Things to smile about

Purim Meshulash is the best kind of "three day yom tov" out there. First of all, it's more like five days of Purim. The only day for schools and ganim to have Purim activities is on Wednesday, the day before Ta'anit Esther. There is no school on Fridays, can't have big events on the fast day, so that leaves us with Wednesday. On Wednesday every single kid in Jerusalem was in costume. There were princesses and Spider-men everywhere. My ulpan is on the same street as two elementary schools. I was so tempted to sneak into the school instead of continuing down the street to class. On the way home I saw a crowd of little kid animals coming out of gan. Ezeh kef! So much fun. To top it all of Jerusalem got incredibly warm over the past few days, reaching temperatures of over 90 degrees. What a treat to see all of Jerusalem outside celebrating together. Purim is a holiday for everyone.

Usually Purim is a hectic and exhausting holiday. This year was so different. On Thursday night and Friday morning we (as in those in Jerusalem) had Megillah reading, and on Friday we had to give matanot l'evyonim. Usually the night of Purim is really stressful. I'm coming off a fast day and all I can think about is preparing mishloach manot for the next day. This year I could take it easy. On Friday I went with my brothers to his in-laws in Neve Daniel for their seudah (which, being outside of Jerusalem, they had on Friday). When I got home I had plenty of time to bake another fifty or so hamantashen. It was day one of wearing my cape. On shabbat I could just take it easy... and enjoy the insane heat. I attended a v'nahafochu upside down meal Friday night during which I was served a brownie "hamburger" with strawberry "tomatoes" and whipped cream "mayo" as my second course (with a second dessert later on). On shabbat the parks were flooded with families enjoying the sunshine. Motzei shabbat I took it easy and packaged my mishloach manot bundles. No rushing out to megillah or refueling on sugar after a fast day. On Sunday I could sleep a little late, and then once again I put on my cape and set off to make deliveries. Couldn't wear my entire costume-- wasn't exactly designed for 90 degree heat. After some special deliveries I dashed to seudah #1 of the day, then to the shuk to buy stuff for my seudah (the place was almost empty!) and then back home to prepare. So many people were out in the street in costume. Our seudah was lots of fun though we learned the important lesson that if you have an end of the day seudah, everyone will come with full stomachs from the other five seudahs they were already at. Oh well. Leftover pasta anyone?

On Friday my sister-in-law's sister-in-law (does that make sense?) commented on the mishloach manot prepared by the Midreshet Moriah girls as a fundraiser for Sderot saying that every year the yeshiva students come up with some issue to invest in, whether it be rebuilding the North or this year supporting the citizens of Sderot. I thought back to my year in Israel, when on the evening following Purim day my roommate burst into my room frantically telling me that the war was starting. The US had bombed Iraq, and I had to report to the Midrasha building to receive my gas mask. I've always thought about the irony of that day-- how we traded in our masks of Purim for a mask of war. That night some girls were quiet and calm, others were hysterically crying, and then there was a small group sitting on the floor in a circle having a kumsitz and using their gas mask boxes as drums.

This month started with a huge blow to the morale of the people here. Eight young men were murdered while learning Torah. No one could fathom how we would be able to celebrate Purim just two weeks later. I'm not so sure all the family members of the eight victims were singing and dancing over the holiday, and despite the many brave souls who ventured down to Sderot to run Purim carnivals and parties I doubt anyone there could completely put aside their fear to celebrate for one day. Five years ago I wasn't sure how we were all going to get through the stress and anxiety about learning how to put on gas masks, inject ourselves with atropine, and seal a room. But then I went into the hall and saw the girls having the kumsitz. Somehow we do it. Even if it's by doing something as small and silly as attaching butterfly wings to our cat.

L'Yehudim hayitah ORA V'SIMCHAH V'SASSON VA'YIKAR...
Kein tihiyeh lanu.

And to my friends and family missing me in the US- I'll see you very soon. In one week I will be back in Newton followed by a trip to Philadelphia, College Park, and Teaneck. I am excited to temporarily leave my home here to visit my home in the US, though I'm having to say that I am finally realizing how special it will be on April 24th when I come back to Jerusalem from the airport and collapse into my own bed in my home here.

"Eich naflu giborim?"

