Arabs, on the train

I'm sitting on the train, it's late, and I'm on my way home.
Far too exhausted to be paying attention.

I step past a family of Arabs, their boxes spreading into the aisle.  There are grandparents, parents, a little girl.  They chatter all the way north.

I may be exhausted, but I can't help paying attention.  My life depends on paying attention around Arabs, I've been told. 

Even when they're travelling as a family?  Even when they've got a little girl babbling on their laps?

I don't understand their language.  Are they talking about me?  Arabic sounds horrible, guttural and strange.  I know Hebrew must sound that way to others; to me, it sounds like the Tanach, like poetry.  The Arabs' Arabic is sprinkled with Hebrew here.  They say "b'seder," and other Hebrew words.  Do other Arabs outside of Israel feel like they are contaminated with Jewishness?

I don’t know if they’re talking about me, but I’m thinking about them.  Not them, exactly. 

You know:  Terrorists.

Oh, yeah; that.

I'm writing a blog post about terrorism in Israel.  I start hunting for a picture of a knife to go with the post, then realize my screen faces towards them.  Will they know what I'm thinking about?  Will they think I am thinking about them? 

I quickly search for the word "girl" even though I do not want a picture of a girl to go with the post.  Slowly, I creep back towards the pictures of the knives, choosing a relatively tasteful one instead of something bloody and garish.  Not my style, anyway. 

The child is facing away from me, sitting with her parents.  The older people are facing in my direction.  Perhaps their eyes are old; perhaps they can’t see what I’m doing.

I modify the picture in furtive bursts,

Dear Family: she is safe, so please stop asking

Hi, all!

Just wanted to let you know that although we are all worried about E_____ when terrible things happen in Jerusalem, it doesn't help to email her to let her know about them or to ask if she is safe. 

Telling a person in that situation to "stay safe" implies that anyone who gets hurt is simply not making an effort.

If you want to send her a note, try something constructive, like, "I'm praying this will end soon," "I hope you're still finding ways to enjoy life," or simply, "we love you."

Please remember that, in Jerusalem as in any other place in this world, a person is safe until the moment they are not - whether that moment comes in a car, on a city street, in Canada's parliament buildings, in a hospital, or at the hands of a terrorist.

Statistically, her life expectancy here is higher than in most countries of the world, including the US. Though none of us know when our moment will come, for this moment, right now, she is safe.

I spent last Tuesday afternoon with her in Jerusalem.

Don't forget! Nine things to remember before you fly

Even with the best-laid plans, there are some important things that can fall through the cracks.  Here are 9 of the most important reminders – things you’ll want to take care of before you pull on that spiffy new Nefesh b’Nefesh ballcap and hop on the plane to Israel:

 

1.  Medical Check-In

 

Sure, health care in Israel is free.  But you’ll be sitting in front of a doctor who doesn’t know you, doesn’t have your records, and perhaps doesn’t speak English.  (Medical clinic receptionists will insist that “all the doctors speak English,” which means they know the names of medical conditions, but many still can’t carry on a conversation.) 

 

There’s also a different cultural approach and you may not have the confidence as a dripping-wet oleh to be pushy enough with Israeli doctors to make your concerns known.

 

If you have any medical worries, even little niggling things that you’re concerned might get bigger before your Hebrew gets better, get them taken care of ahead of time.

 

2.  Prescriptions

 

This could have been part of #1, except it’s so important I’m giving it its own bullet point.  Get a copy of all prescriptions, and a six-month supply of any medications you take on a regular basis. 

 

Keep these prescriptions in your carry-on baggage along with a few days’ supply, at least.  Checked baggage does get lost, and stuff gets lost inside checked baggage (especially if you’re bringing a dozen or more huge suitcases!). 

 

You don’t want to deal with a medical crisis immediately on landing.

3.  Dentist

Read everything I just said about doctors and multiply it by ten.  Then take out the part about it being free – you will have to pay for dental care in Israel, after you’ve figured out how to find it and how much it’ll be. 

 

The other half of Israel: do religious Jews hate Arabs?

Last week, a friend who volunteers teaching English to kids in an Arab village near Karmiel mentioned an informal survey he’d done among the kids he teaches.  He asked them, hypothetically, who they wouldn’t want living in their village. 

He listed a whole bunch of different types of people:  Arab Christians, Americans, religious and non-religious Jews.

