Celebrating YOM HA'ALIYAH Making One's Home in Israel, The Holy Land

 

For the past few years a "new holiday" has joined the Israeli Calendar, YOM HA'ALIYAH, a time to honor those who made aliyah-- immigrated to Israel. My husband and I made the move two months after our wedding in the summer of 1970. You can read about it here part 1 and part 2. 

YOM ALIYAH is celebrated around the Torah Portion Lech Lecha in which Gd commands Avram-Abram (before his name is changed to Avraham-Abraham) to get himself going to the Land Gd will show him.

בראשית י״ב  

לך לך

א- וַיֹּ֤אמֶר יְהֹוָה֙ אֶל־אַבְרָ֔ם לֶךְ־לְךָ֛ מֵאַרְצְךָ֥ וּמִמּֽוֹלַדְתְּךָ֖ וּמִבֵּ֣ית אָבִ֑יךָ אֶל־הָאָ֖רֶץ אֲשֶׁ֥ר אַרְאֶֽךָּ׃

1- יהוה said to Abram, “Go forth from your native land and from your father’s house to the land that I will show you.

Over the millennium many Jews all exiled over the world have felt these words from Gd personally and made their way whether by plane, boat, wagon or foot to the Holy Land, the Land of Israel, even before the modern State of Israel had been established. I was one of them.

I'll never forget how I broke the news of my plans to my parents, who had barely adjusted to my religious observance. You must understand that we were an ordinary American Jewish family, which lit Chanukah candles, had an abridged Passover Seder, were even members of a synagogue, Conservative-- which was the most popular and rapidly growing in the 1950s. But the kitchen wasn't kosher, and Shabbat and many Jewish Holidays weren't on our family calendar.

When I was thirteen 13 we moved to a different community, and the only synagogue actively recruiting new members was Orthodox, the Great Neck Synagogue. There I joined their Teen Club to make friends. It was a chapter of NCSY National Conference of Synagogue Youth, where I was introduced to "Torah True Judaism" which changed my life. Soon after, one of the local Jewish activists got me involved in Betar and Zionism, icing on the cake of my Jewish Life.

I didn't want any ideological, philosophical arguments with my parents about my plan to move to Israel, so I simply said:

"You couldn't stop me from keeping Shabbat and Kashrut. Living in Israel is just another mitzvah, and you can't stop me from doing that either."

It worked. They had no answer, though sometimes I wonder if they were happy to get me far from my younger siblings as not to corrupt them with my revolutionary life style. Within a few years, my mother enjoyed being the local expert in helping other parents with similarly "eccentric" children.

Obviously, Lech Lecha has always been my favorite Torah Portion of The Week. I live in a community, Shiloh, that is a fantastic stew of longtime Israelis and and much newer ones from all over the world. Our local region Mateh Binyamin, which is like an American county, is the same sort of mix. This year Mateh Binyamin made a big festive event to which we had been invited. I really enjoyed seeing so many people; some had been customers of mine when I worked in Yafiz. The highlight was an old-fashioned Israeli singalong. The choice of songs was just perfect.

It's the truth to say that I celebrate YOM HA'ALIYAH daily. I've never once considered that decision I made as a teenager to have been a mistake.

We Attended Evyatar Banai's Humongous Outdoor Concert in Jerusalem

Yes, here we are sitting with thousands and thousands of people

 See, I'm not exaggerating at all. Sultan's Pool, near Jerusalem's Old City is quite an impressive venue.

Evyatar Banai performed with three guest artists, and I have no doubt that Aviv Geffen was the highlight for most of the audience. It was quite an extravaganza. 

We were sitting in the VIP section in front. Why? Well that's a story.

Both of us, my husband and I, had totally ignored the ads about the concert which was sponsored by Mateh Binyamin, our regional council -a sort of cross between a county and American-style state. So to put it mildly, we hadn't planned on attending. 

So, how did we end up going, and davka with seats in the VIP section?

