Celebrating YOM HA'ALIYAH Making One's Home in Israel, The Holy Land

 

For the past few years a "new holiday" has joined the Israeli Calendar, YOM HA'ALIYAH, a time to honor those who made aliyah-- immigrated to Israel. My husband and I made the move two months after our wedding in the summer of 1970. You can read about it here part 1 and part 2. 

YOM ALIYAH is celebrated around the Torah Portion Lech Lecha in which Gd commands Avram-Abram (before his name is changed to Avraham-Abraham) to get himself going to the Land Gd will show him.

בראשית י״ב  

לך לך

א- וַיֹּ֤אמֶר יְהֹוָה֙ אֶל־אַבְרָ֔ם לֶךְ־לְךָ֛ מֵאַרְצְךָ֥ וּמִמּֽוֹלַדְתְּךָ֖ וּמִבֵּ֣ית אָבִ֑יךָ אֶל־הָאָ֖רֶץ אֲשֶׁ֥ר אַרְאֶֽךָּ׃

1- יהוה said to Abram, “Go forth from your native land and from your father’s house to the land that I will show you.

Over the millennium many Jews all exiled over the world have felt these words from Gd personally and made their way whether by plane, boat, wagon or foot to the Holy Land, the Land of Israel, even before the modern State of Israel had been established. I was one of them.

I'll never forget how I broke the news of my plans to my parents, who had barely adjusted to my religious observance. You must understand that we were an ordinary American Jewish family, which lit Chanukah candles, had an abridged Passover Seder, were even members of a synagogue, Conservative-- which was the most popular and rapidly growing in the 1950s. But the kitchen wasn't kosher, and Shabbat and many Jewish Holidays weren't on our family calendar.

When I was thirteen 13 we moved to a different community, and the only synagogue actively recruiting new members was Orthodox, the Great Neck Synagogue. There I joined their Teen Club to make friends. It was a chapter of NCSY National Conference of Synagogue Youth, where I was introduced to "Torah True Judaism" which changed my life. Soon after, one of the local Jewish activists got me involved in Betar and Zionism, icing on the cake of my Jewish Life.

I didn't want any ideological, philosophical arguments with my parents about my plan to move to Israel, so I simply said:

"You couldn't stop me from keeping Shabbat and Kashrut. Living in Israel is just another mitzvah, and you can't stop me from doing that either."

It worked. They had no answer, though sometimes I wonder if they were happy to get me far from my younger siblings as not to corrupt them with my revolutionary life style. Within a few years, my mother enjoyed being the local expert in helping other parents with similarly "eccentric" children.

Obviously, Lech Lecha has always been my favorite Torah Portion of The Week. I live in a community, Shiloh, that is a fantastic stew of longtime Israelis and and much newer ones from all over the world. Our local region Mateh Binyamin, which is like an American county, is the same sort of mix. This year Mateh Binyamin made a big festive event to which we had been invited. I really enjoyed seeing so many people; some had been customers of mine when I worked in Yafiz. The highlight was an old-fashioned Israeli singalong. The choice of songs was just perfect.

It's the truth to say that I celebrate YOM HA'ALIYAH daily. I've never once considered that decision I made as a teenager to have been a mistake.

Because It's Israel: An Aliyah Odyssey, Book Review

Because It's Israel: An Aliyah Odyssey by Arthur Miller is his wonderful saga of how he and his wife ended up in Israel after successful careers in the the states. Miller is a wonderful story teller, honest and humorous.

Having myself made Aliyah a half century ago the easy way, just after our wedding, I always admire those who pack themselves up and change their lives drastically the way the Millers did. Only one of their four children lives in Israel, and they chose to live near her family. Since their Aliyah in 2004, they or their American children and grandchildren now have to fly to see each other.

Miller tells us that their original plan was to make aliyah as a young family, but unfortunately his law profession didn't transfer easily at the time. So instead of raising their family in Israel they ended up raising them in Worcester, Massachusetts, which has a very small percentage of Orthodox Jews. From what Miller alludes to in his book, he played a very large and important role in Worcester. 

"Because it's Israel" was the excuse Miller would hear whenever something seemed strange or illogical. Unlike many, Miller doesn't complain, he just shrugs his shoulders very Israeli-like and repeats the mantra: 

"Because it's Israel"

In Chapter 16, "It Pays to be a Senior," Miller is surprised that his friends couldn't get a senior discount, because they're not Israeli citizens. He wrote that he's sure such discrimination doesn't happen in the United States. I'm sorry to say that in the USA American citizen seniors, if they're expats aren't given senior discounts. During a visit to the states a few years ago, my American passport wasn't accepted as proof of age. I needed proof of residence. American citizenship wasn't enough.

