My Thoughts On Gaza

My email and social feeds have been inundated with articles, videos, and friends' opinions--all about the recent Gaza flotilla incident. It's hard to speak clarity into such murky waters; but just because something is hard doesn't mean you shouldn't try it.

Instead of joining the fray of evaluating video footage and first-hand reports to determine who was "right" and "wrong", I want to remind you of some things that may have been forgotten.

Hamas is a terrorist organization. They flagrantly abuse civilians, murder women and children, and are composed of lawless, blood-hungry despots. Hamas controls the area known as Gaza. How can any sensible, peace-loving person expect accountability from such an organization? It is ludicrous. Without accountability there is no relief for the common inhabitant of Gaza. Without accountability no Gazan child will ever receive a donation of toys, no matter how many flotillas are assembled.

Israel is not stopping humanitarian aid with their blockade; they are trying to insure at least a small step of accountability. The only humanitarian aid a common citizen of Gaza will ever see comes from the hands of IDF soldiers and Israeli citizens.

Back, Looking Forward

So, I'm back in California, physically. After a rough patch of jet-lag, which was barely recovered before daylight savings, I think I am mostly present. I know people always sing about leaving your heart here, but mine is firmly planted on the other side of the globe.

I love Israel. I love the culture, the weather, the food, the traffic, the holidays, the clothes, the cats...everything. These people are my people, even if I am not theirs. When the opportunity comes to go back, I will without hesitation. If the opportunity to stay there comes, I will with no reservation.

Until then, I'll cook, dance, and try to make some money. Anybody have a job opening?

Power

The following is a story sent to me from a rabbi in Taiwan. How we met, and who he is, is a special tale in and of itself. But for now, we'll keep this post current. I wanted to re-post this story for several reasons. One, when I read it, it was exactly the points and beliefs I needed to reminded of this morning. The second reason is because of the man I call "my favorite beggar" at the Central Bus Station in Jerusalem.

There are beggars in Jerusalem, but they are unlike the panhandlers you see in San Francisco, or San Diego. Collecting "tzedaka" is a sanctioned occupation for Torah students (to the best of my understanding). Otherwise there are the disabled "regulars" asking for alms and a few newcomers who see a way to get some quick pocket money.

The man I'm speaking of collects money, but he also sings songs about Elohim. He dresses in clean clothes, and has a car. And he never refuses any amount, no matter how small. Every time I see him, I smile. He has so much joy and such a pleasant spirit about him. He tells me that each smile makes me a little bit more lucky, like a prayer, and every little bit collects until a collection of smiles is so great it reaches heaven. Whether I've given him money or not, he wants to pray a blessing over me and my brother. The blessing of the Cohenim, the blessing over the sons and daughters of Israel. I smile every time I see him. I also smile every time I remember.

A Very Merry Unbirthday to ME!

Sometimes you plan to do something that is fun in a normal sort of way, then suddenly that one activity blossoms into a whole series of fun, and you have an amazing day. Like today.

*Warning: This post contains punctuation intended for feeling, tone and/or emphasis and not for grammar. I know, I know it's /supposed/ to do that anyway, but hey, look, it's already started...

1. Planned to go see Avatar in 3D.

This involved braving ticket pre-purchase in Hebrew again, because all the shows sell out in a flash and a bang. It also involved a small trek to the coast, because I'm not too excited about 1am movie showings, especially in combination with public transportation. The trip was *lovely*, the theater *amazing*, and we got there with some time to spare! (which is /always/ nice). The last point led to the next point.

Can't Restrain Myself

With my own flight scheduled a mere two months away, I can't help but be partly mystified and mostly enraged with the state of any airport outside of Israel! I mean, seriously!

Both these stories appeared in the Toronto Star. I certainly hope they appeared side-by-side and that someone, nay, anyone! was paying attention!

Full-body scans top priority - thestar.com

What Israel can teach us about security - thestar.com

Too good to let slide

Amazing.

That's what Israeli bus drivers are.

Or completely insane.

Picture a narrow, no shoulder, one way street pretending to be a two-way street. Now, park a tour bus on one side. At the end of that bus, park another full sized tour bus on the other side. Now drive your wide, public transit bus between them without scratching anything. There was literally 4 inches or less on each side at any given time.

Thrilling, just thrilling.

Minor quibble: my facebook has been out of commission for days. I keep getting the polite, "this account is temporarily unavailable" message. I've tried different computers, different connections. They must hate me. I wonder what I did.

Quibble counteract: This site is my new favorite toy. Try "my birthday is better than your birthday."

Also, napping with a sleeping baby in your arms does wonders for bus ride trauma recovery.

Fun With Words

Eventually there had to be some word mix-ups living and working in a country where your first language is not first.