It turned out that the main group of people that the kids didn’t want coming to live in their village was religious Jews.

Why?

Because, according to the kids, religious Jews hate Arabs more.

In other words:  not because they hate us, but because they believe we hate them.

I was astonished, but actually this makes sense.  They probably figure that the people who are most passionate about the religion are also the most passionate Zionists.  And thus, the most passionate Arab-haters.

To me, being a religious Jew is totally about Israel.  But it is not at all about hatred. 

I always figured that when I made aliyah, I’d understand the situation here a lot more clearly.  You know, being actually present on the ground, as opposed to being way off in North America.

That’s about as accurate as a flea expecting to understand a dog’s life just because it lives on the dog’s back. 

Essential phrases you must know in Israel: Chafetz Chashud / חֵפֶץ חָשׁוּד

Stop!  Before you put that backpack down for a second… don’t.

Israelis are, shall we say, just a little bit touchy about unattended luggage, purses, backpacks, of any kind. 

Leave it alone for more than a few seconds and it’s automatically reclassified.  It’s no longer your stuff… it becomes a חֵפֶץ חָשׁוּד / chafetz chashud = suspicious object.  And that is something everyone here takes very, very seriously.

Here is the entire Kotel / Western Wall complex shut down because of a chafetz chashud:

Can you spot it in this picture?

Some moron put down a backpack and walked away… and the entire place had to be evacuated.

When you do leave something behind by accident, Israelis are very vigilant.  It starts so quietly you might not notice, but the reaction is almost immediate:  “Whose bag is this?”

If it’s your bag, you’d better claim it, and fast, because soon enough, everybody will be chiming in trying to figure out which dummy has left a potentially suspicious object lying around.

Ultimately, the chain of inquiry can lead to your bag being exploded for you

What’s bugging you? Israeli bug infestations so far (so good).

One of the things everybody warned us about before we came was bugs.

“Israel’s full of bugs,” they said.  “Watch out.  You will have bugs.”

What kind of bugs?

Everything ranging from ants to lice to cockroaches to scorpions to weevils in the flour to I-don’t-know-what.

Cockroaches are semi-affectionately known as “Jukim” (pronounced “Jew” (as in Jewish) and “keem”) here.  And yes, we have seen them in our apartment.  One or two.  I have been as grateful as anything that there haven’t been more. 

Yes, they’re hideous.  And yes, the kids scream “Juke!” every time they spot one.  Which is rarely… so I figure we’re doing okay.

Someone else told us, “After Pesach is when the ants come.”  It’s like a Biblical curse.

Should you cancel your vacation to Israel?

Allow me to spoil the surprise:  I’ll tell you the answer up front.

Ready?

No.

But there’s another thing I wanted to share first, which actually also came to me via facebook.  This isn’t something I usually do; I figure if you want to follow me on facebook, you can.

(Didn’t know that yet?  Follow AliyahLand on facebook!  Follow me personally on Twitter!)

[can anyone tell me why all my graphics are surrounded by this annoying white frame?!?!]

Like I said, normally what happens on facebook stays on facebook.  But in this case, these two things felt more important than most given the barrage of “stuff” that’s been falling on Israel over the last few days.

A not so fun-and-games kids’ video

I shared this video, which came with the following caption, from The Jewish Standard’s facebook page:

This song was composed by a local teacher and has been taught to hundreds of schoolchildren within firing range of Gaza's rockets to help them deal with the fear and trauma of having 15 seconds to run for cover when the Color Red siren sounds.

Despite its cheerful tune and praiseworthy goal, I was crying by the end.  It’s only a minute; please watch at least a few seconds.

And I don’t cry about stuff… well, almost never.

When I shared it, I said, “It is not fair that children have to learn this song. Kind of catchy, but if you're like me, you may cry anyway.”

But when a friend added a comment to the effect that she admired our courage… and that she didn’t think she could live here, all I could think of to say was, “It’s nothing like courage.  It’s just… life.”

I think it’s not a bad answer.

A question that answers itself

The second facebook thing I wanted to share was in response to this article on Kveller.com by Ariel Chesler:  Should I Cancel My Family Vacation to Israel?  He writes: 

I wish I could tell them, and you, that I am taking this trip no matter what. I wish I could tell you that I will not be deterred by terrorists attacking civilians. …

On one hand, how can I tell my family who is living this reality every day that I will not be visiting? How can I tell cousins with young children that their country is too dangerous for my children and not theirs? Isn’t the best way to support Israel to travel there …

On the other hand, I wonder will I need a gas mask to see my grandmother? Will we land in Israel and be rushed into bomb shelters? …

(read the rest)

My comment was short, but – I think – encapsulates exactly what I believe about this situation and every other situation that could possibly develop here.

