Sharing a quick read

 While flipping through the latest issue of Hadassah magazine, I read this very compelling "graphic essay", "Welcome Home", by Abby Horowitz. I think many of you will relate to what the author writes about visiting Israel and the difference for her from life in the US:

https://issuu.com/hadassahmag/docs/hadassah_sepoct_2024_1_/20?ff

Things are heating up, but, thankfully, still calm where we live

Yup, that's about all I have to say at this point (mostly because I'm slightly desperate to go to sleep after a morning run, working in Jerusalem and then a few hours with Menashe's family in Ikea [at least the food there is kosher so you can get a snack when faint from hunger]).

Lots (and LOTS) of soldiers are being called up for reserve duty.....My good friend's daughter, who is in the army, just told the family she won't be home for Rosh Hashanah.....The son of a woman I work with, who was supposed to be home until the end of October, got called up today (like "go ASAP").....We hear planes and helicopters overhead throughout the day and night.....I'm going (yet again) tomorrow to stock up the pantry (the mamad is still fully-stocked. But the pantry, not so much. What can I say? We keep eating).

This editorial in the Jerusalem Post really sums up my feelings (and fears, frankly):

https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-821395

With thanks to all who have checked in and sent supportive messages. We feel your care and concern!

Yay! Menashe's family is here!

 b''H they arrived early Friday morning after three planes, delays, a missed flight, and missing luggage. What can I say--we know that the land of Israel is acquired by yissurim and hopefully this will be the worst "pain with a purpose" that they have here.

#SweetestPictureEver

#ThanksChanaForTheBalloon

For their first week, while they outfit their apartment, they are staying with friends from Costa Rica in another part of our city, so Shalom Shachne and I visited before Shabbat started:

That sign played an important role in OUR aliyah journey! Our friend Temima's sisters made the sign and then showed up at the crack of dawn at the airport to welcome us 9 years ago. I told Menashe's mom that I was specifically giving them that sign, updated for their family, rather than making them a new sign, so that we could try to share with them the strength we've gained and the good things we've experienced over the years here. 

Gosh, we were young!

SO GLAD THEY'RE HERE!!! YAY!

BeeperGate

 First, the serious stuff and a few talking points:

Hezbollah  has sent THOUSANDS of missiles and drones into Northern Israel in the past 11 months (on July 4 alone, over 200 rockets and drones were sent from Hezbollah), effectively pushing back the border of the country and causing over 60,000 Israelis to be displaced from their homes. Hezbollah has acted totally indiscriminately--a missile does not distinguish between a combatant and a civilian. While I desperately pray for peace in, and for, our beautiful country, to my mind, exploding beepers and walkie-talkies that are in the hands of bad guys seems like the least bad all the bad alternatives. 

And is it just me or have other people made the connection that JK Rowling had this as a Harry Potter plot line with the "dark mark" showing up on Voldemort's troops? Like, seriously, WHAT is the Iranian ambassador to Lebanon doing with a Hezbollah pager?! He's from Iran, so let's assume he's not winning any Boy Scout award, but seriously?!

As Col. Richard Kemp (former commander of British troops in Afghanistan) said, "It's hard to think of a more precise and discriminating method of attack than detonating pagers known to be specifically assigned to individual terrorists, using devices that limit the potential for collateral damage. I doubt any widespread military arrack in history in civilian areas has ever been so precisely targeted". Read the full article here: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/en/news/396381

But I know what you're hoping for (at least some of you): the irreverent take on this. Well, here you go:

Here's to a beautiful, PEACEFUL Shabbat.

What It's Like (in [almost] real time)

 I thought it might be interesting to give an inside view into this news and show what it was like (for me, at least) in (recreated) real time:

I left home at 6:20 for my morning exercise and arrived (by foot) at the newish road that is a shortcut through open fields between my part of the city and the original part of the city. It's 2.5 km long. Did I mention the "open fields" part?! It's beautiful and lovely and also very exposed.

 Juuuust as I arrived I heard the loudest overhead BOOM I have heard since October 7. Looking up, I saw a big, fat trail of white smoke going across what appeared to be the whole sky. Uh oh....Then I heard a whole lot of "pop pop pop", which in the US might be fireworks but here are generally much more nefarious (my understanding is that it's incoming missiles and Iron Dome interceptions that are not close enough that we need a "get in the bomb shelter" siren, but close enough that we hear the action). 

Got on my favorite news source: the local Anglos list :):

Found out that there were rockets in Modi'in and Ramle among other places that, while not around the corner, are also not terribly far away. And that other people also thought this BOOM was much louder than others. I went on the Red Alert app from the Homefront Command and saw this, which literally gave shivers for a moment: 

112 places were having sirens right now?! And I'm standing on the edge of a long, open field trying to decide if I should continue to run or go home.

