off of my kids' shopping list. We had stopped at a local Teaneck restaurant to have a salad lunch and I could not help but wonder at the broad range of “religiosity” of the clientèle and the fact that they all seemed to know each other and get along. It didn't matter how modestly one or the other was dressed (or not) or what Yeshiva their kids go to or what shul they daven in, the diaspora communities – in their isolation from the sense of being a Jew that we enjoy in Israel maintain a much stronger sense of “loving your brother” than we do in Israel.
It is clearly a product of our no longer being outcasts or different from the mainstream society in which we live. Here in Israel, we belong. We are mainstream society. And we take it for granted.
You, on the other hand, have been and always will be viewed as different, no matter how welcoming your hosts are or how deeply you integrate into the society. Their holidays will still never be yours (no matter how much your holidays are “recognized” by society) and their values will always be different. This displacement gives diaspora Jews a common sense of unity; no matter how different you may be from each other – you are still more closely related to each other than you are to the general public. For that, I envy you. I believe that it is that sense of communal love that is our worst deficiency and our greatest danger.
I wasn't thrilled to schedule travel during the 9 days, but I traveled TO Israel and planned to either I) be working in the Bet Hamikdash as a practicing Kohein or II) davening in the Kotel plaza and reading a chapter of Eicha there on Tisha B'Av. While I ended up doing option II, being here affords me the opportunity to do so. I read Eicha at the Kotel last year and it helped me internalize the true loss we suffered, since I was literally sitting within 100 feet of the site of the destroyed Bet Hamikdash.
Last year there were literally thousands of people there when we arrived and the crush was somewhat impressive. This year, we managed to arrive about 45 minutes after the end of Shabbat and before most people. It was still an awe inspiring experience. After 2,000 years it is so hard to relate to the loss we suffered, but being on the site and mentally forming some kind of picture of what may have once been has added to my Tisha B'Av spiritual connection. If there is a future Tisha B'Av before Mashiach comes, I recommend the experience.
Although I do not look forward to having another opportunity to do so ever again and would prefer to see a rebuilt Bet Hamikdash, I am committed to continuing to be at Har Habayit every year – preferably to be in the Bet HaMikdash.
Somehow, we seem to have made the Nefesh Bnefesh welcoming ceremony for new olim an annual event for us. As new olim two years ago, we were overwhelmed by the support and raw joy we were showered with upon our arrival. I do not think that we will ever enjoy a flight to Israel as much as we enjoyed that flight.
Last year, we joined the crowd and welcomed former 5 towners Kiki and Gary Schickman, whose son Gabey was our son Mordechai's best friend through preschool. Seeing the ceremony as greeters instead of participants gave us a totally different perspective. It was great being there and I would definitely recommend that everyone, even if for some crazy reason you do not move to Israel, everyone should attend a welcoming ceremony at least once just to witness the emotion and outpouring of love displayed.
This summer the countdown began quite early. On a trip to Chicago last winter, my youngest brother Ozer and his wife Jenny told me that after several years of planning, they were going to finally be making Aliyah this summer. The news was hush hush at first, but eventually it went public and the excitement began to build. Especially at the Katz house.
I have an older sister and younger brother already living here, so these are not our only relatives in Israel. However, my brother will be living right down the block from us and that really fired the kids up. The oldest ones are looking forward to babysitting and helping out, while the younger ones are thrilled to finally have “local” cousins (we live on a block with tons of young families and many of them have local relatives).
No matter what the reason, the countdown began quite early on and the kids never tired of asking how many more weeks and days were left to the big day. My brother came to town for a pilot trip in the Spring, and helping him find a place to live and identify the right schools and preschool for his kids gave us a small role in the process as well.
It is hard to be that older brother sometimes. I found myself wanting to have him follow in my footsteps and make similar decisions that we made. Schools. Doctors. City to live in. I think part of that desire comes from a need to have someone else affirm our decisions as sound and appropriate choices. We all have similar feelings about the schools our kids go to or perhaps the shul we are members of. I think it is a major part in why olim are so passionate about their choice and in encouraging others to follow our lead.