Barely 24 hours before the concert, my husband received a message from what we'll call the Public Relations Department of Mateh Binyamin offering us a pair of complementary tickets including an invitation to the preconcert reception. For decades we've been the volunteer "meeters and greeters" welcoming journalists, dignitaries and a wide variety of other visitors including groups. I'm no longer on their "speed-dial," though my husband still gets calls. Over the years we've gotten preholiday gifts, which is how I got that "beer glass" I drink cold brew coffee from. It even came with special beer, which was a real treat for me.

Rather obviously, just like the classic Jewish Joke, as soon as we heard that we'd been offered free tickets, we happily accepted them and attended the concert. To be perfectly honest, until I heard them live, Banai, Geffen and two other popular singers, I don't think I've even listened to their music, though I had heard of them. 

I must say that the Evyatar Banai & Friends concert in such a venue was great fun. Until I turned around to photograph what was behind me, I had no idea how humongous it was, even though we had walked down from the top. Beware that the steps are dangerous, because they aren't marked with reflective or white tape. I didn't want to leave the way we came; it was terrifying to think of going up those black unmarked steps. Luckily there was a lower exit, no steps. I think that we could have entered that way too, if we had come with the other VIPs.

There was an intimacy in sitting so close to the stage and not seeing the rest of the audience. It was great fun. We left a bit early so we could catch a bus home. Lovely evening. I'm so glad we had been invited.

Pishers' Guide to Ariel #1, Good Deal in "Supersol Deal"

This is a continuation of my public service posts, which review public toilets. Originally I titled the page "Pishers' Guide to Jerusalem," but now the ongoing series is called "Pishers' Guide to Jerusalem & Beyond."

Last week I had some time to spare in the new Ariel mall, which is across the road from the Ariel University. And I've already blogged about the dangerous situation due to the lack of a proper sidewalk. Besides that, there's a lovely health food store and a branch of the BIGA dairy restaurant chain.

The Ariel Mall is also very close to the various bus stops and hitchhiking posts in all directions, Tel Aviv, Shomron, Binyamin, Petach Tikvah and more, so convenient public toilets are extremely necessary. I wandered around the multistory shopping complex -it's an "open Mall," more like a modern version of a shopping center/strip mall. Usually I'm pretty good at finding public toilets, but besides at the not fully open gas station, I found nothing.

In my experience clinics and supermarkets always have public toilets. Since there was no clinic, I went to the "Super Sol Deal" and cased the "periphery." The WC won't be in the middle of the store, right? Success!

clean and equipped

This "Super Sol Deal" loo is nicer than most I've seen in restaurants.

I was also very impressed by the supermarket, layout, prices etc. No doubt that it's competing with Rami Levi, which is at the other end of Ariel.  For those of us in northern Binyamin, this is very good news. Ariel University and the mall are a lot closer than Sha'ar Binyamin. Besides the two malls in Ariel, there's an old "industrial zone" with lots of stores and other shopping areas. The Ariel malls have many of Israel's popular chains, which aren't yet in Sha'ar Binyamin. One needs to travel to Pisgat Zeev for them.

For those of us in Shiloh, there are two supermarkets to shop in, so if that's all you're looking for, there's no need to travel.

In terms of public toilets, this one in Ariel is the nicest.

Astounding Growth, Shiloh's Elementary Schools

September 1, 2019, first day of school

Thirty-eight years ago, September 1, 1981, the Shiloh Elementary School, Ohel Shiloh, opened its doors, yes doors since each class was in a separate small building, for the first time. There were eighteen students in three classes, 1st, 2nd and 3rd grades.

In 1981, Shiloh was a small, rather isolated community which was trying to grow and expand. It had been decided that in order to attract more families, make life easier, more attractive and provide employment opportunities, they would open a school.

A local school was one of the factors that helped us decide to move to Shiloh, even though our eldest daughter would have to travel to Ofra. There weren't enough "older children" to have more than three classes. For the first school year, the classes were in new prefabricated homes that Arik Sharon, as Minister of Housing, had brought to Shiloh. Even though the summer of 1981 brought a record-breaking number of new families to Shiloh, most of the houses were empty. It was good to have the school using three of them.