Jews outside of Israel often forget that our destinies are linked. As Mordechai told Esther, "Don't think that just because you're in the palace, you alone out of all the Jews will be spared." We are all in this together, and you are not safe anywhere if we are not safe here.

You know my answer… now here’s why

Here’s what it comes down to:  “The truth is,” Chesler writes, “I don’t know what will happen.”

We sure don’t.

In Israel or in North America, you don’t know what will happen.  That’s because you don’t run the world. 

What do I mean by that?

Your decision to get on a plane does not in any way affect Hashem’s decision to keep you alive (or not).  If your time is up, your time is up, whether you’re in Machane Yehuda or driving on the Long Island Expressway when that moment comes.

But the one thing we do know from our history is that it’s impossible to hide.  If “they” are coming after the Jews, they will find you wherever you happen to be.

Does that mean you should run into a burning building?

No, absolutely not.

But Israel is not a burning building.  Israel is the promised land, a land of peace and opportunity, and there is no Jewish place like it in the world. 

Sharing Israel with your children keeps them safe in a way huddling with them in the illusional “palace” of North America never could.  It teaches them that we are Jews; that we are strong. 

That we will win.

It doesn’t take courage to come here.  It’s just life.  The kind of Jewish life the terrorists (in this and previous generations) have dedicated themselves to eradicating.

So… should you cancel your vacation? 

Another tidbit I posted on facebook yesterday that might answer your question:  I booked a plane ticket to bring our older daughter back in September.

Sure, I’m hoping there will be peace by then.  But whatever is going on around us, as a Jew, she belongs here… and so do you.

Tzivia / צִיבְיָה

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(Mis)interpreting the news – an editor’s perspective on tragedy

Some people’s reaction to tragedy is to weep.

I edit.

You might have noticed that I don’t usually get political on this site, mainly out of humility; I don’t understand enough to get involved in one side or the other.

This isn’t about politics, because I don’t know politics.

But what I do know is words.

What I do understand is grammar and the importance of using language precisely and accurately.  And the tragic consequences if you don’t.

Perhaps I’m just a writer and editor at heart, but I couldn’t help making a few corrections to the story of the funerals as told by Al-Jazeera.  I have taken the liberty of fixing a few things.

I think my edits make the article much better. 

Even better would have been if it hadn’t needed to be written at all.

Funeral held for slain Israeli settlers boys

Burials held for three young settlers 16-year-old boys who disappeared were kidnapped weeks ago as well as for [one, unrelated] Palestinian shot by Israeli forces.

[If you don’t mention who killed the Israeli boys, why are you pointing out who shot the Palestinian one? This is flawed parallel structure, and as an editor, I won’t stand for it.]

Israel has held funerals for buried three young settlers beloved boys found dead near Hebron in the Occupied West Bank Israel more than two weeks after they went missing were abducted.

[Many hundreds of] Thousands gathered for the burials of Gilad Shaar, 16, Naftali Fraenkel, 16, and Eyal Yifrah, 19, in the West Bank Israeli city of Modi'in [,home to the Biblical Maccabees,] on Tuesday.

The settlers children disappeared were abducted on June 12 while hitchhiking home from a religious school in Kfar Etzion, an illegal settlement between Bethlehem and Hebron school, as millions of kids do every day without incident, probably guaranteed somewhere in the U.N.’s Rights of the Child, and were last heard in a brief heartbreaking emergency call to police.

Their bodies were found heartlessly dumped near the West Bank Muslim Arab [just a coincidence, folks!] village of Halhoul on Monday night.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has blamed the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas for the killings, spoke of the "murderers who with endless cruelty and without the blink of an eye, violated the ancient order not to raise a hand against a boy".

Netanyahu has already vowed the group would pay for the deaths. Speaking before [the extra word here was just their mistake; probably non-malicious] before Israel's security cabinet convened for a second time in two days, he said that Israel "must strike hard at Hamas people and infrastructure in the West Bank" and would weigh further attacks to prevent rocket fire from Gaza on southern Israel.