Today, my boss was explaining that we didn't need to change the soap with the Bibles. And while I was wondering where the Bibles were, it suddenly dawned on me that she meant bubbles (the instant foam soap). We shared a good laugh, though she felt the need to say her English wasn't so good.

Well, I got to tell her that my Hebrew isn't so good.

There were some guests who made a request for clean towels and their room was on my list, so I tried to tell them "yes, I'll bring them, but not now", meaning later. This conversation took place entirely in Hebrew and I said "לא אחות". They gave me the funniest look and I realized I must have said the wrong word, but I couldn't think of the right one. This led to pantomime with my watch. Ah, "לא עכשיו" they were kind enough to help me out with my garbled vocabulary.

This has been the source of residual laughter for days, and I'm pretty sure more circumstances will arise to continue the fun. Well, hopefully, it'll stay fun!

Girl On A Bus

Ever so often you see a beautiful person. Someone who you can't help but look at because the aesthetic is so pleasing.

Today, there was a girl on the bus. She was flawless. Perfect skin, angelic eyes, masses of raven curls casually pulled back, classically dressed and demure. Nothing was artificial or strained; just easy, tasteful, and fabulous genetics.

Django

It's amazing how hard work clips along when you have some thing special to look forward to. Went to Tel Aviv tonight to see Swing De Gitan and to enjoy some dancing at the Jaffa pishpeshuk.
Oh. Wow.
This band is amazing. Oh the pleasure! Oh the joy, of gypsy swing played oh-so-right! Another rendezvous at Max Brenner topped off the night.

Right now, it's just a delirium of deliciousness.

Oops

Today I mooned half a bus full of people--on accident, of course. The length of my skirt and the height of the armrest just happened to coincide perfectly, and as I disembarked from my seat, my skirt disembarked from my bottom.

I am laughing hysterically. I think this bus driver (who got the best view) regularly drives our route. Part of me is resigned to never being able to respectably ride the bus again, but the other part is still laughing.

One Month?! Amazing!

I said I would write, and write I shall. It is a wonder to me that I've been living in Israel a month. The first two and a half weeks touring with my dad and brother were such precious and exciting times. I am very thankful we took the time to make a thorough top to bottom survey of the Land before beginning our volunteer time. It was an essential acclimation without the pressure of meeting anyone else's needs.

My volunteer work is mostly manual labor varying from hotel style housekeeping to tree removal and parking lot policing. Everything is pleasant though. The hours are fair, if not lenient, and the supervisors are a delight to please. It does seem like all of Israel is getting married twice, considering how many weddings we have each week--sometimes several a day! I have acquired a deeper understanding of the term "ballagone".

Lately, I've been working in the gardens. I have to say that gardening in Israel really adds meaning to all the parables of Yeshua. Actually experiencing plants shooting up through the stony soil, having to separate out the tares, and stumbling on rare spices in the midst of fields transforms Scriptural passages from a philosophical commentaries to tangible analogies. And then to look out at the "mountains" around Jerusalem--ah! it's marvelous.

In addition to the weddings and special events, we have many interesting guest groups staying for longer periods of time at the lodgings. The past two weeks we've been hosting a group of archeologists from ABR. To my delight, they invited whomever wanted to join them for time out at their dig. After coordinating for several groups of the volunteers to go on their days off, I finally made it out this past Monday. What a thrill to be walking on the site, and being able to work in the squares instead of being told tersely to stay behind the designated lines! I found multitudes of pottery shards; some with intricate design work, a "dainty handle", several flint knives, and a stone with a ridged border carved in it. The stone was probably Hasmonean, but the pottery was generally Bronze 1. Such a sensation to hold even the shards in my hands; especially since some of the fragments were very similar to my own broken pottery items in ceramic class after a bisque firing!

That evening Sam and I caught a taxi into Tel Aviv to check out the local swing scene. I wasn't sure what to expect, since sometimes "swing dancing" turns out to be a group of slightly intoxicated 30s or 40s dancing to country western and sleazy '80s music. No need for concern--it was a fantastic bunch of true dancers with a great dj in a lovely studio with plenty of room and AC. I connected with some mutual friends and we had a wonderful hostess and accommodations for the evening. Even some surrogate doggies and kitties to keep us company!

The next day, we were graciously chauffeured to our aunt's house where we sat through the national security drill. It was more like a moment of reminiscing than any sort of military exercise. As soon as the alarms stopped, we promptly went shopping at the bazaar in Lud. Much good food was devoured, but I totally spaced on taking pictures.

Today's adventure: I cut my own bangs after work. Yes, they came out fine, Mom.

Thanks to everyone who is praying ardently for us. It is our prayer that anyone who can will join us whenever possible!