The Millers' aliyah saga includes a lot of "little" and great miracles. The really great miracle is that they lived to come to Israel, since both had serious health emergencies a short while before their target date. Another is that they were able to purchase the exact type of home they had wanted at the exact location, when nothing suitable was actually for sale.

Getting their driving licenses converted to Israeli ones and also buying their first car in Israel certainly needed Arthur Miller's law talents. Because It's Israel: An Aliyah Odyssey is full of amazing little stories. Chapters are short, and it's a pleasant read. 

Because It's Israel: An Aliyah Odyssey is a great book to give anyone thinking of aliyah. I'd also recommend it to those of us who've made aliyah before of after the Millers. I enjoyed reading a book about an aliyah which is so very different from my own.

Product details

• Publisher : JewishSelfPublishing (May 14, 2019)
• Language : English
• Paperback : 246 pages
• ISBN-10 : 9657041015
• ISBN-13 : 978-9657041017
• Item Weight : 11.9 ounces
• Dimensions : 6 x 0.52 x 9 inches

Still More Stories To Tell About Our Early Days In Israel 50 Years Since Aliyah

I've written a bit about our early days in Israel on Shiloh Musings, since it's already fifty 50 years since our aliyah. There's lots more to tell. That first year in Israel was quite a year. We arrived by boat as newlyweds and finished the year as parents of an adorable baby girl.

Davka, our neighbors, even our closest friends in Shiloh, know almost nothing about that first year. It was a full decade before we moved to Shiloh. The one person we knew then in the Old City of Jerusalem, yes that's where we lived most of the first year, passed away a few years ago. That's one of the reasons I offered to tell our story to the senior citizen club, Adarta. Even though it's for our age, we generally don't go to the meetings. When we celebrated our fiftieth 50th wedding anniversary I realized that only two other couples have been married longer than we have. And as olim immigrants who had made aliyah as a married couple, we hold that record as having done it longer ago than any other.

I gave the talk in both Hebrew and English, translating for myself. The most frightening part was being without my mask, but all the audience wore masks and kept distant. 

Many in the audience want to hear more of my stories, so maybe I'll speak again to them.

Photos by Linda Fairman

Aliyah- With All Your Heart, With All Your Soul...

I just had to write this. What do you think?

I just have to get this off my chest.

It's really driving me crazy when I hear/read advice to soon to be arriving olim about what to bring, what they must have from the "old country" when living here.

People treat me like I'm nuts for saying they should try what's here in Israel, and they may even like it better.

Honestly, what's the point in moving to a new country if you want to eat the same foods, cook with the same spices, get the same medications, set up your house to look like you're in Monsey, the Five Towns or New Jersey?

Where's your sense of adventure?

Aliyah-
should be like a proper purification in the mikvah, all orifices open, accepting, cleansed

Aliyah-
Think of the Sh'ma Prayer:
"...with all your heart, with all your soul and with all your might..."

Aliyah-
like a marriage, you must change yourself for it to be successful.

Baile Rochel on The "Stand Up" Circuit

When I appeared a couple of weeks ago telling my aliyah-move to Israel story for The Women's Performance Community of Jerusalem , I appeared as my alter ego, Baile Rochel.

As you can see, I was holding a "script." At first I thought it would be enough to make a list of topics and use them as guidelines as I spoke, but then I was informed that they expected my performance to be of a certain time. Eeks! I had never really timed a talk before. Even as a teacher I'd just keep on going until the bell rang.

So, I sat down, right here at the trusty computer and began to write. Or more accurately, since I wanted to "entertain" and not give an "oral history" lecture, Baile Rochel took over the keyboard. I read it outloud, trying to guess how long and when the laughs would come, to see how long it took. That first draft of my very early years in Israel seemed long enough, time-wise, so I didn't continue the saga.

I edited it a few times on the computer and then got it printed. And then I highlighted it and as you can see in the photo below.

Then every time I read it more little tweaks and edits were made. The final performance was a version of what I had written. There's no way I could have memorized a ten plus minute speech.

A friend in the audience had told me to signal her every time I wanted laughter. I opened with an original joke, which got some laughs, thank Gd. I had forgotten to signal her, since I had been so nervous. When I realized that people were laughing spontaneously, I was so relieved. No secret signals were necessary!

I'll end with that joke, which I hadn't written down:

"I should have arranged to have a wheelchair waiting at home for me, considering all of the 'break a leg' blessings I had received."