Palestinian [also, but unrelatedly] mourned

Meanwhile [in a completely unrelated event inserted here to distract from the main event], hundreds of Palestinians mourned the death on Tuesday of a 19-year-old Palestinian man shot dead [redundant; if it’s his funeral, we know already] by Israeli forces unmurdered Israeli teenage soldiers who have during a raid in Jenin Refugee Camp in the occupied territory Israel, [which was founded in 1953 by the Arab nation of Jordan to house their fellow Arabs to whom they refused citizenship, creating a brutal breeding zone for terror which has spawned more suicide bombers and militant attacks than any other Palestinian city].

…

This article continues in this vein, devoting nearly 400 words to injustices caused by Israel – with under 200 spared for the three teens in an article allegedly about their funerals.  Honestly, any decent editor would have chopped it after Netanyahu’s statement.

Let’s all be editors and take our red pens to terror wherever we are.  If you read a newspaper report that twists reality so badly it threatens to break, write to them, cancel your subscription, leave a comment – do something.

A couple of sites that can help:

• HonestReporting.com (or HonestReporting on facebook)
• Committee for Accuracy in Middle-East Reporting in America
• Dishonest reporting – from Aish.com
• 25 Answers to Tough Questions About Israel, from StandWithUs – countering anti-Israel bias on campus

Now that you're coming to Israel...

Whatever happens, don't panic, and don't watch the news.  will it reassure you to know that bad stuff, like, colossally, unthinkable, bad things happen here every day?  Yesterday, a sleeping soldier was stabbed to death on a public bus.  nineteen  years old, and, dare I say it again, fast asleep. Rockets fall, families lose their homes, blood spills. But also : babies are born, love blooms, there is no such thing as a stranger, bus drivers make change, and daffodils (narkisim) bloom in the wintertime.  So don't cancel your vacation based on anything you hear in the news. 

Planning a trip anywhere brings that place into intense focus. If you were going to Bulgaria, or if your best friend just moved there, you'd suddenly start noticing it in the headlines, in much the same way that you might find yourself mysteriously surrounded by pregnant women in the months and years after a miscarriage.

There is so much we filter out around us constantly. Our big brains choose what to see and hear, and now that yours knows you're going to israel, it thinks it's doing you a favour by circling with a highlighter all the headlines you've been missing all these years. (Google old headlines, if you don't believe me.)

On top of the regular noticing you start doing once you're on your way somewhere, there's the media's endless fascination with, and speculation about, all things israel. My ulpan teacher said the other day, "If someone sneezes in Yerushalayim, they hear about it in America," but it's not just yerushalayim, it's this whole place. It's not just jews who think this country is fascinating and important; not just Christians, either.  The whole world knows it's true.

So.  to sum up:  It may feel like the world has gone haywire now that you've bought that plane ticket.  Rest assured, the world was already haywire; you just maybe never noticed it before.  That's it, the sum total of my accumulated wisdom so far. We've only been here for 3 months ourselves.

Oh, but, one thing I do know: if your bank card doesn't have the word Visa on it, it might not work. I'm not just talking about "it might not work in some machines, or in some out-of - the-way areas."  it may never work, anywhere. It might, but don't count on it.

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Sent on the go in the Holy Land - please excuse my typos!!

Rules for outings into officialdom

1.  Getting there will be the easiest part.  Today's gas masks outing, for instance, was actually facilitated by a FREE cab ride, courtesy of the Ministry of Absorption, because there are several new families in the merkaz klitah who haven't received them yet. 

2. Bring a book or some other device capable of entertaining you, for several hours, if need be.  playBook, check!   Say what you want, it has been a very faithful travel companion.

3. Bring water.  Wear a sunhat. If an office gets too full, you may well be waiting in the Great Sticky Outdoors.  not a problem today - when I looked up where to go for a gas mask in the Haifa area,  I found an article from yesterday listing an easily-located post office.  so natch, as our group prepared to leave the merkaz klitah, we were told that due to high demand, they were being issued in a "sports centre" in a totally different location. It was actually the shadeless, scorching parking lot of a stadium - fun!  Happily, there were some tarpaulins thrown over a few sections of the crowd, free and plentiful water provided to all who were waiting in line... And cheerful Magen David Adom ambulances standing by to cart off or revive anyone who fainted. (I only personally saw them hauling away one person, so how bad could it have been???)

