02 May 2017

THIS IS ISRAEL



Iyyar 5777
Day 21 of the Omer
Yom Ha'atzma'ut

As a thinking person and one who does not blindly follow the crowd, I can't say that I celebrate Independence Day per se in Israel. On the one hand, you've got a leadership that is more concerned with preserving "Democracy" and waging a war on Torah and Torah-loving Jews than it is the real enemies, both within and without. And on the other hand, we can't even say, well, at least we are no longer under domination by the nations of the world. This same "leadership" does not make a move without first getting permission from foreign powers.

However, I very much appreciate that the State of Israel exists and that its doors are standing wide open to welcome Jews home. So, I celebrate this day as Homecoming Day and I can be happy in the knowledge that better days are ahead. The "Leadership" is not representative of the spirit of our people.

The following anecdote, I think, is what Israel is all about.

On Sunday afternoon, I was at a bus stop waiting for a bus. A large group of schoolgirls and assorted other people were crowded on the sidewalk and sitting on the curb. Four boys (no kippot) came pushing a shopping cart full of stuff. One of them, with a huge grin, spoke up loudly, "Tzadikim, Tzidkaniot, slicha, slicha." Everyone immediately made way for them to pass, and the boy thanked them with the words, "Tizku l'mitzvot."

A bus came. I got on. It was standing-room only. And immediately, a young man (no kippah) jumped up to give me a seat. Two stops down, the driver is closing the door and a man (no kippah) rushes from the back of the bus to the front brandishing a set of keys. He breathlessly explains that a young girl who just exited the bus has dropped them and the man wants to try to catch her and return them. Without a word, the driver (no kippah) opens the door and the man runs out. The bus is packed and I expect the driver to lose patience and drive away. But, he surprises me by waiting and opening the rear door for the man to jump back on, his good deed done.

This triumph of the Jewish heart and the Jewish spirit and the fact that we have returned is what I celebrate on the day we take cognizance of our nationhood.

3 comments:

  1. Devorah, thank you so much for this. You summed it up very nicely, and put appropriate word to our mixed feelings... as usual. Happy Homecoming Day to all the good Jewish people who make E"Y their home and are meiser nefesh for HKBH. Tizku l'Mitzvot:) Leah R

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  2. Thank you for posting this Devorah - I can't wait to see this when I arrive before this Shavous IY'H. HaShem is making nissim for my family. Please give me a bracha that we do arrive THIS Shavous. This has to do with the finding of my husband's name, my name and our son's name in Megillas Ruth as well as the 17th chapter of Lech Lecha. Oh the story's I wish to share but will hold tight until we arrive.

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