We woke up nice and early to get to the airport before 7 AM as recommended by NBN. It was a good thing we did; the plane landed a half hour early. They made some changes to the program and ceremony. Most of them were slight changes that didn't really make a big difference one way or another (ok – I have to admit the kids enjoyed the iced coffee machine). However, the most significant change is one you can all be a part of.
Using the wonders of technology, rather than sit around waiting for the olim to make their way from the plane to the ceremony building, NBN had set up large screen televisions and were broadcasting the entire welcome live to the entire world. For us in the airport it helped build anticipation. We saw pictures of the departure from NY and then watched the landing and taxiing of the plane. We got to see the disembarking of the first few passengers (and heard a tremendously heartwarming story of the oldest oleh on the plane, a woman who had been turned back from making Aliyah aboard the Exodus – only to fulfill her dream so many years later). And of course, we headed out to greet the olim as they got off the airport buses just outside the welcome terminal.
However, we were not alone. Through the internet, my parents were able to watch the same scenes. They had been at JFK saying goodbye the day before and after arriving back home in Chicago they logged on the computer and there we were. Live and on camera, they got to see some of us as we waited and then my brother as he arrived. They got to watch the entire welcome and share in the moment – even though they were so far away. There is no doubt that seeing how they are embraced here helped ease some of the pain in letting go.
They got to watch the reunion of a man they had met at the airport who was going to live with his daughter who has lived here for 30+ years. We were just across the aisle as he walked through the crowd and was halted by a scream of “ABBA!” and mobbed by his daughter and family. Goldie and I could not help but think of the same moment happening in our lives as we wait in the hope that our parents (especially her father who has dreamed of living in Israel his entire adult life) will join us here.
After the ceremony, which is becoming shorter each year, we headed home and welcomed them once again as they arrived from the airport. For the next several weeks they will be living with us, waiting for their container to arrive from the USA. Because of the tremendous increase in exports, they had their shipment delayed a couple weeks and aren't sure when their things will arrive. While many families arrive here alone and sleep on air mattresses and use toaster ovens until their belongings arrive – we are happy to provide them with a softer landing.
It is interesting to watch as they open bank accounts, choose cellphone plans and express their befuddlement at how the world works here. We remember being in those shoes not too long ago and watching this young family adapt and assimilate, we are constantly reminded how far we have come in just two short years.
I was actually supposed to leave for a trip to the USA on the same day that Ozer and Jenny arrived here. At the last minute I was able to put off my departure a week to help Goldie with the arrival and help everyone adjust to their new routine. I was in Chicago and New York for 10 days and there is one thing that I can say with certainty, “THERE WAS NOT ANY SNOW WHILE I WAS THERE THIS TIME!!!”
As is usual, I was sick the day before my trip. I think I may be developing an allergic reaction to being outside of Israel (and I only say that half jokingly). With a full schedule of alumni events and meeting scheduled, I popped a few antibiotic pills and headed off (via Delta's new service to Atlanta – which I hated) to experience the galut in its fullness once again.
Although it was an eventful trip, I really only want to share a single thought that came to me while I was here. It is something that many people had tried to impress upon me before I made Aliyah but I hadn't really understood until I experienced it myself. It is how severely we Jews of Israel lack the sense of Achdut that used to be one of the showcase attributes of our country.
In the days of old (25- 60 years ago) we did not fight as much among ourselves. Chareidi, religious zionist, non religious – no matter what your religious beliefs were, we all stood together. Our national sense of gratitude at simply being alive gave us a shared sense of purpose that allowed us to coexist in harmony (at least for the most part). That sense of peaceful coexistence is something that we seem to have lost, yet you here in galut seem to have retained.
I am not saying that everyone in Israel always got along nor that there are no divisions between Jews in the diaspora. Clearly there are disagreements and hard feelings all around and there have always been such. However, you are able to set aside your differences much more easily than we are and still get along and care about each other.
This hit home on Erev Shabbat as my niece and I shared a few hours together picking up our American “supplies” off of my kids' shopping list. We had stopped at a local Teaneck restaurant to have a salad lunch and I could not help but wonder at the broad range of “religiosity” of the clientèle and the fact that they all seemed to know each other and get along. It didn't matter how modestly one or the other was dressed (or not) or what Yeshiva their kids go to or what shul they daven in, the diaspora communities – in their isolation from the sense of being a Jew that we enjoy in Israel maintain a much stronger sense of “loving your brother” than we do in Israel.