4. Leave all children behind, if possible. Short, quick errands can turn into horrific long ones in the blink of an eye.  That didn't happen today ; the absorption coordinator said only one of us needed to go,and as we were leaving the merkaz klitah at 1:30, a group of women came back who had left earlier in the morning.  So we knew it could take 3-4 hours. Ted tagged me to go alone while he stayed behind and hung out with the kids at home and on the beach.  Nice!  But this is the safety of my family we're talking about here, so I didn't even complain.

5. Prepare to leave empty-handed.  Prepare for a row of soldiers to slice into the crowd right in front of you and then a guy with a megaphone announces, "no more masks today  - anyone behind the soldiers, you can all go home!"  Okay, they were police, not soldiers, and they were just  kids, and they were doing their job.  I left quietly, unlike some of the other olim in our group, who started shouting at the klitah coordinator, like it's her fault.

6. However easy it was to get there, the way home will take at least 3 times longer, and involve inexplicable transit delays that leave seasoned Israelis shaking their heads and muttering "balagan.". ( Not that it takes much to get them to do THAT particular trick.)

7. At some point, you may cry. This may be a delayed reaction ; it is perfectly normal to cry in frustration and maybe even fear for your family's wellbeing, at some random point in the 24-48 hour period following this excursion.

8. Be prepared to repeat all of the above steps on the next business day / office day / full moon according to the random whims of some random Wizard - i mean bureaucrat - behind the shabby velvet curtain.

Just got home now to discover that the elevator is working, after a 2-day hiatus.  Thank you, Hashem, for small mercies... and maybe you could also help Syria sleep very, very well the next few nights?

Love, Tzivia

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Sent on the go in the Holy Land - please excuse my typos!!

p.s. wanted to include these pics to not dwell but quickly sum up what happened next.

After 7 more hours’ waiting (nearby, in Kiryat Motzkin this time) on Monday…

 

We have gas masks for the whole family!

 

Let’s hope we will never have to see what’s inside the boxes…

Things that bite: hysteria, truth, tips

Snakes, yes (previous post, recent article).

And black widow spiders (article).

And scorpions (article) (they are apparently “overflowing” with poison this month “after their long winter slumber” - sheesh).  There are 21 varieties of dangerous scorpions in Israel. The riskiest are the yellow ones and the black ones with large tails.

And, um, jellyfish (article)??? 

I know, they don’t bite… but still.  Ick!  Ouch!

The article about jellyfish calls this type “wired wanderers” – but when I google the species, only that one article comes up, which makes me think they made up the name. 

In any event, this significantly SMALLER article doesn’t name the species, but does debunk some of the hysteria over giant killer jellyfish that has apparently been rampant throughout Israel. 

“Even though there are killer jellyfish in other parts of the world, Spanier said, the "possibility is very low" that Israelis are at risk. The sting of the non-lethal variety of jellyfish causes minor burns, which tend to go away within the hour as long as they are treated correctly.”

What to do about it???

Well, not much, besides cower indoors or in big cities.

Magen David Adom suggests that you “wear high-topped shoes and long pants when [entering] areas with tall grasses and rocks.”  Also, when you’re camping you should “shake out clothing, shoes, sleeping bags and tents to remove any dangerous creatures.”  How ‘bout we just not camp, okay?

If you’ve been bit:

• What bit you?
  • Snake:  take its picture (including its skin pattern) – to blog about it, of course!  Ha ha ha, no, to give to the people who are trying to save your life after you’ve been bitten.  Call Magen David Adom – phone number 101 – and do whatever they tell you to do.
  • Spider:  Rinse with water and soap, cool the area with ice. If there is significant swelling or pus, fever, vomiting, muscle or abdominal pain, excessive sweating or black or blue areas around the bite – or if things get worse over 24 hours – seek medical help.  Most Israeli spiders are not dangerous, except the Mediterranean recluse, which has a white violin-shaped pattern on its back and lives indoors and the less common black widow, which is is small and shiny black with red spots on its back, and usually lives outdoors.
  • Scorpion:  note its colour and tail size.  Call Magen David Adom – phone number 101 – and do whatever they tell you to do.
  • Jelly:  pour vinegar or salt water over the affected area.  If you develop allergic symptoms, call Magen David Adom – phone number 101 – and do whatever they tell you to do.  Take comfort in the fact that you haven’t, technically, been “bitten.”
• Never suck toxin from the wound
• Do not cut the skin to remove it
• Do not use a tourniquet or cool the area (except for a spider bite; see above)
• Do not give the victim alcohol.
• Do not try to catch it.  Okay!
• Stay as quiet as possible; do not let a victim (like yourself) move.