The following year, the school moved down to the neighborhood near the Tel Shiloh, and more prefabricated buildings were brought in for the growing school. A few years later a proper school building was built in the "Middle" of Shiloh, between Tel Shiloh and our neighborhood over a mile up the hill. Preschools and the Infant Day Care Center were also built in the area. More buildings had to be added to the elementary school, as it reached eight grades plus separate classes for boys and girls. As the school continued to grow, especially since students came from nearby Eli, Maale Levona, Shevut Rachel, Shiloh Valley hilltop communities, Southern Shomron and  Jordan Valley, two separate schools were set up, one for the boys and one for the girls.

My youngest child graduated 8th grade over twenty years ago when the school was still relatively small and hadn't yet been divided. I've had little reason to enter it, more accurately the schools, besides Election Day, for many years. And the voting booths/stations are set up in the building cloest to the entrance to the schools' campus. Since there's now a maze of buildings, I can't even point out the original one, where I had been the girls gym teacher for many years. Davka, this week my I accompanied a friend in one of the buildings in the middle of the campus. She had to bring something to one of her children. If I hadn't been with her, I'd still be trying to find my way out.

Here are a few pictures of Ohel Shiloh Elementary Schools circa 2019, 5779-80 on the Jewish Calendar.

Last Day in "School"

Yesterday was the last session in of the Vattikim b'Kehila, Seniors in the Community, Senior Citizen program I had attended in Ulpanat Ofra, the Ofra Girls High School. The attendees came from all over the Benjamin Regional Council.

During the year I had been attending classes on Thursdays, but for the "camp" our group was cancelled, and I joined the Monday group, which was much larger. Even though I hadn't been studying with them throughout the year, I knew many of the group. I've been living in Shiloh for thirty-seven years, and have gotten to know people from most all of the communities in the region. Our children have gone to the same schools; I also worked in Yafiz, Shaar Binyamin for six years. And there have been many other ways to meet people.

The coordinator brought in many interesting speakers. There was an "inspirational speaker," who encouraged us to fulfil our dreams, write and live a "bucket list." The head of the program for handicapped and special education told us about what is done for the children, and their families, who need more help. Now there's a local program, Lev Binyamin, right next to the high school where we've been studying. Before then, children had to be bussed to Jerusalem and sometimes further.

We learned more Tanach, Bible and about each other.

It's definitely a good program, and I'm glad that I participated this past year.

Benji- Honey Red Ale

This year our local Benjamin Regional Council, Mateh Binyamin included something new in its "Rosh Hashanah, New Year's holiday gift package" for us.  We usually get something to thank my husband for the various Hasbara, Information work he does. This year, besides the standard "honey for a sweet year," we got  two bottles of Benji Honey Red Ale Beer. And since beer is one of the things my husband doesn't like, it went to me, for my drinking pleasure.

Doug Greener, the beer mavin, has been mentoring me, so here's the report. When I first opened a bottle and poured myself a glass on the second night of Rosh Hashanah, I discovered that it's a very frothy beer with lots of foam/head. But being that it was Rosh Hashanah, I couldn't take a photo, so you'll have trust me.

Even if you can't read the Hebrew on the label, you should be able to recognize that the 6.5% refers to alcohol content which means that it's relatively high, בירה חזקה, Birah Chazaka, Strong Beer. And, yes, I did feel the alcohol, even a few days later when I opened to bottle to photograph it and drink what was left. But you probably want to know more about the flavor of the beer.

I could taste the honey, and if you can't read Hebrew, you should know that the honey is pretty high up on the list of ingredients. The people who made this beer aren't conning you when they call it a Honey Red Ale.  It is also a "honey brown" color.