It is clearly a product of our no longer being outcasts or different from the mainstream society in which we live. Here in Israel, we belong. We are mainstream society. And we take it for granted.
You, on the other hand, have been and always will be viewed as different, no matter how welcoming your hosts are or how deeply you integrate into the society. Their holidays will still never be yours (no matter how much your holidays are “recognized” by society) and their values will always be different. This displacement gives diaspora Jews a common sense of unity; no matter how different you may be from each other – you are still more closely related to each other than you are to the general public. For that, I envy you. I believe that it is that sense of communal love that is our worst deficiency and our greatest danger.
I wasn't thrilled to schedule travel during the 9 days, but I traveled TO Israel and planned to either I) be working in the Bet Hamikdash as a practicing Kohein or II) davening in the Kotel plaza and reading a chapter of Eicha there on Tisha B'Av. While I ended up doing option II, being here affords me the opportunity to do so. I read Eicha at the Kotel last year and it helped me internalize the true loss we suffered, since I was literally sitting within 100 feet of the site of the destroyed Bet Hamikdash.
Last year there were literally thousands of people there when we arrived and the crush was somewhat impressive. This year, we managed to arrive about 45 minutes after the end of Shabbat and before most people. It was still an awe inspiring experience. After 2,000 years it is so hard to relate to the loss we suffered, but being on the site and mentally forming some kind of picture of what may have once been has added to my Tisha B'Av spiritual connection. If there is a future Tisha B'Av before Mashiach comes, I recommend the experience.
Although I do not look forward to having another opportunity to do so ever again and would prefer to see a rebuilt Bet Hamikdash, I am committed to continuing to be at Har Habayit every year – preferably to be in the Bet HaMikdash.
Thursday, August 14, 2008
Tears (Article# 89) 7/25/08
In anticipation of having a full house with my brother’s arrival, Goldie and I took a last minute vacation to Teveria. We had been talking about getting away for several weeks, but could not really settle on a specific day to go. At the last second (literally at 10:30 AM) we got a super discount on one of the Israeli last minute travel sites and we hit the road by 11:15 for a 2 night getaway.
When we lived in the USA vacations were a lot easier to plan but a lot harder to go on. I understood all the tourist information and was able to schedule an itinerary with ease. Even selecting a hotel was easy. We would drive around at the end of the day and see what looked interesting and call the Hotel Chain’s 800 number for a deal.
On the flip side, food and davening were major problems. Minyanim were not to be found outside the major urban areas and we had to be very careful about bringing enough food in case we couldn’t find the basic staples (I remember one year it took me almost an hour to find milk with hashgocha in Orlando, Florida). Finding a kosher restaurant meant an automatic night out – just for the novelty of seeing the restaurant in Hartford, CT or Norfolk, VA.
Planning our Israeli vacation was almost the exact opposite. A minyan was no problem and we had all the kosher food we could possibly eat (breakfast in the hotel dining room was included in the price – how cool is that). But all the travel websites (especially the last minute ones with all the best prices) are in Hebrew and I just couldn’t make heads or tails of them. I did eventually figure things out (and got almost 50% off the rate), but it took hours and hours of work to get the job done.
The first night we were there, we took a walk along the “boardwalk” and strolled around the center of town before having dinner. After dinner, as we made our way to the hotel, we came upon some live entertainment. Several Breslover Chassidim were set up on a street corner, peddling CDs, amulets and books while their van blasted (at full volume) the latest Breslover hits while at least 3 or 4 chassidim danced to the music (there was never less than one guy dancing maniacally on the roof of the van).
If you have never seen these guys, you don’t know what you are missing. They engage the crowd and try to spread their “joy” with the public. Invariably, one or two of the onlookers are motivated to join in the dancing, to the amusement of all. I think we sat and watched the show for something like 45 minutes.
The next day we slept late and then enjoyed the hotel dining room breakfast. At the meal we met the Rabhan family from Great Neck who were visiting for the summer. It turns out that I was in college with him way back in the late 80’s. It is always interesting to bump into people from the old country.
