Flam News

 Blog 1 Why Would ANYONE move to Israel? Especially now. 

 

FD and I are at Gate B14 to board a flight to Fort Lauderdale. 

No, it is not a vacation. This is the first stop. We are moving—intending to spend the rest of our lives in Israel. (I’m sorry, you know who you are, that I never had the chance to visit your farm). 

 

See, we're finally going. Not a vacation, not a Sabbatical. Not to visit the kids. 

We love America, the old America, the tolerant America. Not that we are leaving because the old America, the melting pot of America, has changed. Not because of antisemitism. Oddly enough, antisemitism had nothing to do with this decision, despite what everyone is  saying, that the American Age of Enlightenment, a time of freedom, like none other, like none other for Jews especially, a time of American cohesion and sisterly/brotherly love, is over. Hate is the atmosphere here, violence, whereas anyone who remembers the Beatles knows that it is not the answer. Guess what is. 

And there is a time for every season under heaven (the Byrds, yes). And that time, the time for war, is apparently now. 

 

But again. Be it for love of one another or to protect that which the Torah tells us is ours, this is not the reason FD and I are going to be on flying El Al, almost the only airline flying to Israel, the only armed airline, tonight. 

 

Yes, we know that Iran vows retaliation for the assassination of a beloved leader, read murderer, a plotter and a planner of the destruction of the State of Israel and the annihilation of all Jews. All of us. Everywhere.  

 

There is a generation of young people who had not been born on September 11, 2001.  You had to be there. (Thank you FD for reminding me of that. It explains some of the support for the Palestinian people here in America).

 

The culmination of this war is obviously in G-d’s hands, not President Biden's, although we appreciate his support, not in Bini's. And G-d seems to have empowered the Jewish people with intellect and talent and most important, a Torah that is true, and a Talmud, a compilation of books that include prophecies indicating that we will be, in the end, victorious. There will be blood, unfortunately, there will be pain and suffering and violations (read the book of Zachariah) but in the end the Jews will prevail. 

 

We believe this. That we belong there not here. This has been a lifelong dream beginning well before a massacre on October 7 that took thousands of Jewish lives and hundreds of hostages, many of whom are unfortunately gone, martyrs. The dream is inextinguishable in the Jewish soul, it is thousands of years old, precedes all pogroms and massacres. It precedes children and women and men young and old, brave soldiers and soon-to-be soldiers. Such cowards, these hoodlums honestly. Gangsters. Stealing babies. Mutilating babies, women, men. Humans.

 

There are a few psalms, Tehillim, we say daily, psalms that literally mention Hamas by name. Take a look at Psalm 140. I’m not telling Jews anything they don’t know. 

Hamas is a word that means violence.

They named themselves VIOLENCE. 

Wow.

 

Enough politics, let's talk about me. 

The response from the community to our move? Only heartfelt well wishes, so many of them, so much love, such an incredible atmosphere of hope and even, shall I say, jealousy because in the Jewish community Aliyah, becoming an Israeli citizen, is the goal. It is NOT a better you than me These are sincere people, people who truly wish that they could do this, too, that they could muster the finances (because not moving tends to be about money, the cost of living in Israel is astronomical); not moving is also about family obligation, because my demographic is a sandwich generation. How does one leave elderly parents, many with serious health problems, or children? HOW DO YOU LEAVE PRECIOUS GRANDCHILDREN? Most do not. 

 

But living in Israel is the ultimate commandment, the most important mitzvah. 

Many, maybe a third of the commandments of the Torah are about what one must do when living in the Holy Land. The land of Israel, let's just say it, not Palestine. Palestine is for Palestinians. Israel is for Yisraelim. Jews. 

 

Rabbi Cohen said it in one of many beautiful vorts (a fort is not always so short speech to the congregation). He said that many years ago, in line at Ikea, everyone looked up at a TV at the aftermath of an explosion, a bomb set off in Jerusalem, a pe-gu-ah, a terrorist attack in Jerusalem, perhaps on a bus or a packed downtown restaurant —Orthodox Jewish people searching for remains, bones and skin, heads, legs and arms, pieces of human beings, innocent civilians, blown to bits by a bomb.