There's nothing bitter in the taste of the beer. It's the sweetest beer I can remember tasting, and I was recently at the Jerusalem Beer Festival, where I tasted quite a few. Even though beer generally does not need rabbinical supervision to be kosher, this one does have a Mehadrin Hechsher. I presume that this was ordered and bottled especially for Benjamin Regional Council, Mateh Binyamin, but if you'd like more information, there's a phone number on the label 02-5458856.

Rami Levy at Rami Levi

I was at work yesterday, morning shift for a change, at the Yafiz shoe store when I heard a lot of noise. At first, with my awful hearing, it sounded like a roar. Then I realized that they were saying:

"Rami Levy!"

Yes, the Rami Levi who owns the enormous discount supermarket chain to which Yafiz is connected, was visiting. Now I understood why the pizza/burger place had been scrubbed down earlier in the morning. Unlike a couple of months earlier, when we had been warned to get the store, Yafiz, Clothes and Shoes for the Whole Family, all spruced up because Yafit, his daughter and the owner, and Rami Levy were coming to visit, this time I had no warning. But everything was fine, and he didn't come to us at all. He and Avi Roeh who's head of Mateh Binyamin (the Benjamin District) plus a bit of staff went into the supermarket for a few minutes and then had a meeting in the pizza/burger place.

Rami Levy in profile, Avi Roeh full-face

I have no idea why or what their discussions were about. I was able to shoot these photos on my phone from just outside the shoe store. Yes, we're all the same complex in Sha'ar Binyamin.

My Return to an Old Haunt

Last week, I went back to the yeshiva high school (Bnei Binyamin) in Beit El, where I had taught English for eleven 11 years. There were good years and bad years, enjoyment and sorrow, success and failure and lots of good friends. Actually, that's how I had gotten the job. I hadn't been trained to be an English Teacher. I hadn't a clue to teach reading, writing, spelling etc.

The only pedagogy I had ever learned was in the Fred Burk "Leadership and Choreography" course I had taken as a representative of NCSY at the Jewish Agency during my first year of college. And one thing for sure is that teaching Israeli Folk Dance and English aren't quite the same, except that you have to make it fun no matter what the talents of the students.

About eighteen 18 years ago, just after the beginning of the school year, I got a call from Toba Frankel, a friend, who was the English coordinator in the yeshiva high school in Beit El. She told me that she and her husband David, who was then principal, had decided that I was the perfect person to teach a couple of remedial classes. It didn't put them off that I had absolutely no experience; we had spent much time waiting around schools on parent-teacher nights discussing education, learning problems and our children's educational needs etc. She promised to train me, and she did.

It ended up being a perfect match. I had a wonderful and successful time teaching the boys who had thought they could never learn English. I even took the David Yellin Teachers College's certification course and became a licensed English Teacher. My only problem was teaching regular classes, so that when there were no longer any remedial classes plus transportation difficulties and reduced enrolment, I found myself out of a job. That's why I now work as a salesperson in Yafiz.

So, nu, why was I back there last week? Again I had gotten a call from Toba. This time she told me that after all these years (decades) David was officially retired (after years of being principal he had become "just" an English Teacher) and there would be a party in his honor.

It was truly wonderful seeing so many old friends together. Some of them I see in Sha'ar Binyamin and are now customers of mine at Yafiz.

The Frankels and I are among the very old generation in Mateh Binyamin, our regional council. Our children were in the first (early) graduating classes when the schools were small and in temporary structures. The Frankels, as teachers and administrators, were truly pioneers in their contributions to local education. With all of the deserving praise they received that night, I don't know if the younger generation truly comprehends their contributions. But maybe that is the sign of success.

I look at the history of education here, and I see the thirty plus years as rapid growth, but for young people, thirty years is a very long time. That younger generation, which has no memory of the pre-June, 1967 Israel sees a normalcy and permanence of the Jewish Life in Judea and Samaria that Israel's Left can't comprehend or accept.

May David and Toba Frankel be truly blessed with long, enjoyable and healthy retirements. And may the younger generation of educators come to them for training, because they will not find anyone more qualified to teach and advise.