We Have A Home In Our Home

A lot has happened in the past few weeks.

We had some excitement on Yom Yerushalaim. We were at Kikar Tzahal watching the "Rikudgalim," the annual flag parade. I actually slipped away to meet up with up with Ayelet's brother Daniel. Ayelet and our friend Barbara were with the kids and her daughter Leah. At some point they went closer to watch the marchers. The kids climbed on a concrete barrier to see better. Odeliya also climbed up. Ayelet turned to grab her and when she turned back the other 2 kids were on the ground. Netanel was crying, with a nasty bump on his head. Lead seemed fine. A few minutes later the roles were reversed. Netanel was playing and singing and Leah was suffering from hand numbness and memory loss. I met them at Terem (a non-hospital emergency clinic). Three hours later we went home. Thank God, Leah is fine, with maybe a mild concussion for all the trouble.

The next day, Friday, Odeliya and I (since she was awake) went to the Kotel to join in my nephew Eli's hanachat tefillin (putting on tefillin for the first time). It was fun and nice to hang out with family. Meanwhile, Ayelet and Netanel sepnt some quality time together, during which Ayelet discovered Netanel's lice. Thank God Odeliya didn't have it, because that would have been veeery difficult. After much washing and combing we were all clean.

Now on to the better stuff: we finalized our lease and moved to a house. the house is located up in Katzrin, the city of the Golan Heights. It is officially a city, but it is smaller than the entire town of Efrat. You can walk the circumference in under an hour. We moved up last Tuesday to a resounding welcome. We were leant mattresses, chairs, a table, and whatever else we needed. We also had two welcome banners on our door and lots of food. For the past week people have been welcoming us and offerring help. It actually feels more like a yishuv than a city. We have also acquired a refrigerator and a whole bunch of furniture.

I need to thank some people here. There are more, but these are the ones that stand now, as I write this: Yael Atal at the Merkaz Klitah in Jerusalem has worked tirelessly for us, getting us whatever right, benefit, or perk she could. This includes a truck to move us at the Jewish Agency's expense. Nefesh B'Nefesh has been tremendously helpful, particularly Michele, the coordinator of the Go North initiative. Also, here in Qatzrin: Avishai, Shifra, Elazar, Becky, etc, etc, etc. Hakarat Hatov to everyone and to God for helping it all go smoothly (may this PLEASE continue).

I will soon be posting a link to the video tour(s) of our house and first week in Katsrin. Please enjoy and comment.

There is still much to do. But now we have a comfortable place to come home to. There is room to play, couches on which to sit, bathtubs, a kitchen big enough for swinging cats (take that however you want). Now we just need our beds from the port.

The kids are very happy to be here. They love the bath, and the room. Also they have figured out how to run outside to the playground all by themselves. I'm not so happy about this one yet, but what can I do. Netanel is sttling down nicely in gan. the kids here are very sweet, and he is making friends. He is trying hard to learn Hebrew (he is also getting better at reading English) and also trying to roll his "r's" in the Israeli style. Odeliya keeps asking to go to gan too. We are working on something for her, but daycare before gan age is really expensive. Ayelet and I are very busy with all the arranging. She is also building her business (http://www.wholebodybith.com) and settling in for giving birth. I am focusing on finding a job now, while moving slowly on other projects. There is much to do. The taks of finding a comfortable home is done, so on to the next item.

With Hashem's help our Aliyah will continue to progress positively. Stay tuned for more updates on our settlement in Qatsrin.

It's Hot In Here

Jerusalem is hot these days. It's too hot and sunny outside to spend too much time. Especially with young children. Also, we don't want to buy lots of sun screen because it is actually prohibitively expensive. And we have tubes and tubes of the stuff in our lift. But it's also hot inside, at least in our room. So we keep the windows open during the day and we manage. We try to go out and do stuff, and we come home and relax (or the kids relax while Ayelet and I try to get some work done). But our apt. doesn't cool down enough at night, like most of the city does. Maybe it's because we need to keep the window closed. Screen are apparently a luxury here, and our windows don't have them. So if the windows are open and the lights on at night every bug will swarm inside and bother us. It's quite icky. Anyway, we are looking forward to a house with screens.