I turned to the right and WOW--just like the "Room of Requirement" in Harry Potter I saw a freestanding bomb shelter! Hurrah! Pretty sure I have never seen another in my part of the city (then again, forgot this one was there until I needed it)

Walked a few steps more and saw that, alas, I continue to wait for my Hogwarts acceptance letter because the darn thing was locked:

One of the heads of the local volunteer EMT squad posted shortly after I did (the list was going bonkers with messages), so (five minutes after the BOOM), I asked him privately for his input:

A minute later someone posted this photo to the Anglos list, which made me a tad more concerned (which sounds so much nicer than "panicky", doesn't it?!):

EEEK. I can't imagine anyone looking at that photo and feeling calm and collected.....

By this point, nothing else had happened. So I just kept going. And kept refreshing the news:

By about thirty minutes after the BOOM and halfway through my run, we knew that the BOOM had been a ballistic missile (aka "A BIG ONE"), although it was assumed that Iran was the bad actor (turned out they likely funded it but didn't send it themselves)

Heard back from my friend (Bella and Avi's mom) who lives nearest to the place I was running, who I had asked earlier if I could join them in their mamad if a siren happened. Ended up being the ENN ("Ellen News Network"). telling her what was going on. 

Still going back and forth in a reduced area for my run. Still nothing else had happened. On the one hand, it was possible Iran (or one of the other groups that hates us and wants us wiped off the map) was taking a coffee break before starting a giant attack. On the other hand, it was entirely possible that what had already occurred was all that was going to happen.

From my WhatsApp status:

And still, I was going back and forth in an area of about 3/4 km. In the end, I just kept praying and just kept going. Ended up with 7 km rather than my usual 6, but slooow pace because, hey, I had a lot of checking the news to do while I was running.

And then I came home, got ready and went to to work in Jerusalem like today was just like any normal day. Because here in Miracle-Ville, where tons of people *might* have died this morning but didn't, life just goes on.

Yet another happy ending to the early morning drama: Shalom Shachne came with me and we went to the Kotel in honor of his birthday today :)

 

One more bit of nice news ;)

Yesterday, Ilana started seminary in Jerusalem (Bayit V'Gan neighborhood, near Malcha Mall). I guess we were being too cool to take first day photos :). And, WOW, thus ends almost three decades of day-to-day parenting!

Happy First Anniversary!

Wow! Happy First (English) Anniversary to Penina and Menashe! 

I was eloquent and bracha-laden in private so I'll just put some photo highlights in :)

Although our anniversaries are not the same on either the English or Hebrew calendars, today is also the 32nd (Hebrew) anniversary for Shalom Shachne and me!

The last bit of news to share is that Menashe's family's aliyah flight got pushed off until next week. They will now arrive at 4 a.m. next Friday morning (which, hopefully, due to jet lag won't feel at all like 4 a.m. to them). 

Some Good News

Finally, some good news to report:

First, our friend who has been in the army since October 7 is FINALLY home. Actually, although he and Shalom Shachne were friendly at shul, the rest of us didn't even know each other until I stated walking Bella to shul and we got to know each other over many Shabbos lunches (I told Chanie they had a standing invitation and every Thursday I would check in to see if she got a better offer, ie a family with kids the ages of Bella and Avi). M is home at least until late fall (please Gd. Always subject to change).

The other big news is that, HOORAY, Menashe's mother, stepfather and little brother Iosi are b''n making aliyah on Tuesday!!!! Can't wait to have more "relatives" in the country (I think my total is still, technically, zero, but machatunim are close enough to count ;))

I had a real "only in Israel"  moment the other day: while on a 5km run with two friends we stopped for 15 minutes....to help harvest grapes in the fields we were running through (there is still a desperate need for agricultural help in Israel, as so many foreign workers have gone home since October 7). The tiny crew of only 6 people were happy to get our brief help (together, the three of us filled one 5 gallon bucket) and told us to pass their number around in case others want to help. So drop me a line if you're in the area and want Olga's number.

Lastly, today I started back at the yeshiva where I'm the nurse twice a week. Wonderful to be back in the Old City on a regular basis

Shabbat Shalom!

September 1, 2024

September 1 is a big day in Israel--the majority of kids go back to school today and the air is usually festive and fun. 

And then there's this year.

The women are saying, "Their backpacks become heavier from year to year" and the kids' backpacks each have written, "My father was badly injured", "displaced from the North", "My father was killed", "My sister is a hostage in Gaza", "displaced from the South"....

That was the post I had started to write about September 1st. And then....

We woke up to the heartbreaking news that these six hostages were found murdered (no, New York Times, they were not "found dead") in the Gaza tunnels

 May the memories of 

    Hersh Goldberg-Polin

    Eden Yerushalmi

    Carmel Bat

    Almog Sarusi

    Alex Lobanov

and Ori Danino

be for a blessing. This is so devastating....

Their bodies were found only one kilometer from where Qaid Farhan Al-Kadi was discovered last week. When Farhan was found, the country was so darn happy. 

This photo, by Soroka Medical Center, shows the reality of Israel: a religious Jewish doctor treating a Muslim Arab who was freed by 18 Israeli soldiers from his captivity by Hamas terrorists.