We then headed out for some rafting on the Jordan River. The waters were mostly tame (except for one 4 foot drop or so where I thought Goldie was going to pop a vocal cord from the volume of her screaming), but we really had a blast. We tried to drift with the current as much as we could, to enjoy the sun, peace and quiet.
After an early movie and late dinner, we again enjoyed a good night’s sleep and a long, lazy breakfast in the dining room. We were preparing to check out before heading out for a jeeping or boat trip when we turned on the TV to see what was going on. We knew the prisoner exchange was scheduled for that morning, but seeing it in reality really hit hard.
On the television, one of the first images we saw was a grand stage being set up somewhere near Beirut, where a massive celebration was going to be held later in the day. There was a huge banner on which (in English) there was the following message:
“Israel sheds tears of pain while Lebanon sheds tears of joy”
How disgusting. A country is in euphoric ecstasy at the release of a sick deranged criminal. They exult in the fact that they tortured 2 families for 2 full years, never admitting that their loved ones were dead, just so that they could exact the last ounce of pleasure from seeing our pain.
In fact, the initial reports were that Hizbolla was claiming that the soldiers were captured alive and that “whatever happened, happened” in an apparent effort to claim that it was the arabs who executed them after the fact. It was only the next day that the truth came out. Both soldiers were killed in the initial attack.
It is easy to say that we don’t negotiate with terrorists and thugs. When the person whose life might be saved is your husband, son, father, friend or neighbor that very lofty ideal falls by the wayside. The failure here was not the fact that we negotiated with terrorists. The failure was that we had to negotiate with them.
The neighborhood is not afraid of us anymore. They talk openly of kidnapping more soldiers so that they can squeeze even more from us. Our intelligence service seems powerless to detect these attacks and certainly from identifying the location of the captives so that we can mount rescue operations. Our government seems so overwhelmingly focused on maintaining power that it has lost focus on actually governing and in doing what is best for Israel rather than what is best for the political life of its elected officials. And our Prime Minister is still trying to figure out how to claim his frequent flyer miles his family accrued while possibly traveling at the expense of Israeli organizations.
We came here to be a part of Israeli society and to live in the Land of our Fathers, the Land that was divinely promised to us and our children. We wanted to live openly as Jews in the land of the Jews, actually fitting into the culture rather than carving a place for ourselves within someone else’s culture.
The entire family has benefited from our move here. We have happy kids who are excelling in school and in life. This has not changed. Yet, I am so disillusioned about Israeli politics that I am not really that concerned about who wins the next election. He (it better not be the only she who has a chance) is going to sell out anyway and we will be constantly on the defensive, both physically and psychologically unable to get away from the constant desire to have the rest of the world love us for who we are.
My brother arrives on his Nefesh Bnefesh flight this week. Attending his arrival will mark the third straight year we have been at an NBN arrival, always and inspiring and uplifting event. Hopefully, this new group will be part of our metamorphosis into a new Israel, an Israel that can once again stand as proud as we used to stand, safe and secure in the knowledge that we are a mighty and feared nation.
I want to wish the Israel Association of Baseball team good luck in the International “For the Love of the Game” baseball invitational being held in Freeport, PA this week. We look forward to hearing great things about their ambassadorial experience, especially from player Ephraim Schwartz, son of Chanoch and Naomi Schwartz – formerly of the 5 Towns.
When we lived in the USA vacations were a lot easier to plan but a lot harder to go on. I understood all the tourist information and was able to schedule an itinerary with ease. Even selecting a hotel was easy. We would drive around at the end of the day and see what looked interesting and call the Hotel Chain’s 800 number for a deal.
On the flip side, food and davening were major problems. Minyanim were not to be found outside the major urban areas and we had to be very careful about bringing enough food in case we couldn’t find the basic staples (I remember one year it took me almost an hour to find milk with hashgocha in Orlando, Florida). Finding a kosher restaurant meant an automatic night out – just for the novelty of seeing the restaurant in Hartford, CT or Norfolk, VA.
