Thursday night, we attended the funeral of a soldier, a student, a son and brother. A child of Israel. But unlike most funerals, this one took 37 years to happen. It brought together thousands upon thousands of Israelis to pay their final respects, and to fulfill a promise that Israel makes to each of us;… Read More Embraced by the Land Once Again
Today was an incredible day. First, we woke up (those of us who didn’t stay up until 2 in the morning) to hear the news that the Israeli entrant had won the Eurovision song contest. Do we typically care about Eurovision? Um, not so much. But Netta Barzilai is an amazing person for her determination,… Read More Toy, Joy & Celebration
Josh and I had such a gloriously fantastic day today. My office very generously gives us the day off for Yom Yerushalayim (Jerusalem Day), and this year we took full advantage of that opportunity. We left first thing in the morning and headed for the city. We wanted to enjoy the vibrancy that is modern… Read More The Ancient to Modern Story of Jerusalem
I created a new file today for the file cabinet. It says “Army Stuff” on it. And as I filed it away, with the first of my first son’s army papers in it, I just couldn’t believe that we had come to this stage. Tonight, I stood in the Neve Daniel hall with hundreds of… Read More Carrying the Torch of our Futures
The modern State of Israel is a complete miracle. With all of its complexities, problems and issues, it is a miracle that we’ve come home after 2000 years and that we are a thriving and free democratic society. When most people think about Israel, an image of the Kotel comes to mind; of the Old… Read More When Zionism Looks Like a Basketball Game
Now that we can all breathe a sigh of relief that the Lag B’Omer fires are over (well, we can’t really breathe this morning, but you get what I mean), it’s time for some reflection. I usually really dislike this holiday. I would say hate, but I’m probably not supposed to say hate about a… Read More A Shocking Turn of Events: Why I’ve Come to Enjoy Lag B’Omer
This blog was first posted this morning as a Times of Israel blog. Every Holocaust Remembrance Day I feel like a fake. My great grandparents all arrived on the shores of the United States from Russia and Poland in the late 19th century, which means that no one was left behind. No one perished in… Read More The Blessing of Being a Fake
This article was first published on the Times of Israel blog on Friday at http://blogs.timesofisrael.com/derech-haavot-standing-strong-one-footstep-at-a-time/. Three days ago, Tomer Ditur set out from his home in Rosh Tzurim, in Gush Etzion, to go for a run. He ran along Derech Ha’avot, the Path of the Patriarchs, where so many of us in the Gush run and… Read More A Beautiful Day for a Walk with our Fathers
This post was first published on the Times of Israel website at http://blogs.timesofisrael.com/alone-no-more/. It is hard to describe what it feels like to stand in a room of more than 1500 lone soldiers from around the world. But I will try, because that was my experience today. Today, in Tel Aviv, more than 1500 lone soldiers… Read More Alone No More
“Mommy, put down your iPad and cuddle with me,” my four year old whines this morning in the sukkah. I hear him. And I certainly get what he’s saying. But I can’t. I can’t get away from the images swarming in my head, from the images that didn’t stop all night long, of Rabbi Eitam… Read More And Who Will Hug Naama’s Four Year Old?