I have decided that the cold I had last week is gone. The only symptoms left are allergy symptoms. I never had bad allergies in the U.S. so maybe the different plants here are affecting me. My case is annoying, but not really bad. I am trying honey. I've heard that local, raw honey is good for allergies becaue the pollen in the honey will give your body a good chance at building an immunity to the allergens. I hope this clear up soon.

In other news, I have officially re-launched my efficiency business. I am looking for businesses and individuals to help get more organized. I can help you stream-line procedures and find ways to be more productive. You can contact me at yoram@efficientandorganized.com or go to my website www.efficientandorganized.com.

Also, I am working on a new business with Barbara, another olah from the merkaz klitah. More details are coming soon, but we are looking to help start-ups start-up. Stay tuned for the big announcement.

Ayelet is doing well. The heat is making the pregnancy tough and it doesn't help that the baby is really active. the kids are having fun. It's tough not having them in gan, but we've developed some routine. We daven every morning and Netane's reading is getting better with practce. Odeliya has accepted the heat by refusing to wear clothes. She spent most of today in a diaper, after removing her clothes by herself. Of course she also went to the closet to pick the cloths she wasn't going to wear.

That's pretty much it for now. Lots going on faster than I can handle. But it's all positive, so it will all go well. With God's help we'll be settled and more comfortable soon.

Until next time,
Yoram

Update II

We're back in the Merkaz Klitah for now while we negotiate our lease. We need to finalize that and sign it. Then we can complete our application for the Nefesh B'Nefesh Go North Initiative (lots of perks) AND finalize taking delivery of our lift.

In the meantime, our drains are all overflowing. Well, just two of them. The shower is annoying, as the bathroom quickly becomes a bathtub. The kitchen is worse. The kitchen sink drain never worked well. We've had maintenance come several times. It only helps of a week or so, and even when they fix it, it's still slow. The one time I tried Drano it seemed to make it worse. Now we're just biding our time until we move.

Knock knock:
Netanel got into knock knock jokes back in the U.S. before we make Aliyah. I think it's cute. It's even cuter that Odeliya is not also trying to tell them. She doesn't quite get the concept. She'll say "knock knock" to which we respond "who's there?" She says someone's name, like "Wana" (this is her new aunt). When we say "Elana who?" she replies "Wanaaaa" in a funny voice, to make it a joke. I guess she'll catch on eventually.

Over the past month we have been meeting people from different places. In Katamon two Shabbatot ago I met someone living in a new Yishuv in Gush Etzion. He tried recruiting me there. We also met people from Keshet and Chispin. They all enticed us come check out their towns. The entire city of Katzrin has been working to facilitate our getting there, fromt he city council on down. I kind of like the feeling of being sought after and recruited.

This past Monday, when we went up to check out Katzrin and meet withthe vaad klitah in Yonatan, we stopped in the makolet Yonatan on our way out. We got a big welcome there. We also saw the organic peanut butter we like. We haven't seen it in Yerushalaim since Pesach. Also missing from Yerushalaim were the cheese flavored Cheeots (Ayelet's vice). We had to drive to the Golan to get these basic foods.

Here is another benefit to living in the Golan. Besides the sheer beauty and general attitude. The Golan had Mei Eden on tap. The water that people pay 6 shekel a bootle for comes out of the tap and is used for showering. It tastes really good too.

I know I'm going out of order here, but a lot has been going on and I can't think that hard. This past Shabbat I was walking with the kids from the Pinat Chai (a little zoo the city operates for the kids) to our friends for seuda shlishit. On the way Netanel walked too close to the growth next tot he road and brushed one of those plants with flowers that have big prickles. He got hurt and his immediate comment was, "Hashem shouldn't have made them." I explained that Hashem made that plant for a purpose, but I thought is was a very clever way of thinking.

Lastly, after our Monday trip to the Golan for our meeting witht e vaad klitah I got a really bad cold. I spent Wedneday in bed. Now, a week later I am still fighting the congestion and runny nose, with some of the other lingering affects. I don't usually get sick. I wonder what my block is. What am I afraid of in this whole process? Why is my sub-conscious letting me get sick when I need to be clear and focused and active? There is lots on my mind and much to sort out, but being sick doesn't help. I am so excited for the move for so many reasons. How can I get rid of these fears?

Thanks for letting me share and vent. Soon we'll have pictures of the Golan and our house to share as well.