Moi, A Stand-Up Comedienne? Updated with link to performance

Last night I finally got my chance. In a sense it's like being able to cross something off my "Bucket List." I've always loved to perform, but outside of the classroom, as a teacher, and of course my dancing and talking to groups about Shiloh etc, I don't think I've ever been given a microphone to just be "me."

A couple of months ago, I noticed that the The Women's Performance Community of Jerusalem was looking for women to tell their aliyah stories to celebrate Yom Aliyah, Aliyah Day. So, I bit the bullet and sent in a wacky "audition" recorded as I walked up the hill one night, close to deadline, and I was accepted.

I thought I could just do my usual improv, no real planning, and then they started asking me how long it would take so they could set up the scheduling. Eeks! That brought me back down to earth. So I wrote something up and timed it. It was obvious to me that the "tone and style" would be very much like my Baile Rochel pieces and delivered stand-up. And the end would be a participatory "how to dance while standing in shul."

Of all the friends and family I invited, only one friend could attend, and she told me that if I signalled after each joke she'd be sure to laugh. The totally amazing thing was that from my very first joke, original of course, people began laughing, so I never had to signal her. And most of the women got up for the dancing. And lots of women came up to me afterwards to tell me what a great time they had.

Thanks to the Israel Center for sponsoring the group and super special thanks to the The Women's Performance Community of Jerusalem, Sharon Dobuler Katz, Shifra A-C Penkower, Avital Macales and Bati Katz. Here are some photos sent to me by Sharon Dobuler Katz. Click here and you should be able to see and hear me.

Stories Told by Steve Sherr, A Book Review

I just finished reading Steve Sherr's memoirs, No Stories to Tell, and it's full of stories. Sherr begins by telling of his rather ordinary New York Jewish-style childhood. And he continues in a surprising way by ending up taking on Orthodox Torah Judaism and retiring to Israel.

Considering that I'm just a few years younger, also raised in a rather assimilated Jewish home in New York and also now a religious Jew living in Israel, you'd think that Sherr's story would be familiar to me. It isn't anything like mine.

Not long ago, I was discussing with someone that there are a lot of tell-all books written by Jews who were raised in very religious homes but "left the life style." We discussed how we need books of the opposite genre, and I said that they won't be all that interesting, because the writers will be much too discreet, embarrassed and protective of their families and themselves to write a "bestseller." As interesting and well-written as Steve Sherr's book is, it does match my description/prediction. It's very discreet. I have lots of questions to ask about his and his wife's rather late in life change to an Orthodox Torah observant life.

On the other hand, Sherr is rather upfront and open about his unhappiness and depression before he felt a spiritual experience, which showed him that there is a Gd. He tells us how he searched to find out what would fill that spiritual need and then the difficulties in trying to make these changes palatable to his wife and children.

There was also an irony in his becoming more successful and popular as a campus psychologist in a very secular Leftist college campus as he became more Torah observant. The head-covering and tzitziyot didn't frighten away troubled students.

As Sherr began to get into the "meat" of his story, I found the book hard to put down. Although he had been trained as a counselor and psychologist to  believe and help people to accept  "everything," no rules nor absolutes, he himself found a belief in Gd and peace and purpose by following Gd's commandments. And although Sherr had a successful career in California, he and his wife are now happily living in the Golan Heights. Actually as I read of their search for a suitable place to live in Israel, I kept hoping they'd try Shiloh. If they'd like to visit, they can give me a call...

No Stories to Tell is a cross between a memoir and a series of autobiographical essays, stories, diary entries or possibly blog posts. At times its identity/genre gets me confused, especially in the last section. But all in all, I did enjoy reading it and recommend it to others.

• Publisher: Steven D. Sherr (August 1, 2016)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0692755810
• ISBN-13: 978-0692755815

46 Years in Israel

Living in Maon Betar in Jerusalem's Old City, 1970-71

Living in Maon Betar in Jerusalem's Old City, 1970-71

It's now 46 forty-six years since the boat docked, the Greek Line Annamarie, in Haifa Port. It was a Saturday night. Ministry of Interior clerks came on to assist in a few bureaucratic things, and there were some journalists, too. It was a record-breaking day for immigration from the United States to Israel, as we weren't at all alone. There were another four hundred plus Jews making aliyah, olim chadashim.

In 1970, there were great differences between life in Israel and the USA. Israel was technologically behind and still very much in the grips of Ben-Gurion's mindset and Leftist pre-June 1967 Orthodoxy.