This is a way better list than I could have come up with on my own.  My own list would likely have included “action items” such as:

• Scream
• Cry
• Blame Ted
• Stomp around violently in a random and possibly deadly attempt to kill whatever it was that hurt me
• Cry some more
• Blame the children
• Try olive oil on the wound
• Cry a lot
• Die –?

So there you go – listen to the experts and you’ll be okay, all summer long, until those critters stomp back into their caves, or wherever they lurk all winter, to recharge their poison supplies and come back to get you a few months later…

The last fireworks

Trying desperately to stop family & friends from using the word “last” – like, “this is your LAST Shavuos here” or “this is the LAST time we go to Riverdale Farm” or some other Toronto landmark.

Yet I definitely felt the word LAST last night, celebrating Victoria Day (we’re the only people in the former British Empire to still do so) with our traditional downtown fireworks display. 

Sitting on the beach I have sat on so many, many times in the last 25 years, plugging a child’s ears because he’s scared of the noise (though he enjoyed it infinitely more now that he has glasses), and wondering if this is the very last time we will enjoy fireworks. 

And scared for what kind of noises that little boy will hear in his new home, so close to Lebanon, so close to Syria, so close to enemies on all sides, when he realizes that not everybody thinks Israel is God’s gift to… well, to the Jewish people, like we do. 

Sitting there, sad and scared and yet, enjoying the experience, bitter-sweetly.

I’ve always thought that fireworks must be a traumatizing experience for people from war-torn regions… just never realized they could be one for a mama on her way into one.

(for any family members or sticklers reading this - yes, this isn’t the last fireworks we’ll be here for, but we skip Canada Day fireworks if the holiday comes out during the Three Weeks, like it does this year…)

What not to tell someone making aliyah

(some details of this online conversation are paraphrased to cover up the person’s identity, but I have preserved the gist of the conversation so you may scream along with me)

Concerned Acquaintance (CA) is a person we don’t know all that well, but is a facebook friend, meaning this person has access to me at all hours thanks to the wonders of instant messaging.

Here’s the message that popped up with a chirrup late one night:

CA:  When you get to Israel, don’t forget to buy gas masks.  Find the bomb shelters.  Figure out how to get there fast.  But you’ll get used to it – hang in there!

Me:  Okay, gas masks are on the to-do list.

CA:  When you’re in the shelter, pray.

Me:  :-)

CA:  Yeah, Lebanon has hundreds of thousands of missiles all lined up waiting to rain down on Israel. 

Me:  :-(

CA:  We’ll be praying for you!

Me: 

CA:  And when the war is over, I’ll come visit!

Me:  Yay!

(I really did say “yay”… really, what else could I have said???)

I’m not saying this person is not correct… these are all valid points, but it’s not like this stuff wouldn’t have occurred to me if it hadn’t been brought to my attention.

“What?  Israel has ENEMIES???!?”

(scream)

Israeli Leopard War Zone

Among his many stuffed-animal friends, GZ (5-year-old cutie pie, in case you haven’t been paying attention!) has two little leopards – Lucy and Donna.  And in the origin myth he has created for these two, they are still both young children: Lucy’s around 6 or 7 and I believe Donna is around 3.  And they’re from Israel.

Which I thought was very cool, until he told me their parents died before they came to Canada.

Today, walking on Shabbos, he told me more about them (I try not to pry or ask leading questions)… apparently, they were out grocery shopping when the parents accidentally went onto a battle field.  And were killed, perhaps instantly.  So now these two leopard sisters (who are stuffed animals, and do not look at all alike except for both being leopards) live alone together in Canada.  Lucy takes great care of Donna, dropping her off at daycare every day so she can do her other little-kid things.  They are both silly critters, playing together, having adventures with his other friends; so carefree, orphaned so young.

He tells me the whole story so, SO cheerfully.  He doesn’t seem to associate Israel with war, and seems to feel entirely happy about the prospect of moving there.  Not that he has any clue what “moving there” actually means. 

And yet.

And yet my heart breaks for the lost innocence of these poor leopard children and my young son who may discover he is not entirely far from the truth.

