Yad Vashem

Today, I was upset. Today, I was sad. Today, I was angry with the world.
Why?
Today, I was at Yad Vashem. Today, I saw the embodiment of Evil as the world stood by and watched with only a few risking their lives to help those who were selected to be undeserving of sharing the gift of Life.
Today, I saw people like you and me cheering for Evil, accepting Evil, giving up their cherished values to appease Evil. I saw men of the clothes, Catholic priests, shaking hands with Evil hoping to fulfill their long lasting dream to rid the world of those who stood in their way of becoming the chosen. Today, I saw the ghosts of allurement that ignite the souls of Evil where humanity replaces its humaneness with demons of selfishness and gods of lechery.
Today, I was a young orphan child in the Ghetto. Today, I was the helpless mother whose child was torn from her bosom by the masters of beastiality. Today, I shed the tears of affliction witnessing yet again what man hath done to man.
I wanted to scream, to let my painful anger out. I called for mercy, for Justice.
And as if a Celestial Power heard my plea, it reached out and guided me out, led me with my blindfolded eyes away from that inferno and led me to witness a miracle.
I opened my eyes and the Divine Justice unfolded itself to me. In front of my very eyes, laid the greatest blessing of them all. In front of me I saw a beautiful city of Gold, the city of Peace, the center of the world, the promise of our future and the fulfillment of the most propitious prophecy.
Am Yisrael Chai in its ancient Homeland.
I am happy, I am content. I am alive and I am grateful

Landing in Eretz Yisrael

The best part about any flight to Israel is the last 20 minutes.
It is then that my hears starts throbbing faster. It is then that my eyes well and I feel the lump in my throat growing.
It generally starts with these words, "Ladies and gentlemen, according to Israeli regulations once we enter the areal space of Israel, all passengers must be seated in their allocated places with seat belt fastened."
It is then that I know I should look into the horizon in front of the plane and search for first signs of the modern day miracle called Medinat Israel, the State of Israel, in it ancient homeland, Eretz Yisrael.
That is why I always ask for a window seat. I want to be the first to spot it. I want to be a modern day sailor who shouts, "Land Ho." I want to share the story of this miracle with all who will listen, with all who are ready and willing to open their hearts and minds to the story of a small brave nation as it unfolds itself in front of our eyes.
Eretz Yisrael, to inhale your beauty, your ageless beauty, your modern buildings and breathtaking skyline, your bare and arid yellow desert, your green fields where farmers toil the land, sowing with sorrow but reaping with joy, is a blessing.
Leave you I will, my beloved Homeland, but shall always look forward to returning and experiencing the last twenty minutes of flying towards you♥

Hevron Casbah

Last Shabbat, I had one of the most fulfilling days of my life.
I saw the beautiful Eretz Yisrael.
Unfortunately, I also saw the ugly sinister side of humanity.
I saw young men and women who roamed the streets of one of Judaism's most ancient cities, Hevron, with the sole purpose of creating havoc, deepening divides and fostering more hatred and pain.
These young people, mostly of European origin, were roaming the streets of our Holy City filming us, taking photos of Orthodox Jewish men and women knowing fully well how offensive it might be to some of them.
They were challenging our beloved IDF soldiers hoping to create some or other incident which might give rise to conflicts that they could eventually use to further demonize my wonderful beloved Jewish state.
Those poor miserable low lives must have been so disappointed at the face of Am Yisrael walking defiant, proud and refusing to fall prey to their devious plans.
How upset they and their Arab hosts must have been.
After all, the dear "Palestinians", the cry babies of the blind world, have been pushed aside because of the media's interest in the events in Syria and Egypt.
The champions of "missing opportunities" missed yet another opportunity to make the headlines. Baruch Hashem!
Am Yisrael Chai in Eretz Yisrael forever and ever!

IDF in Hevron

Dear friends,
I had the great honour and pleasure of spending this Shabbat in the company of Yosef and Melody Hartuv, other friends and the beautiful people of Kiryat Araba and Hevron.
What a moving, powerful experience that still vibrates the foundation of my essence.
To be able to visit the traditional burial places of our fathers and mothers. To walk in the footsteps of our Biblical heroes and touch the ancient stones where each could tell us the epic of a nation from birth to maturity, to destruction and to a radiant renewal, was a moving experience.
Walking through the sometimes perilous areas feeling unwelcome despite efforts to show good will and a reached-out hand for Peace was comforting as we saw our brave soldiers courageously standing alongside the road or accompanying us to certain areas.
I wanted to hug each and every one of them and shower them with every blessing, to reassure them that we, Am Yisrael, love them, cherish them and appreciate deeply all that they do for us. I wanted to caress their beautiful faces, wash the worries off their tired eyes and promise them that the humiliation they have to endure from some of the passers by are mere tiny specks of darkness in the annals of time, where they will go down as modern day Joshuas and Maccabis.
At night, as I listened to the silence, I could hear the soft sobbing of one dear beloved voice; Rachel was crying for her children who have had to endure, and still do, so much hatred and pain. But when the bright sun arose over the hills of Judea and Samaria, I knew she was smiling, smiling as she was lovingly watching her Children returning to their Borders.
Bless you all, and Bless Am Yisrael in Eretz Yisrael. Shavua tov

Praying at the Cave of Machpelah

The divine aura surrounding Hevron illuminates its first rays at twilight time when the universe sways between the mundane and the sacred, the harsh everyday reality and the realm of dreams and hopes for harmony, peace and love and the belief in the victory of good over evil.
Dressed in our Shabbat clothes, ready to welcome the fairest of them all, Shabbat Hamalkah, the Queen, we make our way to the cave of Machpelah.
The radiating faces of the passers by as they push the strollers of their beautiful young ones, the future of Eretz Yisrael, bring a smile to my heart.
Their white spotless garments wash away my worries and pain preparing me for the most exhilarating experience of them all, praying at the cave of Machpelah.
We have come back despite the fact that we never really left. The enduring hope that has kept our longing alive anchored us to this place over mountains and seas, drawing us nearer and nearer to fulfilling the dream of two millenia. We are here.
And our ancestral mothers and fathers are smiling, ready to welcome us back into their comforting bosom where our tears which cleared our vision to see the bright future ahead of us have been collected.
No more tears, no more longing. We are home.
And with the solemn oath of "If we forget thee...," to our Past, Present and Future, we are ready for the greatest blessing of them all, praying in the presence of those righteous whose loving kindness has brought us thus far and we say, "Amen!"

On the Beach

Shabbat in Eretz Yisrael - and as is my custom on this Shabbat and every Shabbat, I go to the beach to enjoy the cooling water and the refreshing sea breeze.
Next to me in bright colourful skimpy bikinis, there situated themselves two beautiful young Israeli Arab women.
We exchanged common greetings (I talk to anyone:-)) and set to deepen the already evenly golden brown tan all three of us seem to have acquired.
One of the city inspectors, patrolling the beaches, approached us and reminded us to drink water so that we do not get dehydrated.
I told him I had forgotten mine. My beautiful beach neighbours seem to have also forgotten theirs.
"I will get a popsicle as soon as the vendor gets here," I answered.
"So will we," answered one of the young ladies next to me.
"Ok," said the inspector, "I will send him your way." And left.
A few minutes later, all three of us were left with out mouths open.
There in front of us was the city inspector negotiating his way barefoot on the hot sand, coming towards us.
In his hands were three popsicles!
Welcome to an "Apartheid" state called Israel!

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