Planning our Israeli vacation was almost the exact opposite. A minyan was no problem and we had all the kosher food we could possibly eat (breakfast in the hotel dining room was included in the price – how cool is that). But all the travel websites (especially the last minute ones with all the best prices) are in Hebrew and I just couldn’t make heads or tails of them. I did eventually figure things out (and got almost 50% off the rate), but it took hours and hours of work to get the job done.
The first night we were there, we took a walk along the “boardwalk” and strolled around the center of town before having dinner. After dinner, as we made our way to the hotel, we came upon some live entertainment. Several Breslover Chassidim were set up on a street corner, peddling CDs, amulets and books while their van blasted (at full volume) the latest Breslover hits while at least 3 or 4 chassidim danced to the music (there was never less than one guy dancing maniacally on the roof of the van).
If you have never seen these guys, you don’t know what you are missing. They engage the crowd and try to spread their “joy” with the public. Invariably, one or two of the onlookers are motivated to join in the dancing, to the amusement of all. I think we sat and watched the show for something like 45 minutes.
The next day we slept late and then enjoyed the hotel dining room breakfast. At the meal we met the Rabhan family from Great Neck who were visiting for the summer. It turns out that I was in college with him way back in the late 80’s. It is always interesting to bump into people from the old country.
We then headed out for some rafting on the Jordan River. The waters were mostly tame (except for one 4 foot drop or so where I thought Goldie was going to pop a vocal cord from the volume of her screaming), but we really had a blast. We tried to drift with the current as much as we could, to enjoy the sun, peace and quiet.
After an early movie and late dinner, we again enjoyed a good night’s sleep and a long, lazy breakfast in the dining room. We were preparing to check out before heading out for a jeeping or boat trip when we turned on the TV to see what was going on. We knew the prisoner exchange was scheduled for that morning, but seeing it in reality really hit hard.
On the television, one of the first images we saw was a grand stage being set up somewhere near Beirut, where a massive celebration was going to be held later in the day. There was a huge banner on which (in English) there was the following message:
“Israel sheds tears of pain while Lebanon sheds tears of joy”
How disgusting. A country is in euphoric ecstasy at the release of a sick deranged criminal. They exult in the fact that they tortured 2 families for 2 full years, never admitting that their loved ones were dead, just so that they could exact the last ounce of pleasure from seeing our pain.
In fact, the initial reports were that Hizbolla was claiming that the soldiers were captured alive and that “whatever happened, happened” in an apparent effort to claim that it was the arabs who executed them after the fact. It was only the next day that the truth came out. Both soldiers were killed in the initial attack.
It is easy to say that we don’t negotiate with terrorists and thugs. When the person whose life might be saved is your husband, son, father, friend or neighbor that very lofty ideal falls by the wayside. The failure here was not the fact that we negotiated with terrorists. The failure was that we had to negotiate with them.
The neighborhood is not afraid of us anymore. They talk openly of kidnapping more soldiers so that they can squeeze even more from us. Our intelligence service seems powerless to detect these attacks and certainly from identifying the location of the captives so that we can mount rescue operations. Our government seems so overwhelmingly focused on maintaining power that it has lost focus on actually governing and in doing what is best for Israel rather than what is best for the political life of its elected officials. And our Prime Minister is still trying to figure out how to claim his frequent flyer miles his family accrued while possibly traveling at the expense of Israeli organizations.
We came here to be a part of Israeli society and to live in the Land of our Fathers, the Land that was divinely promised to us and our children. We wanted to live openly as Jews in the land of the Jews, actually fitting into the culture rather than carving a place for ourselves within someone else’s culture.
The entire family has benefited from our move here. We have happy kids who are excelling in school and in life. This has not changed. Yet, I am so disillusioned about Israeli politics that I am not really that concerned about who wins the next election. He (it better not be the only she who has a chance) is going to sell out anyway and we will be constantly on the defensive, both physically and psychologically unable to get away from the constant desire to have the rest of the world love us for who we are.
My brother arrives on his Nefesh Bnefesh flight this week. Attending his arrival will mark the third straight year we have been at an NBN arrival, always and inspiring and uplifting event. Hopefully, this new group will be part of our metamorphosis into a new Israel, an Israel that can once again stand as proud as we used to stand, safe and secure in the knowledge that we are a mighty and feared nation.