• Not everyone had a telephone, and some were still "party lines," shared numbers.
• There was no Israeli television.
• Dirty diapers were still boiled on the stove, or people used a "diaper service," since not everyone had an "automatic" washing machine, and clothes dryers were "science fiction." And disposable diapers were brought in from abroad as gifts along with toilet paper, tampons, sanitary napkins and paper towels.
• Overseas calls were via an operator, "person to person" or "station to station."
• Many housewives were enjoying their very first electric refrigerator, happy to no longer have to get "ice."
• For many the oven was a "first," too, and their seer pele, "wonder pot" was still in use.
• Cars were so rare and precious that owners had to register them for army service. Yes, true, a car did "reserve duty" in the IDF.
• Even into the 1970's and 1980's one of the perks for MKs Knesset Members was the free unlimited bus pass. That's what Geula Cohen used to visit us in Shiloh, and Benny Begin, also an MK in those days, took the bus to Machane Yehuda for his shopping. 
• Besides in hotels, elevators were very rare. Most Israelis lived in three story "walk-ups."
• You could count the amount of supermarkets in Jerusalem on one hand. There was a small makolet, grocery store on almost every block, and we shopped daily. 
• Not only did stores close for the mid-day lunch/siesta, but many people came home from their jobs to eat. At 4pm everything reopened. 

Today's olim chadashim come to a very modern country, among the most advanced in the western world. But I'm glad we came on aliyah when we did and had the privilege to be part of this major adventure of living in the State of Israel these last forty-six 46 years.

Bilingually Mourning, Shiva in Two Languages

Since the 7 Day Shiva Candle was only lit halfway through shiva for my brother, it's still burning strong.

Or you can also call this post:

The Advantage/Adventure of Being Bilingual!

After close to forty-six, our 46th Aliyah Anniversary is in less than two months, years in Israel I've reached the point where I can rather easily switch between Hebrew and English pretty much mid-sentence. And many of our anglo friends are the same.

Even among friends more veteran here, and there aren't too many, English is still the language we prefer for conversing among ourselves. So while I was sitting shiva for my brother this week, a very good portion of the time you'd here only English. But then, if suddenly a Hebrew speaking neighbor would enter, they'd follow my lead and even mid-sentence switch into Hebrew. At no point did I have over anyone in the anglo crowd totally incapable of following the switch.

Shiloh isn't known as one of those "English speaking" places like Gush Etzion or Ramat Beit Shemesh, but there are quite a few anglos and bilinguals from birth, like my kids can be called. They are the Israelis who grew up hearing, and usually speaking, English at home but functioned in Hebrew outside. So, they appear to be regular Hebrew-speaking Israelis, but not only do they know English well, frequently as if they had been a foreign country, their culture and sense of humor are very binational.

That's it for now. Today is Friday, and I have so much to do... Back to ordinary life, thank Gd.

Sign is down, and Shiva is over

BDE, Sidney Spiegelman, Z"L, 1920-2016, As An Israeli

My late father and I on the plane to Israel when he made aliyah in 2009



One of the reasons I was glad to be privileged to sit shiva for my my father here in Shiloh is because he lived here with us for close to a year and had many friends.

Around Rosh Hashana of 2009, my mother had fallen badly and needed to be in rehab for a month. My father was in no condition to live on his own, so it was decided that I would bring him on aliyah, which is blogged about quite a bit way back when.

Aliyah To The Land of Israel At 89
It certainly wasn't an easy thing, but with the help and support of my children, husband, cousins and neighbors, I think we gave my father a wonderful experience. His brains cells may not have remembered it for long, but for sure my family here and neighbors certainly do. Many of the neighbors who came these past few days to menachem avel, comfort the mourner told me how much they had liked him and admired him.

Casting A Shadow


We had planned/expected/hoped to have my mother along with him here in Israel within a few months, but it just didn't happen. That's why after less than a year, we packed all but his heavy winter coat and took him to live in Arizona, with my mother and near my sister, who then had responsibility for both my parents.

I Explained That They Were Like Spies


But while my father was here in Shiloh he joined in all of our activities. One was the annual visit of "the spies."

Dementia is a very strange and variable condition. I'll have to blog more about it at a later time, but I must say that although my father hadn't been able to take full responsibility for himself for many years before he came to live with us, his "social genes/brain cells" were unaffected. Many people who got to know him during the time he had lived with us were completely unaware that he suffered from dementia. He could still win playing cards. His game of choice was "Casino," which requires planning and addition. That was a favorite in his family for kids and suited his CPA mind.

Keeping Busy, Arts, Crafts and Exercise


I must say that the father I had live with us was not the same father who had raised me. When I was growing up he was busy and stressed out working, supporting the family. But decades later--remember that I was already a grandmother--I got to meet a really wonderful loving person. I had to stop working that year, and although we really didn't have enough income to live on, it was a year of great value for the entire family and our Shiloh neighborhood.