 

What did Rabbi Cohen hear from the shoppers nearby? WHY WOULD ANYONE EVER WANT TO LIVE THERE?    

 

Well, because this is the land of milk and honey. This is the land that Heaven sent and this lovely land is mine. 

It is in our blood, it is in our spirit, we long, literally long for Jerusalem, you can’t buy this feeling, it is in our collective DNA or memory, ask a Jungian.

 

We become citizens of Israel soon after we land on Israeli soil, when an agency, perhaps the Israeli consulate, presents us with ID cards, assuming the office is still staffed. There’s this war going on, you know. 

FD's mother, 99, is coming with us. She is already an Israeli citizen but had to come back to the States for a few years, a terrible loss, my sister-in-law. How does one lose a child?  But now my mother-in-law is ready to come home, and so are we.

 

There isn't a person in the community I haven't hugged goodbye. If I missed you I’m sorry. I've been crying for three weeks, sadness, joy, a compote of emotions. This is crazy-making, and as you all know that's a DSM diagnosis.

 

I’ll post pictures next time.

 

As we say (as you chutzniks, ha ha) say, having not yet subscribed to this modifier of craziness quite yet. Next Year in Jerusalem. Come see me.

 

Blessings, 

therapydoc

 

Have a listen.

Click here.

Happy Purim Everyone

(Mag, send me more pics)

Well, it's been awhile since we've used the old Flam News. But why not?

Sim got his salami and my clothes have smelled better (kidding) but we did arrive safely to Ben Gurion at 3:30 a.m. on Tuesday.

Both of us forgot "the third bag." I clearly had a vision of it in my head on the luggage cart. Amazing how sleep deprivation will do that. We had spent two nights in a row on airplanes. Sunday night we took off, woke up in Zurich, spent Monday there, then were back on the plane to Tel Aviv Monday night 10:45 pm.

The Swiss are very prompt. There are clocks everywhere. It made me crazy. Seriously.

We got the third bag the next day. Spent quality time with Leesa and Michael.

Here are a couple of pics. ALL the Gorens, minus Ellie, are coming to Yerush for Shabbas. We're hosting! The mousse cake weighs more than Sim.

See our fridge.

I'll try to get pics up of the concert. But check out this one, notice the spelling.



You do know, right, that Mark (Aba) is on tour. And Meira Merlis, Rachelle's sister, is playing comedy clubs in Yerushalayim. More on all that later.


Good Shabbas and love to all,

Mom

It was billed as:

Buba and Grampa’s

(Sid and
Sarah’s)

60th Wedding Anniversary Poetry Contest

And the poems WERE good, and the food was great (Shallots). We all sat around a grand square table so we could see one another. Guests included:
Buba & Grampa
Aunt Tammy & Uncle David
Aaron, Jake, Brian, and Abby
Dovid & Chammie,
Safta & Aunt Leesa,
Mom & Aba (no pic because I hated the only one there was on my camera) He looked good, tho.

Grampa toasted first, then Buba followed, then Uncle David gave us some family history and quizzed us about the prices of homes in 1947, the year that the 'rents got married. 1947 also, little known fact, was the year that Uncle Barry was born, although Dave left that part out, didn't know it at the time.

And I think I learned that one of the parakeets we had when I was a kid was named. . .Beno. The other was Cecil.

We ate and sang to to tunes of Say a Little Prayer . ..Forever, forever, you'll stay in our hearts and we love you, . . .Lots of underwear jokes, coming to the door in underwear, that sort of thing.

Aba's rendition of "Wouldn't It Be Loverly" from My Fair Lady was hysterical.

Aaron offered up

Roses are red, violets are blue,

I love my grandparents and you should, too

Dovid's limericks will be posted another time, as will the rest of the words to the rest of the stuff. Sim AND Beno both sent poems and they were great, well appreciated.

Brian promises to post on Schayerness! so someone please remind him to keep it clean. Oh wait, it's Bri. No problem.

And that's all the news. Wish you were there. Did I mention the food?

Here are some pics from our OVER-A-WEEK-TOGETHER.

It was great. Thanks yac/RAC and special thanks to Hannah Honey, you get it or you don't.

Here's the video.

It rocked. You have to read Dovid's blog to read more on how much it rocked. Or mine. But here are some pix: