Thoughts From My Balcony

By Rabbi Elyse Winick
KOACH Associate Director

I've been privileged this summer to work from the comfort of a mirpeset (balcony) in Jerusalem. Staying awake for two time zones has its challenges, but I wouldn't trade the exhaustion for anything.

It's been a difficult summer for Israel. The prisoner trade for the remains of soldiers Eldad Regev and Ehud Goldwasser has cast a pall of sadness here – for some, because the reality that they are gone is too great to bear, for others because they feel the price paid in the exchange was excessive, and will only lead to more kidnappings and more killing.

There is a weariness over governmental corruption and while the hearings into the financial doings of Prime Minister Ehud Olmert are headline news daily, there is a sense that it is enough already and a need to move on.

The temperature is high, the water level in the Kinneret (Sea of Galilee) is low, there is saber-rattling all around. And yet, there's no where I'd rather be at this moment than watching the sun rise over Jerusalem.

Apparently, I'm not alone. Tourism is at a record high – some 2.8 million tourists are expected this year. The last record, 2.76 million, was set in the year 2000. Of course, I don't need statistics to tell me that . I can gauge it from the amount of time it takes me to get to the counter at the gelato shop on Emek Refaim.

But I'm not playing tourist this summer. My kids are in camp here, I've done some teaching and learning, but mostly, I'm just being. (yes, I'm lucky to have a job to which I can telecommute while all of you are off campus for the summer). The high point of last week was finding a shoemaker to fix my broken sandal. That's not a reflection of tedium. It's a reflection of just how wonderful it is to call this city my own. Every day someone stops me to ask directions – and I can tell them how to reach their destination accurately. This is my fifteenth trip to Israel. On each visit I am more at home.

Of course, David Ben-Gurion would be unimpressed by that statistic. The story is told about a benefactor saying proudly to Ben-Gurion, "This is my 35^th trip to Israel." "Really?" replied Ben-Gurion, "I only came once."

I think we can all make it to Israel at least as many times as Ben-Gurion. Taglit-birthright Israel is one avenue, if you haven't been here yet. Registration for this winter's round of trips will open on September 10 and will likely close very quickly. You can join KOACH for the adventure of a lifetime, taking your first steps on Israeli soil and embarking on a lifelong journey of self-discovery. We'd love to see Israel through your eyes.

Been to Israel before? Have more time on your hands? This spring, the Conservative Yeshiva launches a credit-bearing semester in Israel, in partnership with Hadassah College. Sustainable ecology your interest? Marom's program at Ben-Gurion University in the Negev might be for you. If you've been to Israel before and funds are your only obstacle, try www.masaisrael.org, a funding organization dedicated to getting you back to Israel, and soon.

Come to Israel. Come back to Israel. Find yourself a sandlar (shoemaker) and call this home, even for a short period of time.

This month we'll commemorate the destruction of the Temple on the 9^th of Av, in both 586 BCE and 70 CE. There is a debate as to whether or not this day should be marked by sorrow or celebration – we mourn what we have lost, but we also have a rebuilt city of Jerusalem and a modern state of Israel. No matter which side of the debate you find yourself on, remember that Israel will always be incomplete without you, whether you can come for ten days, ten months, or a lifetime.

[Posted 8/1/08]