Wednesday, October 19, 2011

4 years. 22 years. 1,941 days.


"To all of the House of Israel: Happy Sukkot!"
Yom revi'i, 21 Tishrei 5772, Hoshana Raba.

In a few days, we will have lived in Israel for four years.

In a few days, we will have been Jewish for 22 years.

Yesterday, our nation welcomed home a native son who has been in captivity for more than five years.

Is it any wonder that life has not stood still long enough to be written about lately?

It's time for an "aliyaversary" retrospective.  I have more pictures than words -- but let me share them with you as they come to mind.  The bottom line:  We have made a place for ourselves here, a place that makes more sense for us than anywhere, of all the fine and interesting places we've ever been.   But we miss you -- and can't wait to see you here!

Our credit card company sends Rosh Hashana greetings.

So does the army!


A banker who has befriended us offers us something sweet for Rosh Hashana.





The ads on the buses advertise sukkah decorations.

My friend Ami got an automated message from Bezeq (the phone company) offering to give him free wake-up calls for Slichot.  I love this country!

Even Neve Daniel has a shuk for Sukkot.  All the quality, none of the travel.



Mishpachat Mizrachi adds a "Parents' Room" wing to the sukkah, decorated with flags from our States of origin.

Would anybody but my Dearly Beloved think of military guidons as sukkah decorations?  (Where's yours, Soldier Boy?  We looked for that Golani "Gdud 12" flag everywhere!)

The view through the "blue glass picture window" is still breathtaking.  (This one's for you, Bubbe.  Thanks for showing up every year, to help your son-in-law with those final construction details.)

History, politics, shellfish -- we've got it all.

Ahhhh...  my leichter.  The sense of home is complete.

I love the Sukkot table setting best of all.

I never liked honey.  But silan -- date honey -- ahhhhhhh!

A "Davening for Stella" excursion to the Kotel...
...is delightfully augmented by a group of Chareidi school girls.  "Oiveenee Malkainee..."

With Standing Together, we visit a group of miliumnikim -- reservists.  I have two questions for them:  "Do you have kids?  Do you have pictures?"  You should have seen the joy with which the cell phone cameras came out!
The Strung-Out Quartet performed American blues and rock with other musicians at the Neve Daniel Jam Session during Chol Hamoed.  It ain't Hershey Park -- but it was a lot of fun nonetheless!

Yaakov and Leah Urso regaled us with an authentic Nashville sound.

Eliezer Barnet playing his homemade cigar box guitar.

We shared our fiddle player Uzi Volman to turn Eliezer into a bluegrass band.
One of the guests in the audience was a mother of a Neve Daniel resident.  Commenting on the concert, she said to her daughter-in-law:  "I love incongruous things and this is one hell of an example!"

Tzvi Zelevski added a sweet Russian soulfulness to his Hebrew tunes.

As the seasons change, we switch from iced coffee to cafe hafuch -- with artwork!
Finally learned the art of the braided round loaf!
Grilled veggies are so ON this time of year, am I right?
Fall and football, right?  Coach gets together for a chol hamoed strategy session with some of his prime gridiron warriors.

The Dearly Beloved took me out for a birthday meal or two, of course...

All of my boys are in uniform these days.
Stunt Man is in an elite Paratroopers unit; and Sports Guy is in an elite football team.


Yes, Doctors Leventhal -- they still leap backwards off of walls.  But thanks to your wisdom, I can mostly duct tape and superglue them back together...

When Robert Kraft's wife left this world, he asked the guys who play for Israel to wear her name on their uniforms as they played in the international competition.  It was their honor and privilege.

In the IDF, you are permitted to say "shehekhiyanu" when you receive your uniform and your weapon.  Why?  Because defending the Jewish people is holy work.
Far from giving up their Yiddishkeit due to army service, as we were so often warned, the boys find opportunities to talk about the beauty of faith in Hashem with fellow soldiers who ask GREAT questions, and show much interest.
Yeshiva Bochur earns the "soldier of the week" award.  And I thought those "My son is on the TA Honor Role" bumper stickers would make me proud...

Visiting Stunt Man outside his base late one chol hamoed evening.  Okay, I know I look a bit "ufgarecht."  I spent most of the visit plucking ants out of my clothing.  Now I fully understand the concept of "shpilkes."