Stay Safe? How, exactly???

Have you noticed all the facebook posts this week where someone mentions they’re in Israel and everyone else chirps in to tell them, “Stay safe!”

Now, I’m not INHUMAN.  I understand (okay, I share) the impulse here, which is probably something like, “you are special and beloved and I couldn’t bear to lose you.”  I feel that all the time.

But telling the person to “stay safe?”  How the heck are they supposed to accomplish that???  And are you implying that if they do get hurt, they were simply not trying hard enough to “stay safe”?  Of course not… what an evil suggestion. :-o

And also, what about those other people, the millions who are not as beloved?  Is it okay with you if they stand and stare at the sky like a bemused turkey beneath a falling Qassam rocket?  Didn’t think so.  But the fact is, we care about particular people more than we care about “any old” people.

The last time stuff was dropping on Israel in a major way, I didn’t know anybody there and wasn’t on my way to living there myself.  So, frankly, I didn’t care as much.  I think it’s okay to admit that we’ve become callused here in chutz la’aretz.  It just isn’t real when you’re bazillions of kilometres away in a country so cold and safe that it hasn’t been attacked in 200 years.  (Oh, okay, also because we seem willing to roll over and give away our forests, water, oil and any other natural resources to any mega-country that asks rather than fight to keep them safe…)

Frankly, it’s very hard to care, no matter how many of those maps people post on facebook showing that if Mexico attacked the United States, it would wipe out New Mexico, or something.  It's not right that we don't care much - maybe some people are better at it than I, so I certainly don't want to speak for everybody, but I suspect it's largely true - and I wish it were not true, but it IS true. 

It also happens with news:  local news usually gets your attention more easily than some abstract story about abstract people far away.  It’s hard to care unless you know actual people who are in the thick of it.

This time around, we’re NOT in the thick of it, but I know a lot more people there and involved and yes, it’s a little bit more real and a little bit scarier.

I like the fact that in the original post, above, the person in fact said, “May Gd keep us all safe!”  Few people who replied seem to have caught onto the distinction between “may Gd keep us safe” and “stay safe.”

The second implies that there’s something you can do about it – and therefore, if you FAIL to stay safe, and get hurt, it’s all your fault. 

The first implies that there’s a Creator with a plan, and we may not know what the plan is, but we certainly hope our physical wellbeing and security – in whatever way we interpret “our”; whether it’s us personally or klal Yisrael as a whole – is part of that plan.

Plus, as someone I know posted on facebook a few hours ago… “I can't stand this any more, logging out, resting my arm, dovening mincha, saying T'hillim and then going to a neighbor for more. I don't think G-d wants us watching screens all day.”  There are some excellent ideas in there.  Daven, say Tehillim, get off the computer and live life in the face of terror.

In that spirit, here are some facebook updates from people who are “staying safe” by living a normal life in Israel today:

“tonight's my first acupuncture treatment
last week my first Reiki
oh, my”

“on my way to Israel. I feel a deep sense of pride and joy” [posted by a Torontonian catching a plane today]

“Frugal and Kosher: Organic Produce Sale at Eden Teva Online
www.kosherfrugal.com
” [who doesn’t love a sale???!]

‎H'aGov הגוב‎. the best place in Jerusalem

שבוע טוב לכולם! מתפללים לשלומם של תושבי הדרום מחזקים את ידי החיילים

It's REAL people. Unconditional love for each other will CHANGE our situation! [from folks in Yavniel who have opened their Tzimmers [B&Bs] to families from the south]

Villa Rimona – Zimmers

A facebook friend who’s a jeweller:  All ready for tonight's Amit Boutique at Reshit Yeshiva. Every single piece is priced, packed and ready to show!

A friend in Beit Shemesh shared this Ben Stein photo and message.

Another facebook friend, in Shiloh, posts a picture of her fruit bowl, saying Life Goes On…

And okay, finally, this actually DOES have to do with the situation, but it’s very, very cute…

The letters spell עד מתי? / Ad ma-tie? = How long?

May Hashem, who promised our ancestors children like the stars of the heavens, protect those who defend our nation, in uniform and in the streets living their ordinary daily lives, so it will still be there for us and our children and grandchildren...

Everything you wanted to know #1: Snakes

… ie, Every Dumb Thing You Might NOT Have Wanted to Know About Aliyah, but I Did and This is My Blog So Here it Comes Anyway.