My Father, Sidney Spiegelman, Z"L

I am sitting shiva for my father until Friday noon. His funeral will be in New York on Friday, but I'm not traveling in for it.

My parents and I over ten years ago or more, maybe even twenty years ago. In a few months it will be three years since my mother, Shirley Spiegelman, passed away.



I was always certain that my father would live forever. He was a powerful person in his way, and he survived war and illnesses, even recently. The doctors were amazed by him. But in the end, he had enough. He never liked being idle. He wasn't a spectator and didn't watch sports at all. I remember that a cousin's husband kept trying to convince him to bring my brother to watch a baseball game with him and his sons. He finally did it once, but that was it. My father liked to be active. Once he and I went with a friend of his and his daughters on a fishing trip. They rented a boat and we caught fish to bring back home to cook. I wouldn't touch the live bait, so he'd put the bait on on the hook, and I fished and even caught some. That was fun.

Sitting in an audience watching wasn't his thing, except if it was to accompany my mother to a play. She loved the theater. I don't know how much he enjoyed watching plays, but he loved my mother and would go wherever she went. During one of my visits to New York without my kids, when my parents were still functioning pretty well, we went to a folk music production on the shore of Steppingstone Park in Great Neck. It was one of those settings in which you sat in your own picnic/beach chairs you had brought along. My father immediately fell asleep and slept through the entire show. Afterwards he complained about the music, but he would not have been happy staying home alone. He liked people and was never put off by strangers.

We have my father's album from the time he was in the US Navy. He was on the western, the Pacific front and went to Japan, Manila and more. He returned home rather cynical about war and fighting. Before being drafted he had rushed himself through City College, NYC, because he knew that war and military service was imminent. He wanted to be an officer in the US Navy, to enlist and be able to choose the basic type of service, rather being drafted and be at the mercy of the military bureaucracy. For that he needed more than the university degree, he needed to find a way to hide the fact that one of his eyes was much weaker than the other. And that, too, he succeeded in doing.

The US Navy trained my father in electrical engineering, and on the ships he had to figure out how to assemble, use and repair radar. "Problem solving" was a specialty. Also when he did his CPA exam as an accountant, the first section he managed to pass was the "problem solving," not the laws and basic calculations. He could figure things out.

45 Years as Israelis!!!

Last night, September 5, after Shabbat was the non-Jewish date marking forty-five 45 years since my husband and I docked at Haifa Port on the Greek Lines Anna-Maria and became Israelis. There were over four hundred 400 other olim chadashim, new immigrants on the ship. We got full citizenship close to three years later, but that's a minor detail.

By using the date converter on the internet, I've discovered that we missed out on the Jewish anniversary of our aliyah by a couple of weeks.

Saturday night, the 5th of September 1970 = 5th of Elul, 5730 ה׳ בֶּאֱלוּל תש״ל

But considering that the move is something I have never regretted and celebrate daily, the exact Jewish date is not that important.

soon after arriving in Israel

My husband and I were young and admittedly immature when we got married announcing to all that we were not staying in the USA for long, but it was the wisest decision we could have made.

We first lived in the Maon Betar in the Old City of Jerusalem, before the area was called the "Jewish Quarter." There were very few Jews there besides those in Yeshivat Hakotel and NaChaL Moriah.

When our first child was born we moved to the Bayit Vegan neighborhood of Jerusalem to an apartment we had bought. In the mid-1970's we went on shlichut to do Zionist youth work in London with our then two daughters and returned home with a third.

On September 1, 1981, with four children including a newborn son, we moved to Shiloh. Just over two years later, our second son was born, and we still live in Shiloh. We've seen Shiloh, its school and the entire area around it grow and thrive over the decades. It feels very natural that I've spent more than half my life living in Shiloh, and so has my husband. What does feel strange is that we are now considered the "elderly" of the community. I really don't feel that old.

I have found a couple of other people who were on that ship with us and would love to find more. It would be amazing to have a reunion.

WELCOME HOME, Akiva, Book Review

It's not really protexia, but although I have a tall pile of books I've started or waiting to be read and reviewed, including one I can access only via my phone (no tablet or e-reader yet) I couldn't resist reading Akiva Teddy MacLeod's Welcome Home: My First Six Months Living in Israel. It was only after I finished it that I noticed that I was sort of referred to on the back cover.