I want to wish the Israel Association of Baseball team good luck in the International “For the Love of the Game” baseball invitational being held in Freeport, PA this week. We look forward to hearing great things about their ambassadorial experience, especially from player Ephraim Schwartz, son of Chanoch and Naomi Schwartz – formerly of the 5 Towns.
NBA Ref Ehud Olmert (Article# 88) 7/18/08
I have been asked several times why I avoid writing about the current Israeli political issues. After all, politics is such a major part of Israeli society and what happens in the political arena has a huge impact on our day to day lives. A backroom deal here or there and viola – our child support payments go up (every family gets paid for having children in the household until the kids turn 18). A coalition building deal may bring thousands of shekels toward after school programming one day and cancel the program a few weeks later.
There are demonstrations and counter demonstrations galore and trying to publicize politician corruption seems to be a major part of the jobs of the police and Attorney General.
In truth, part of the reason I don’t talk much about politics is the fact that I still don’t really understand the system here too well. I have no idea how to register to vote, nor how the political primaries (if they even exist) operate for the various parties. I am sure that Nefesh B’nefesh will eventually (at a date closer to the actual elections) issue a primer to all the new immigrants on what/how/when/where, but until then I remain clueless.
I did actually do some research in how to form a political party and register it in the elections for the Knesset. It is not so hard to do; all it really takes is a bit of money and 100 people to join the party. I have a name for the party – Olim Chadashim (new immigrants) and believe that the agenda of making Israel more user friendly (less bureaucracy) as well as a little more responsive to the needs of immigrants AFTER they arrive and not just recruiting them heavily would be an interesting approach and attractive to foreign born citizens.
According to the information I found online, it appears that about 72,000 votes was enough to win the minimum of three seats the smallest parties in the Knesset are awarded. Nefesh B’nefesh just brought its’ 15,000th immigrant to Israel last week and considering Aliyah that has come from various corners of the world, it would not be unheard of (even though it is extremely unlikely) for something like that to happen. At the very least, it would be a wonderful civics experience and be an incredible chance to bring the Israeli election process to life for the thousands of us who really have no clue how everything runs.
Of course, the $15,000 filing fee would be a bit of an issue, as would having to campaign and really develop a platform on all the major issues (especially considering the aforementioned lack of clear understanding of how everything really works). However, if anyone is really interested in helping to solve the first hurdle (in a legal manner – I would prefer not being investigated for corruption), I am willing to give it a go and work on the other issues.
I am also somewhat confused about what happens when people who spend their entire lives saying things like, “we will never give away land” or “Jerusalem undivided” seem to suddenly change their minds when they are sitting in the seats of power. It is almost as if once they become the leader of the country they are given certain information that none of us have that leads them to change their minds. I have no clue what it could possibly be, but the list of politicians who were elected saying “we will not negotiate with terrorist” and end up doing just that is endless.
Another reason I don’t like commenting on politicians is that I really think they are all corrupt in one way or another. If so, the fact that one of them steals better than another is not really worthy of comment. Yet, with the latest round of corruption news (and spin) I can’t hold back.
After all, it is not often that a Head of State’s position is threatened because he followed the lead of a few NBA referees (no – not the one who gambled). For those of you who aren’t up to speed on this, several NBA referees downgraded their first class tickets to coach, pocketed the price difference and failed to report the money as income on their tax returns. At least one of them was convicted and served house arrest.
The similarities are striking. The politician is always claiming that the legislators beneath him play in a foul manner, lying about him and his policies and using the media for personal gain. NBA refs? Their job is calling fouls and trying to keep players in line.
The politician constantly flip flops on the issues and basically says whatever the people he is currently speaking to want to hear. NBA refs? Well, there must be a reason the common belief is that the home team seems to get the benefit of the doubt from them.
Of course, when the NBA ref makes a mistake at his job, the worst thing that happens is not very significant overall. A politician can make a mistake that costs lives and endangers a nation. So I think I am less comfortable knowing that the politician is willing to stick it to the people where personal gain is concerned than I am about an NBA official cheating on his taxes.