Sending out good wishes and good vibes,
Yoram

Update

Hi. My computer is back online and I am trying to form my thoughts into paragraphs. There is a lot going on. This will be a short update with a few things that have been on my mind.

First of all, I've been wondering who reads this. So please drop a comment from time to time to let me know you're interested.

Second, we were accepted to Yonatan. We had a meeting with the vaad klitah and they like us (what's not to like). We fell in love with Yonatan on our first trip, but we are not moving to the one availalbe rental there for 2 reasons: 1. It is not so comfortable for our growing family; 2. we want to check out other Golan communities as well. We haven't seen anywhere else. To that end we have found a house in Katzrin, the city of the Golan and we are in lease negotiations. When I say city, you need to understand that it is smaller than Efrat. You can wal around it in under an hour. It has a mix of Jews from different places with different religious standards. We spent Shabbat there. There is a vibrant religious community with many young families. Netanel had a great time in shul and in the gan. Our plan is to move there and be comfortable and settled while we join the Golan community.

I am also networking for my business as an efficiency specialist. I can do this virtually over the phone, so please send me referrals.

More on the past week is coming soon, hopefully tonight. Until then, send us support and good wishes. We'll have you over in our house when we're settled.

Happy Lag Ba'Omer,
Yoram

Click, I Can Read

A

Yesterday Ayelet took the kids out so I could get some work done. First they went to play with the kittens. One of the cats here at the absorption center had kittens about 2 weeks ago. Since then playing with them has been a major activity and great motivator/bribe to get the kids to do things. Here are some pictures of the cute little furballs and the kittens, err, and the kids.


After that they came back inside. Ayelet and Netanel played a computer game, one of the more educational ones. Something clicked in Netanel's head and now he is reading. We went out to merkaz ha'ir after that and he read all the Englosh words on the bus. It was amazing. Now we need to start encrypting our secret notes.

We went up North today, just Ayelet and I (thank you Barbara for watching the kids). We checked out Katzrin to see if we should move there before moving into a yishuv. We know we want a yishuv, but it's a long process. After finding a yishuv you like you need to go through the klitah (absorption) process which includes getting accepted. Most yishuvim are low on rental properties, so we would be living somewhere else while we built our home. So we decided to move to the Golan now, since this is where we want to be.

Katzrin was appealing. Our guide, Avishai, is going to gather information on more rentals to show us. There are nice houses for rent for very cheap. We are also going to check out Chispin, which hosts the schools for the Golan yishuvim.

While I'm at it I would like to give a shout-out to Michele Kaplan-Greene at Nefesh B'Nefesh. She is extremely busy, but she has been amazingly helpful to us in our quest to settle up north. Kol hakavod to her.

Now it's time for some sleep, but keep checking for more posts, and hopefully some video.

Have You Seen My Lizard?

We got home around 10:30 from our Yom Ha'Atzmaut activities (post coming soon). I was in the kitchen making tea when I heard a light "thwack." I looked at the counter and saw a small lizard like creature. Maybe it was a chameleon or something. It wasn't a velociraptor. I think he was more scared of me becasue he kept hiding behind things on the counter. Eventually I trapped him in a container. This was easy because I simply asked him to get in. As he worked his way to the sink I put the container in the sink and let him fall in. I covered the container and took him outside. The walk was uneventful and I let him go with a stern warning. this doesn't happen so much in suburban NY/NJ.

Chag Sameach! Happy Birthday Israel

Today was great. Our first Yom Ha'Atzmaut as Israelis was fun. On Tuesday night we went to friends in Armon HaNetziv (East Talpiot). We decided to stay close to home. I went to the shul for maariv. There is a special tefilla for Yom Ha'Atzmaut and I haven't been to one of these services in years. It was cool.

I also met Ayelet's grandfather's brother, Uncle Simon. He was excited to meet me. We schmoozed for a while and will try to get the whole family to meet him.

Then I went back to the party we made. After the bbq we went down to the Mat"nas (community center) to join in those festivities. The kids got light-up thingies and we walked to a good vantage point to see the fireworks. We learned that the 10:45 show was coming off of that building. So we got good seats and waited. Finally, a little after 11 they started. We got a few minutes of fireworks and that was it (video coming soon). Netanel fell asleep right before they started, but he woke up for part of it. Odeliya was quite impressed by the show. We got home and plopped the kids into bed. Then we spent an hour online before falling asleep.

