Observations about life in Israel from a Canadian immigrant's perspective.
מציאות לא מרחמתעורי ארץ מדממתתני לרוח הנושבת לרפא אותך Reality shows no mercyWake up, bleeding landLet the blowing wind heal you Shema Israel, song by David Broza and Avraham Tal Plonk, plonk, ring the olives in my pail. Clunk, clunk, clash the metal poles as the sukkah is being built. Despite these sounds and the… Continue reading Seasonal Changes
It was a Saturday morning. After walking the dog, we were relaxing on our favorite bench, enjoying the views of the Kinneret and the Golan. Fields of mustard bloomed all around, the Kinneret sparkled, and everything felt fresh, balmy, calm. Birds were busy nest building, planning a future. Spring was in the air. Friends walked… Continue reading Groundhog Day
Come spring, our food forest is flourishing. Delicate, fragrant blossoms from March have since transformed, gifting us with tiny apples, apricots, almonds, plums, and juicy mulberries. Because the Torah halacha of orla proscribes no eating of the fruit for the first three years of a tree’s planting, we look at this fruit with great anticipation… Continue reading The Barn Swallows’ Picnic Lunch
Rosh Chodesh Nissan. As the sliver of a new moon appears in the night sky, Israelis gather en masse to protest against the government. In their anger, frustration, and despair, they are fighting against fellow Israelis, threatening to shut down the country. Leaders in the opposition parties are fueling the fight, rubbing salt into already… Continue reading The Power of Kindness
“Send me photos. It’s beautiful there.” Instead of sending my daughter pictures of Rhodes with its azure skies, Grecian ruins, and sparkling Aegean beaches where sunbathers sip cocktails on beach chairs, I sent a photo of three memorial candles. The caption on this photo read: We lit these candles to commemorate the lost lives and atrocities of October 7th. These… Continue reading Accidental Tourists
Here in Israel, life hangs on a thread. Everything that is deemed normal or routine has come to a standstill. Each morning, feeling grateful after a night’s sleep in a bed and not in a bomb shelter, I awaken to a reality of unknown, untouchable fear. When I am asleep (unless I am woken up… Continue reading Planting For Hope
Photo by Roman Kraft on Unsplash. I started this blog upon making Aliyah in 2005. I kept writing for close to 15 years, annotating the many enlightening experiences I had in this special land. From golden desert to oak forested mountains, I was inspired by the beautiful landscapes, dazzled by the brilliant sunshine, and fascinated… Continue reading I am reaching out, please take my hand.
Israel has been through a lot in its 22 years of existence. Rocket barrages, fears of chemical attack and acts of terror are just a few of the scares. Perhaps these stressors have resulted in creating a ‘callus’ that assists Israelis when dealing with hardship. This is the barbed, spiny shell of the ‘sabra’ that… Continue reading Coronavirus – Developing Fortitude
0 0 1 1025 5844 Amnic 48 13 6856 14.0 Normal 0 false false false EN-US JA X-NONE <!-- /* Font Definitions */ @font-face {font-family:Arial; panose-1:2 11 6 4 2 2 2 2 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:-536859905 -1073711037 9 0 511 0;} @font-face {font-family:Times; panose-1:2 0 5 0 0 0 0 0 0… Continue reading Israelis live and love to travel
A few weeks ago I read an article about the new ‘Cadenza’project in Jerusalem and realized how perfect Israel is for such an endeavor. A concrete encased electric piano is placed on a busy thoroughfare of Ben Yehuda Street. Here, people rush on and off the light rail, head to the office and at night,… Continue reading Israel the Extrovert