I am obviously engaging in a little bit of absurdity in suggesting that the two are comparable. If an NBA official cheats in one area – the concern is that he will cheat in others. That might not be a concern by the politician. There might even be an argument to be made that we need smart and crafty people to serve as our leaders so that they can use their “less than honest” talents for the benefit of our country.
Then again, some of those NBA officials are now out of jobs – so perhaps there IS a correlation to be made here after all.
There are demonstrations and counter demonstrations galore and trying to publicize politician corruption seems to be a major part of the jobs of the police and Attorney General.
In truth, part of the reason I don’t talk much about politics is the fact that I still don’t really understand the system here too well. I have no idea how to register to vote, nor how the political primaries (if they even exist) operate for the various parties. I am sure that Nefesh B’nefesh will eventually (at a date closer to the actual elections) issue a primer to all the new immigrants on what/how/when/where, but until then I remain clueless.
I did actually do some research in how to form a political party and register it in the elections for the Knesset. It is not so hard to do; all it really takes is a bit of money and 100 people to join the party. I have a name for the party – Olim Chadashim (new immigrants) and believe that the agenda of making Israel more user friendly (less bureaucracy) as well as a little more responsive to the needs of immigrants AFTER they arrive and not just recruiting them heavily would be an interesting approach and attractive to foreign born citizens.
According to the information I found online, it appears that about 72,000 votes was enough to win the minimum of three seats the smallest parties in the Knesset are awarded. Nefesh B’nefesh just brought its’ 15,000th immigrant to Israel last week and considering Aliyah that has come from various corners of the world, it would not be unheard of (even though it is extremely unlikely) for something like that to happen. At the very least, it would be a wonderful civics experience and be an incredible chance to bring the Israeli election process to life for the thousands of us who really have no clue how everything runs.
Of course, the $15,000 filing fee would be a bit of an issue, as would having to campaign and really develop a platform on all the major issues (especially considering the aforementioned lack of clear understanding of how everything really works). However, if anyone is really interested in helping to solve the first hurdle (in a legal manner – I would prefer not being investigated for corruption), I am willing to give it a go and work on the other issues.
I am also somewhat confused about what happens when people who spend their entire lives saying things like, “we will never give away land” or “Jerusalem undivided” seem to suddenly change their minds when they are sitting in the seats of power. It is almost as if once they become the leader of the country they are given certain information that none of us have that leads them to change their minds. I have no clue what it could possibly be, but the list of politicians who were elected saying “we will not negotiate with terrorist” and end up doing just that is endless.
Another reason I don’t like commenting on politicians is that I really think they are all corrupt in one way or another. If so, the fact that one of them steals better than another is not really worthy of comment. Yet, with the latest round of corruption news (and spin) I can’t hold back.
After all, it is not often that a Head of State’s position is threatened because he followed the lead of a few NBA referees (no – not the one who gambled). For those of you who aren’t up to speed on this, several NBA referees downgraded their first class tickets to coach, pocketed the price difference and failed to report the money as income on their tax returns. At least one of them was convicted and served house arrest.
The similarities are striking. The politician is always claiming that the legislators beneath him play in a foul manner, lying about him and his policies and using the media for personal gain. NBA refs? Their job is calling fouls and trying to keep players in line.
The politician constantly flip flops on the issues and basically says whatever the people he is currently speaking to want to hear. NBA refs? Well, there must be a reason the common belief is that the home team seems to get the benefit of the doubt from them.
Of course, when the NBA ref makes a mistake at his job, the worst thing that happens is not very significant overall. A politician can make a mistake that costs lives and endangers a nation. So I think I am less comfortable knowing that the politician is willing to stick it to the people where personal gain is concerned than I am about an NBA official cheating on his taxes.
I am obviously engaging in a little bit of absurdity in suggesting that the two are comparable. If an NBA official cheats in one area – the concern is that he will cheat in others. That might not be a concern by the politician. There might even be an argument to be made that we need smart and crafty people to serve as our leaders so that they can use their “less than honest” talents for the benefit of our country.
Then again, some of those NBA officials are now out of jobs – so perhaps there IS a correlation to be made here after all.
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