On Friday, on our way to a lovely weekend at a field school on the coast of Israel near Achziv, we took a hike along with friends of ours on a trail that started at the Crusader Fortress at Yichiam and ended in the ecological village of Klil. We passed lots of other hikers- old and young, Jews and Arabs, all out on a magnificent day.
Because it is already spring in Israel, which one determines by seeing the blooming of the almond trees
we were treated to a very lush experience. Climbing down the mountain we saw this vista
We walked along a dry creek bed, filled with stones.
and we saw beautiful cyclamens,
brilliant anemones,
and even dazzling wild roses.
It was the perfect prelude to a lovely shabbat stay by the sea where we enjoyed the brilliant sun and the clear blue water of the Mediterranean.
Yichiam to Klil
Shabbat in Meron
First of all, I am not going to tell you about Meron. We had a relaxing. pleasant shabbat with a group of friends at the field school near the city of Meron. It looked like nothing so much as a summer camp in the US. It was lush with trees and beautiful wildflowers with paths to walk and beautiful vistas. Although it was in the area of Meron, we were nowhere near the city. Secondly, the pictures I am going to show you were not taken there. Instead, they are among the many pictures I have already taken of our very special Israeli scenery.
What I am going to talk about is that very hard to describe love of the land that Israelis have. It’s not just that this is our home. It’s not just that we have dreamed of it, worked for it, fought for it, and sadly, many have died for it. It is a deep love for the land itself. We love this piece of earth. We love the trees and the flowers and the birds and the animals who inhabit it. We walk its paths. Every weekend when it is not raining (most weekends in Israel) thousands of people go walking on the paths that are laid out in nature. Everyone- from babies on their parents’ back to people with walking sticks and canes- walks through the beauty that is our land. They wear hats and carry water and generously apply sunscreen and often picnic and sometimes swim and some (usually children) even skinny-dip in the streams and pools along the way. And this is what we see:
April in the Galilee
Israeli flowers in the Spring
Flowers in the spring
Flowers in Emek HaEla
Is it any wonder that we love this land?
Yom HaZikaron
Just when I was beginning to feel a bit cynical about governments and politics and self-flagellation, along comes Yom HaZikaron- the day when Israel remembers those who died in her wars and those who were victims of terror. Children from nursery school on are taught the significance of the day. Yesterday, soldiers swept the country and placed flowers on every military grave from all the way in the north to Eilat in the south. To a large extent, the country is united. Shops and places of entertainment are closed. The radio and television air stories of the lives of our fallen soldiers and civilians, play sad songs. All of the commemorations are done with great sensitivity.
The people Israel unite as one and not only metaphorically, but physically “hug” the families who are bereft. Our respect for them is authentic and enduring. May the memories of their loved ones be blessed.
Spring in the Galilee
The Real Israel
When I lived in Oklahoma in the 1980s and talked about visiting Israel, the people I knew would urge me to be careful when I was in Beirut. I would explain to them that Beirut was in Lebanon, a country that I had no plans to visit. They would respond with something like, “Well, you need to be careful anyway†as if they didn’t buy a word of what I was saying.
Recently I met with people who were visiting Israel for the first time. They were surprised at how modern and Western it is. They talked about the friendly people and the clean rest room facilities and water that can be drunk and modern hotels and skyscrapers and delicious foods of all ethnic varieties. They had expected the ancient ruins and the historical monuments, and of course, the breathtaking vistas, but they were stunned with the modernity and the cosmopolitan feeling that pervades.
So it didn’t surprise me when another family we met recently reported hearing from someone in their Midwest American city the following about Israel, “We’re talking sand. We’re talking camels. We’re talking burkas.â€
All I can say to that is come and visit our little piece of paradise. See it for yourself! From the mountains of the Hermon, covered with snow in the winter to the sparkling gulf at Eilat to the wooded trails of the Galilee to calm waters of the Kinneret to the bustle of Tel Aviv to the breathtakingly beautiful city of Jerusalem—Israel will wow you! And come and see our hi-tech industries, setting world standards. Enjoy sitting in a sidewalk café. And most of all, enjoy our most precious products—the bright-eyed, smiling children. Israel will lift your heart and your soul.