When Akiva's wife came to Shiloh she stayed with me, and we went to Shiloh Hakeduma, Tel Shiloh, for Women's Rosh Chodesh Prayers

To be honest I must admit that I've met Akiva, when he and his wife Tzivia were on their pilot trip just before making aliyah, moving to Israel. Tzivia and I know each other from blogging, being among the international community of Jewish bloggers who produce and participate in Havel Havelim, the weekly blog carnival.

Sorry, this isn't supposed to be a "Jewish geography" post; this is a review of the book! So, back to business. I loved reading Akiva's book. I totally enjoyed the dry humor and how he just tells it as he sees it, without kitsch or false sentimentality.

Being an Orthodox Jew in Israel is certainly not what he was raised to be, which he mentions. His straightforward honesty seems perfectly suited for Israeli life. This diary-like book made up of short entries from letters and facebook updates during the first six months of their time in Israel gets us through his basic ulpan and their move from the beach-side immigrant absorption center to a small rental flat in another neighborhood.

Going from freezing cold Canada to all-year ocean swimming makes Akiva a very happy Israeli. And the price of fruit in Israel compared to Canada is another plus for their new home. And from what Akiva writes, the children have inherited their father's pragmatic approach to change and are doing well, too.

The only tension in the book involves the difficulties Akiva has trying to learn Hebrew. That's what causes him nightmares. I found myself cheering him on as he prepared himself for the final exam.

Tzivia keeps us updated on her blog, Adventures in Aliyahland and her other blogs. She keeps up even more blogs than I have. Welcome Home: My First Six Months Living in Israel isn't the first MacLeod aliyah book. Tzivia wrote one from the "eyes of a child" a few months ago,  Ezra's Aliyah which I also reviewed. All I can say is that I can't wait to read more aliyah adventures from this very talented family!!

• Paperback: 212 pages
• Publisher: Safer Editions (November 25, 2014)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0993919847
• ISBN-13: 978-0993919848
• Product Dimensions: 6 x 0.5 x 9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)

Adventures in Havel HavelimLand, the "VV HH"

Yes, it's time for another wonderful adventure in Havel Havelim Land by Tzivia, which she named,

Haveil Havalim – the Vayechi Vantage.

Havel Havelim is the veteran, long-running, weekly international Jewish blog carnival, which floats from blog to blog.  It was established by Soccer Dad, who no longer blogs, but of late, only female bloggers have been hosting.  So, I challenge the male bloggers to prove you still have in you... nu... Any volunteers? Please let us know, either by emailing me, "HH Host" as subject, or taking up the challenge on our facebook page. This doesn't mean that women are to stop hosting, but I find it strange that a generation of men who aren't afraid to change a dirty diaper have given up this most important public social media task.

Sorry, but I had to get that off of my chest.

Just to let you know, Tzivia blogs on other blogs and has written quite a few books. Actually, her husband Akiva has written a book, too. It's about their aliyah to Israel. I'm almost finished reading it. Somehow it pushed away the other books I've been reading for review. Tzivia, thank you for finding the time to host this Havel Havelim. We all appreciate it!

OK, everyone, please be sure to share this edition of Havel Havelim, read, comment and share some of the posts. There are quite a few, and they are all pretty different. "Jewish blogging" is a very general term and can mean almost anything written by Jewish bloggers if the post touches on aspects of Judaism, Jewish Life, Israel, kosher food, Jewish Holidays etc.

We'll be announcing the next host on our facebook page.

Shavua Tov, have a wonderful blessed week.

Ezra's Aliyah, a Book Review

No doubt many of you know the writer of Ezra's Aliyah, because she's,  Jennifer Tzivia MacLeod, a well-known prolific blogger and blog carnival host. Read her latest Havel Havelim.

Tzivia's blogs are Adventures in BreadLand, Adventures in AliyahLand, and Adventures in Mama-Land. If I left one out, I'll add it. So, you'd think she'd call her book Ezra's Aliyah Adventure...

Now about the book. I loved it. It's just the right length for young kids and brings up the subjects parents must speak to their children about.  Ezra's Aliyah is short enough so that young children won't get bored, and it has enough information plus topics for discussion which will certainly be invaluable for older children. I'm going to be perfectly honest. When I was 13 my family moved to a different city, different school system, which although was just a ten minute drive away was a different world, culture, norms. I wish that my parents had made the effort to prepare me the way this book can help a child adjust to aliyah, the move to Israel.

I brought the book to my grandchildren to see their reactions. They were curious, and my eldest granddaughter even tried to read it by herself. Everyone loved the illustrations which were via a WFH arrangement.