Gilad Shalit returns to the arms of his parents after one thousand, nine hundred and forty-one days in captivity.  We tear our hair over the cost. We embrace him with our full hearts.  Huge emotional conflicts.  This is what it is to be an Israeli.  This is what it has always been to be a Jew.
Photo credit: Kalman Feldman, the talented mechutan

We miss our family in the Old Country, and cannot wait until they return Home!  (This includes ALL of you.)

Glossary:
Hoshana Raba: The seventh day of the holiday of Sukkot (Feast of Tabernacles).
Slichot: penitential prayers said during the time leading up to the High Holy Days
Leichter [Yiddish]: area let up for lighting the Sabbath and holy day candles
Davening: praying
"Oiveenee Malainee": the way the Chareidi Yiddish for the Avinu Malkeinu (Our Father, Our King) prayers sounded to my ears
Chol Hamoed: the intermediate days of Jewish holidays -- spent by Israelis in wonderful fun family trips around the country, and musical festivals
Cafe Hafuch: the national drink of Israel, cappuccino -- "hafuch" means upside-down, and we certainly are!
Shehekhiyanu: a special prayer recited over any momentous event thanking G-d for bringing one to this place in time
Ufegerecht: discombobulated
Shpilkes: unable to sit still; ants in the pants -- Don't ask.

13 comments:

srt007 said...

Amazing pictorial journey....miss you all, PG I will see you all soon
Chag Sameach

Batya said...

Glad you're here and part of us.
This is a gorgeous photo-post. did you send to JPIX?

Unknown said...

Happy aliyaversary!
מועדים לשמחה וחג שמח!

Skipper said...

Ruti, I so enjoyed reading your blog and seeing the photos. You are truly blessed.
Chag Sameach

Baila said...

That beautiful, simple post brought tears to my eyes. We are lucky to have you here. Mazal Tov and may you celebrate many more proud years living in our Holy Land.

Chava Levin said...

OMG, I can't believe I only know you for 4 years!!!! You feel so much a part of my life that I can't remember life without you in it.

I look forward to the 22 year anniversary post...

Sara Fiedler said...

Ruti, I so love your blog and I also LOVE Eretz Yisroel and everything about it. What zchus we have to live here. Thank you Hashem. Thank YOU for including me among your friends. May you and yours be blessed with a wonderful, healthy year.

Mrs. S. said...

Mazal tov on your upcoming aliyah-versary, and may you continue to have much nachat from your beautiful family!

Pitka tava and chag samei'ach!

Tzadik said...

2 points:

1) "Oiveenee Malkeinee" is actually not "charedi" but "chassidish" (who pronounce the Hebrew vowel "shuruk/kubutz" as "ee")... Litvish chareidim pronounce a shuruk/kubutz as "oo", just like all other Jews.

Take a look over here for more info http://www.hashkafah.com/index.php?/topic/2379-pronunciations/page__st__20 (although some people may take exception to the writer's belief that the chasidish pronunciation is "wrong" and came from the gentile pronunciation of German in Hungary and Galicia)

2) As for getting your uniform and weapon, wouldn't that be 2 "shehechyanus". At least when I was in the Israeli army, we got our uniform on the first day (at "Bakum", the "intake base" in Tel HaShomer) but didn't get our M16s until we had already been at the basic training base for several weeks (after we had actually learned how to use and care for an M16, at least to an extent that we wouldn't be a danger). I remember there being quite a solemn and formal ceremony to officially receive the weapon, and at the same time we also received an army Tanach (bible). I think we also took the oath of service ("to the state and the army", in that order of priority) at that time (or was that a separate ceremony... not sure on that point)

Ima2seven said...

Mazal tov on your beautiful aliyahversary. Your post just made me cry and cry. We are hoping with all of our hopes to move to Neve Daniel in July, and I miss everything in your photos.... Looks like a gorgeous sukkah and holiday!

Sue said...

LOVED your concert in Neve Daniel. Having you there is one of the things that makes the yishuv so special.

Shalomis said...

Happy, happy aliyahversary!! I still rememember that giant sucking sound when you finally popped free of chutz l'aretz. How Hashem has blessed you these four years! Riches, my dear friend, riches! Thanks so much for the fantastic photo-post. Needless to say, I can never get enough pix of the mishpacha...even if they are frozen moments in time. I am so grateful to HKBH for taking such exquisite care of all of you. May your connection to Hashem, His Land and to each other expand and deepen with each passing year!
With much, much love,

the sabra said...

ditto ditto ditto dittttttttttttto

as usual, too moved to comment.