 |
| Sarah Techiya and Ariel under the chuppa tonight. |
Here in Israel, there is tragedy almost every day. I do not need to echo the news stories, the
deep sorrow, the intense loss of beautiful lives and the insanity.
solution in sight. We are glued to the news, to every flash across our phone
screens, to each ambulance that flies by with sirens blaring.
We are hyper aware in crowds of people and when walking near bus shelters and on
crowded sidewalks.
words here are ‘to live.’ We are not cowering inside. We go to work, we send
our children to school, we do our
groceries. We sip our coffees like we always do, the warm November sun washing
over our faces. We go out for meals, preferring an outdoor table, where we sip
a glass of wine with friends.
each day fully. We will not cower or run or hide. We will not let fear dictate
us. No. We will mourn and we will celebrate.
wedding to Ariel Bigel, her family was driving to the town of Meitar, where
Ariel lives. En route, terrorists opened fire and killed her father and her
18-year-old brother. This was just before Shabbat, a Shabbat that was to be
celebrated. Instead, it was a Shabbat of shock, whispers and tears.
shiva. Sarah said, “This evening,
instead of wearing the bridal dress, I will sit on the floor with a torn
shirt.” On that evening,
1,000 women gathered in the wedding hall to learn Torah, listen to music and to
be strengthened.
0
0
1
15
89
Amnic
1
1
103
14.0
Normal
0
false
false
false
EN-US
JA
X-NONE
/* Style Definitions */
table.MsoNormalTable
{mso-style-name:”Table Normal”;
mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;
mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;
mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-priority:99;
mso-style-parent:””;
mso-padding-alt:0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt;
mso-para-margin:0cm;
mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Cambria;
mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria;
mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria;
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;}
nine days and have invited the whole nation of Israel. The chuppa is tonight at the Binyanei Ha’Uma in Jerusalem, the largest hall in the country.
 |
| The wedding invitation. “Everyone is invited.” |
Tonight, Am Israel is being bound up by song and by dance. Being beside the young bride and groom strengthens the couple and our nation’s future.
mourned again. Many other yeshiva students in Israel and their parents abroad may have panicked, yet the answer is not to run away.
 |
| American Yeshiva student Ezra Shwartz z”l. We mourn for him. |
A facebook video that went viral explains why. Please click on the video in this Times of Israel article and listen to the inspired words of Elisha Levy.
Discover more from Life in Israel
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
Life in Israel 