One thing for sure. Ezra's Aliyah should be the first in a series of adventures and discoveries living in Israel. I'm sure there would be enthusiastic readers. Not only is the book highly recommended for potential olim, those who move to Israel, I'd say that it would be helpful to prepare children before a visit to Israel. And by reading and discussing it to their children, the parents, too, will be better prepared for the differences between Israel and wherever.  That should encourage them to leave the bubble of hotels, touristy restaurants and the crutch of a guide.

Ezra's Aliyah is not Jennifer Tzivia MacLeod's first book. Click here to see her Amazon page; it's very impressive. She's an excellent writer, and her books make great gifts. Buy it on Amazon (http://tinyurl.com/ezrasaliyah) or directly from Tzivia in Israel for only $9 (including mailing).

Becoming a "Real Israeli"

I've heard what I'm going to say from many people. The family of a Begin Prize winner said it, too:

There is something about losing a family member or friend to one of Israel's wars or Arab terrorism etc. and joining the masses of the Israeli bereaved that makes one become "a real Israeli." 

True, it's a terrible rite of passage into the Israeli culture and society.  It's a unifying trauma that happens to all stratum of Israeli society, rich, poor, religious, secular, new-comer (olim,) veteran and even some who aren't even Jewish.

Unfortunately, we did "joined the club" pretty early, only three years after our aliyah, when two friends from our American Betar days were killed in the 1973 Yom Kippur War, Charles "Chuck" Haim Hornstein חיים (הרן) הורנשטיין הי"ד" and Eli Michael Solomon אלי סולומון הי"ד".

The tie between us and our remaining friends from the 1960's Betar New York seem to just get stronger with the years. We celebrate and mourn together throughout the year and over decades. When my son got married,  we were only able to invite one table of friends, so they were the friends. They are like family for us and our children, too. And unfortunately, those Betar friends who ended up remaining in the states seem to suffer terribly from their being so far from us. Israel and Zionism brought us together and keep us together.

Li'ilui Nishmatam, May their souls ascend even higher...
Charles "Chuck" Chaim Hornstein חיים (הרן) הורנשטיין הי"ד"
Eli Michael Solomon אלי סולומון הי"ד"

May their memories be a blessing, and may we enjoy more smachot (happy occasions) together rather than grave time.

HaDassah, Letting Go to Support Aliyah

Popular Jewish American blogger HaDassah Sabo Milner already has one son in Israel who made aliyah. Lots of Jewish American eighteen year olds come to Israel.  They come for the year, but HaDassah's Aryeh made aliyah. He's now improving his Hebrew for the IDF, Israeli Defense Forces. So like many religious Israelis he'll be about nineteen when he starts his army service. It's very common to spend a year studying in a "michina" (pre-army preparing program) and improving one's fitness before the army.

This summer, her second son will join his big brother in Israel:

My second son, Naftali,  turns 18 in August. By the time his birthday rolls around he will have made Aliyah, and will be living in Israel, surrounded by family – including his older brother.

Here's my comment on HaDassah's blog:

HaDassah, halevei all Jewish mothers had your attitude and the Jewish population in Israel would be so much greater. Too many parents tell their children:
"First get an education."
Then
"Save some money."
Then
"Get job experience."
etc
And we all know what that causes...
staying in chutz la'Aretz, because it is easiest to make a successful aliyah when you're young and when you get your education and language skills, Hebrew skills in Israel.
This is becoming a long comment. I may as well blog about it.

I know of so many people who really wanted and planned on making aliyah, but they took their parents' advice.  Some of them did make aliyah after doing all those things, but many more didn't.  Or they tried and discovered that their American/Canadian/European etc educations didn't really prepare them for life in Israel. It's also so much more difficult to come to a new place, new language with children. Also there's no real guarantee that one can save lots of money living abroad.  Life can be very expensive.

G-d willing, HaDassah and family will all be blessed. Reading her post was a great way to start the week.

Aliyah Anniversary Season, Making More History

We davka celebrated our forty-third 43rd aliyah anniversary on the fifth 5th of Ellul the day we made a big sheva brachot (post-wedding) bash for our son and daughter-in-law.  This seems to be the season of aliyah milestones, especially since most Jews come from the northern hemisphere and summer moves are very common.

Nefesh B'Nefesh started its big aliyah enterprise with summer flights ten years ago, and I was privileged to be accepted as a bona fide journalist on a couple of flights to Israel, seven and eight years ago.

I wonder what these kids are doing now.

A also had the thrill of going to greet a plane of new immigrants a few years ago.

I really should do it again.

Too bad I missed Hadassa's son's flight.