Today we went to Herzliya with the Berkey family. they Berkeys are long time friends of Ayelet's. There was a nice group of people, most of whom I had never met. We went to the beach for a while and then back to the boat for the rest of the party and bbq. There was good food and good people. What else do you need? As per the Berkey's custom the party was at their boat. Since it is currently in drydock for repairs we ate on the ground, but the kids went onboard to watch a movie. We were promised that next year things would be back to normal.

We paid for the good times with travel time. The trip to Herzliya was uneventful, but involved a bus and 2 hasaot (shared taxis). We also met someone that lives in the Golan who is happy to help us in our search for a moshav. The trip home was crazier. We got a ride tothe train station. We had to wait about an hour for the train to Tel Aviv for a 10 minute trip. The next train to Jerusalem was about an hour and half later. We had fun on the platform, and made some friends, but we were all done with travelling. I got the kids to fall asleep on the train to Yerushalaim. It was not hard. After this long day they were exhausted. Upon arrival at the Malcha train station we had to wait and jockey for a cab home. Basically, we realized that we need a car. But the travelling was worth it for a great time.

Something occured to me last night during the special tefillah:
In the tefillah for Yom HaAtzmaut we read the psukim from B'ha'alotcha about the trumpets for war and the shofar for praise. Blow it over your todot and zevacim. It is known that a korban todah is meant for pirsum. You have to invite others to your meal to help you finish it before the deadline. This is a modern day bbq. Friends, family, and meat. As such, mongal is the original Jewish food: roasted meat shared with others. And it is fitting that this is the national pastime on Yom Ha'Atzmaut. When we celebrate Israel's birthday we also must thank God for the miracles surrounding the creation and continued existence of this state. As we eat meat and celebrate we should blow or remember the shofar and give credit to the true Source. It wasn't Herzl or Ben-Gurion that gave us a state. Rabin, Peres, Sharon, Yoni Netanyahu, etc. all helped. But God made it happen. Thank God for giving us back our homeland, such as it is. To paraphrase Rabbi Jonathan Schwartz of Hillside, NJ, Israel is not perfect, but it's ours. It's ours to fix." Which is why we moved here. We want to be part of the process. The future of Am Yisrael is here, and we're getting in on the ground floor.

For those of you that think that Israel is too messed up to be worth keeping I am reposting something I wrote via email a few years ago. This was written right after the girush, the explusion of Jews from Gaza. Here it is:

It seems that a lot of the dati leumi community are disheartened and are not sure if we should still be celebraying Yom HaAtzmaut. I'd just like to put it into a Biblical perspective:

After Yetziat Mitzraim Bnei Yisrael spent 40 years in the midbar. The generation that entered the land had spent all, or most, of their lives living under God's direct care. And still they sinned.

After conquering the land, Bnei Yisrael became a loose confederation of tribes, but they were centered around the Mishkan. They had the benefit of a navi and kohen gadol to lead them. And yet, Tekufat Shoftim was not a high point for the nation. Nationalistically, we were constantly reconquering our land. When we weren't fighting a civil war.

Finally, after 40 years in the midbar and 400+ years in the land, the Yishuv HaAretz seemed to sprout into a geula. We were a united people as one nation with a strong, religious (dati leumi?) king. We had neviim, kohanim, and leviim. We also had the Beit HaMikdash, where even the other nations came to pray.

But still, after seeing God's revelation, seeing the miracles of conquering the land, overcoming the lull during Tekifat Shoftim, the high point of unity and observance seemed to last only 40+ years.

My point is that if they had trouble building the perfect Jewish society based on Am Yisrael, Torat Yisrael, and Eretz Yisrael after 400+ years of trying, who are we to get disheartened after only 61. We lack the guidance of a Navi or Kohen Gadol. We do not have a clearly annointed king approved by God and country. So really, things could be worse. At least we're not mailing prostitute parts to the Galil to prove a point.

Of course, we need to keep trying. The State is not perfect. But it's ours to improve. We should celebrate the miracles involved in getting it, and be grateful it is still ours.

Hoping for the speedy coming of Mashiach and a time when we can all celebrate together,
Yoram