Again, the Jacaranda trees on our street are filled with beautiful purple blossoms. The air is crisp, warm and clear. We’ve just returned from our morning daily (well, we try to do it daily…) walk of the 5 km that circle our small town. The streets of Kfar Shmaryahu, like all streets of the country, are decorated with flags – streamers of flags across the roads and individual flags on houses and balconies – blue and white waving in the air with a background of greenery all around us. Yom Ha’Atzmaut is coming in two days, and the country is preparing to celebrate.
We’ve been trying to get away for a while, and finally we went on a wonderful three-day trip to the Galil (again). This time, we wanted to see more of the new settlements, roads and high tech industries, in amazing industrial parks. Of course we also stopped by to visit the Arab and Druze Villages, and enjoyed their hospitality, especially the wonderful hummus, labane and olives, which we ate in places like Pekiyin, a 2,000 year old Arab / Druze / Jewish village, by the side of one of the most famous springs in Israel.
Besides the ancient villages we visited, we saw dozens of new ones in the Upper and Lower Galil, each one with its own character: the agricultural ones producing wonderful cheeses, olive oil, organic vegetables, and other ones which are using knowledge for research and development. We visited one entire village which is completely vegetarian and another which was created as a “life-style” community for the high tech engineers and workers at a nearby high tech industrial park. We spent the nights on top of Mount Can’an, near Zefat, with a fantastic view of the Golan Heights and the Kineret.
Only last week the country commemorated the Shoah. Tomorrow evening will start the Memorial Day for the soldiers who gave their lives throughout the wars here in Israel, and the following night we’ll celebrate Israel Independence Day. Many of us still question the proximity of both days and the instant joyful celebrations right after the end of a most sorrowful day that personally affects each one of us. We know that there would not be one without the other – we would not have had this State without the losses of tens of thousands of lives. While rejoicing, we remember. While remembering, we know that the future will bring rejoicing.
We spend a lot of time with the family. My mother is doing well; sharp as always, she reads a lot, takes morning walks and meets her friends in the garden downstairs. The weather is beautiful, and she enjoys the outdoors. Once a week she goes to listen to lectures at the community center. Last week they were watching slides and discussing painters of the Holocaust. Her health is stable, but she is getting weaker. Three weeks ago we celebrated my mother’s 89th birthday.
We enjoy spending as much time as possible with Dylan. He’s 5 months old today. Dylan is a happy, smiling, pleasant and enjoyable baby. He’s developing beautifully, communicates, reacts and loves company. Doron and Einav are working, and Dylan stays with Einav’s mother or with us during the day.
Gaelle has been making great progress with her Hebrew – the Ulpan will be over in two weeks, and she has started looking for a job. Daniel is happy with his job; he works very long hours (as they all do here.)
We upgraded our internet connection so that it is super high speed; Community Radiology transmits the MRIs, PETs, and CTs during our night, and Steve reads them in the morning. It works out perfectly, as the reports are ready to be typed in Bluefield first thing the next day. Teleradiology is a wonderful thing!
In the evenings we meet friends, sometimes go to restaurants or to performances. Although we’ve seen one short Israeli play (in Hebrew), our cultural life is restricted to “unspoken” performances… We’ve seen Fidelio at the Israeli Opera, went to a concert of the extraordinary young Chinese pianist Lang Lang in an unforgettable performance, and also listened to a concert performed by the finalists of the Arthur Rubinstein piano competition. We spent a day at Yad VaShem, visiting the new museum there, and we have been working in the garden, planting new trees and shrubs (an Avocado tree, a Fejoyah tree etc.)
The weather is great, food is too good; we are enjoying delightful moments of a routine life with family and friends. It certainly is going to be very hard to leave – Steve is going back to Bluefield Friday night, and I’ll be going back two weeks later.
Please keep in touch. All our love,
Adina and Steve