Before I relinquished him to his friends and the flight into his future I blessed him as I do most Friday nights. I said out loud the bracha of Shehechyanu – thank you God for bringing us to this moment. There, in the swirling maelstrom of hundreds of people saying goodbye, I reminded my son how very much he is loved, and how very proud we are of him.
The pride in my heart waged war with the sadness of goodbyes. My first son to leave home. My eldest. Surrounded by loved ones who came to wish him well he took this big step. He hugged us all and waved goodbye. One of the next pictures I had of him was him landing in Israel with the biggest smile on his face that I have ever seen. His joy is my joy.
My other boys held my hand, and put their arms around me and were so solicitous as we walked to the car, the KoD providing a strong shoulder for me all morning. I didn’t expect the thump of sadness that was delivered to my heart. It hurt to leave, it hurt to say goodbye. But that smile on his face? I knew he’d be ok.

Photo credit: Shahar Azran

A charter plane dubbed the "soldiers' flight" touched down in Israel on Tuesday morning, bringing 125 young American Jews ready to don uniforms and join the ranks of the Israel Defense Forces.

The flight, carrying a total of 330 new immigrants from North America, included 63 men and 62 women aged 18 to 22 who will soon be inducted into the armed forces, most of them slated for combat. Israel Hayom

Way back when in 1970 I don't think my parents and in-laws felt the way Hadassa feels.  That's because mine and my husband's parents and their peers didn't dream of aliyah for themselves.  They, like their parents, considered living in America as being in the "promised land."  We betrayed all of that.  Our aliyah mocked their beliefs.

So many of my friends had voiced plans like mine and my husband's to make aliyah but they ended up staying in galut, gallus, the diaspora.  And then, they, too played the same script to their children to keep them from moving to Israel.

"First get an education and get yourself established."

Well, in all honesty and after almost a half a century of experience, I must say that is the perfect recipe to make aliyah difficult if not impossible.

All of my hugs and praise to Hadassa and the other parents who are supporting their children's decision to make aliyah now when they're young, before getting university educations etc.  Blessings to all!

Elderly Rights?

Next in the saga of my father's aliyah at 89...

It's time to contact the social worker and begin finding out what rights he and we get for him.  I had thought, originally, that my mother would be here by now, but that part of the aliyah plan isn't quite going as quickly as it should.

She wants to be there for the house-selling, although it would probably be easier to sell it if she was out and here already.

• For sale in Great Neck, LI, NY, 3 bedrooms, den, playroom, 1 and 3/4 (toilet with shower downstairs in playroom) baths.
• Quiet street.
• Great Neck North school district.
• A mile from the Young Israel and a bit more from the Great Neck Synagogue.

I may as well try to sell the house, too!

I DID It! The latest episode in the saga of my father's aliyah at 89

I decided to choose a very patriotic, Israeli Flag, blue for this post.  Those of you keeping tabs on my father's aliyah saga may remember that he never got his Te'udat Zehut, Israeli Identity Card.

My daughter doesn't really have time for it, and I avoid bureaucracy like the plague and the swine flu.  But unfortunately there are all sorts of things for which that little blue plastic folder and what's inside of it is the most necessary prerequisite.

At best I can get out two days a week, and Monday is dedicated to going to the pool.  I'm not about to take documents there, and any how, there's no guarantee I'd have time afterwards.

Today I felt brave and I also see that it's time to get started on the other things...

I got up extra early, so I'd have time for water, coffee, dovening breakfast etc before leaving Shiloh for Jerusalem.  The best time to go to the Ministry of the Interior is mid-morning, after 9am.  By then the super-early (those who want to be first, before the clerks have fully awakened) rush is finished.  And it's also important not to get there too close to closing time.

Honestly, I'm not sure when I arrived; I just trusted in G-d that it was the right time.

I put on lipstick and walked up the stairs.  Oh, I left out that before leaving the house, I had done my nails in a dull pink, rather than the chipped apple green which probably would have made an awful impression.  At the "sorting station," where they tell you which room to got to and give out the appropriate numbers, I whipped out the forms from last time and asked how to find that nasty clerk who had refused us.  We I had to go back to her, since she had seen my father and could finish the process.  A new clerk would mandate bringing him back.

Refuah Shleimah, a complete recovery to the young woman.  She was out sick.  I was told to go to the head of the department.  That woman quickly sent me off to someone else, a bit more my age, who asked if I now had everything.  I said I did, meaning I had everything I could get.  She took all the stuff someplace and then returned:

"You said that you had everything."
"Well, that's everything I have.  This isn't easy for me."

Off she went again and returned saying it was approved.  She gave me my father's picture with all sorts of stamps on the back and sent me to another clerk who used the picture in a brand new Te'udat Zehut. 

So, now my father's a real Israeli!