Here’s my question:

Olim in the north - just curious, have you ever seen a snake? Did you freak out??? Panicking a little here...

(p.s. This picture, taken from Wikimedia, is the most benign-looking shot I could find of the Israeli viper, aka צפע ארצישראלי, aka Vipera palaestinae… benign mostly because it’s just lying around, with no sense of scale, as opposed to being gigantic or deadly or whatnot.)

And in case you’re wondering why I’m worried – here in Ontario, we have exactly ONE species of venomous snake.  The red areas are where it lives.  The green area is where I live.  Far, far away.

So that’s why. 

Here’s the answer(s):

Responses from the five Israelis I know on Facebook:

• Never ever ever ever saw a snake. Saw a turtle, scorpion (the black one) and spiders....
• I did :) And I have killed numerous scorpions :)
• Two neigbbours have been bitten by snakes. Both lived to tell the tale. I've only ever seen baby snakes.
• My friend's dog was bitten by a snake and died from the bite. I have only seen one once. But we know they are out there....
• I have seen snakes and scorpions and rodents and tortoises and mammals of all shapes and sizes. When you are out in nature you need to learn basic rules such as the correct way to turn over a rock( finding scorpions) and where and when you might come across a snake( they don't like the cold and they hibernate). The only poisonous snake we ever came across was right outside our vacation condo in Virginia. BTW, cats are the only known predator for snakes and scorpions in Israel and there are many that would love to have someone adopt them. [Note to self:  YES!  CATS, HERE WE COME!!!]
• never saw one... in the whole week I've been here:)
• They are here your not looking.lol  [That one’s from my aging father-in-law in Ottawa, who is just discovering facebook]
• Never seen one, thank G-d, but they do exist even in Beit Shemesh. A neighbor was bitten once outside our shul. She was treated and survived to get married and have a kid (so far).

There…Aren’t you glad I asked???

Go where??? Three possibilities, and two NOT.

Second one-on-one meeting today with Nefesh b’Nefesh… this time for a “Go North” program planning session.

We are not completely sold on the north, but it’s worth keeping our options open – there are a few extra financial incentives, though, as a friend pointed out, the incentives are somewhat cancelled out by the extra cost of living in the middle of nowhere.

The NOT communities first…

After talking to her for a while about who we are and what we’re looking for, she confirmed the previous advice we’d had ruling out Mitzpeh Netofa.  Drat, but I was prepared for this.  She also – interestingly – ruled out Yavniel, although a couple of Toronto families we know (of) have made quite a nice home for themselves there.

The three places she suggested are interesting because only one of them was on my radar at all:  Nahariyah / נַהֲרִיָּה‎‎, Maalot / מַעֲלוֹת, and Karmiel / כַּרְמִיאֵל‎‎.

Not much time to process right now – I want to do here is a separate post listing some of the things that came up as our “criteria” for finding a home.  But meanwhile, here is the most superficial possible comparison of these three cities, on the basis of cost of living, climate, and fun facts!

	Nahariyah	Maalot	Karmiel
Climate	Mediterranean (coastal)	Valley/Low mountain	dry, breezy and comfortable
Cost of living	$$	$$	$
Population	52000	21000	44,100 / 50,000 official (depends who you ask!)
Anglos	5%	5%	?
Jewy Types	Chabad, Chardal, Conservative, Dati Leumi, Haredi, Reform, Secular	Chardal, Dati Leumi, Haredi, Secular	Chabad, Chardal, Conservative, Dati Leumi, Haredi, Reform, Secular
Funtime Wiki facts	Notable residents include Gilad Shalit. (source)	In the early 2000s, 52% of the population were Russian immigrants. (source)	According to the national master plan, by 2020 Karmiel will have a population of approximately 120,000 residents. (source)
Today’s Temperature	24°, cloudy (link)	23°, partly sunny (link)	27°, sunny (link)
Today’s Humidity	73%	50%	34%

For reference, today’s temp and humidity in Toronto: 27°, cloudy, humidity 57%.  So more or less equivalent to Karmiel.

I will also say – because I’m chicken, and moving with children, and so forth:  both Ma’alot and Nahariya are closer to Lebanon than I am entirely comfortable with.  I know nowhere is completely safe, but both of these towns – indeed, all three – were targeted and sustained damage and casualties six years ago.

Much to think about.