Yohai Livshitz, 18, from Jerusalem;

Yonatan Yitzhak Eldar, 16, from Shilo

Yonadav Haim Hirschfeld, 19, from Kohav Hashahar

Neria Cohen, 15, from Jerusalem

Segev Peniel Avihail, 15, from Neve Daniel

Avraham David Moses, 16, from Efrat

Roee Roth, 18, from Elkana

Doron Meherete, 26, from Ashdod

T'hiyeh zichram baruch.

What it feels like to be Israeli

Nearly two hours ago Alissa called to ask if I had heard that a shooting had happened somewhere. I checked the news- nothing. I heard sirens in the distance, but I live around several main streets. There are always sirens. She called back about twenty minutes later to tell me that there had been a pigua, a terrorist attack on a yeshiva near town. I looked again on jpost.com and still nothing. Two minutes later I checked again and there it was. Three gunmen had entered the Mercaz HaRav yeshiva in Kiryat Moshe and opened fire. Six people have been confirmed dead and many more were wounded.

Since I arrived on aliyah, Sderot has been the hot topic of conversation. We spend hours discussing the danger civilians there face and what we can do to support them emotionally and financially. Jerusalem has been somewhat of a safehaven. The safety precautions that were enforced upon me five years ago are a distant memory. When I was here five years ago there were multiple suicide bombers on buses and shootings in the Gush. A week before I left a former NCSY advisor of mine was injured in a pigua on the 14 bus. I remember walking by the site a few days later and seeing a beat-up piece of cardboard with a pasuk from Eichah etched on it: The enemy has once again entered the gates of Jerusalem.

Tonight is Rosh Chodesh Adar. We are supposed to be "marbim b'simcha" and I feel numb. Mercaz HaRav is two minutes away from where I stayed for each of my past five visits to Israel, but now it feels more like my neighborhood than it ever did before, even if it is an hour walk from where I live now. The victims of this attack will have rushed funerals Erev Shabbat. I don't think any of their families will manage to be "marbim b'simcha" on Rosh Chodesh Adar ever again.

This news still isn't even an hour old. If I heard this in America I think by now I would be back to whatever it was I was doing. Here I have ten minutes more of a TV show episode and I'm not sure if and when I will watch it. I know that Jerusalem will feel like a different place when I go out tomorrow. Everyone will be feeling what happened tonight.

Every Israeli feels it, which now includes me.

The Adventure that is Israel Basketball Games

Last night, thanks to Tal Brody (a former Maccabi Tel Aviv player, and a former oleh chadash) I got to go to a Maccabi Tel Aviv basketball game for free as part of a Nefesh B'Nefesh event. We filled three buses from Jerusalem and joined another hundred or so olim at the arena. Considering the relatively small number of fans at the game, it was impressive filling a couple sections with olim chadashim. I was happy because I had a good excuse to wear a Terps shirt. How could I NOT wear a Terps shirt to a basketball game? Maccabi Player Terence Morris, #9, is a former Terp. A couple of us fellow alums made huge signs for him. My favorite was the "DUKE SUCKS!" one I made. We are pretty unsure he didn't notice at all, but it was fun anyway.The players were escorted to the court by cute little kids in uniforms. During halftime the kids scrimmaged on the court. I wonder how they earned the privilege. It was very cute. This picture was taken as they lined up for the singing of HaTikvah. I guess that's when I realized how cool it was to be at a professional sporting event in Israel. I was surprised they played a poor recording of the song instead of having someone sing it live. I guess they have a ways to go. There was less audience participation in this rendition. And, sigh, nothing beats the famous Maryland "O!!!".

This was truly the most fascinating part of the game. A crowd of teenagers with "Gate 11" t-shirts and sweatshirts who made up the cheering squad. This isn't just any cheering squad. These kids are clearly diehard friends who pour every ounce of energy into these games. I wonder if they ever do their homework. They were armed with flags, banners, and drums. This dorky kid with glasses in front was the ringleader. He held up his hand to single which cheer to do, and he coordinated two part cheers between the two sides of the section. I noticed at the end of the game that he had been holding the hand of that other boy the entire game. Why? I have absolutely no idea. Many theories though... I wonder how he got chosen for this job. Is there a rotation? Election? I think now in addition to my aspiration to have a kid who's the best crossing guard on the block, my kid should lead a pack of sweaty teenagers at Israel basketball games.