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There just ended--in case you live under a rock, or are not a blogger (same difference)--a contest to choose several bloggers to go to Israel and participate in person at the Jewish Bloggers Convention sponsored by Nefesh b'Nefesh to be held in Jerusalem on Sept. 13th . The winner would fly free (NY to Tel-Aviv, that is) and would be assigned to an oleh family (a family making aliyah, moving to Israel) and would blog about their experience.
I was shocked and thrilled (well, not so shocked; I was actually thinking of her and hoping she'd do it. . . ) when Ye'he Sh'mey Raba Mevorach of the Every Day and its Challenges blog asked me if I wanted to be nominated (are you kidding?!).
To make a long story longer, she did-and this is what happened:
1) I was thrilled,
2)I told my kids there was a smidgen of a chance I would be there next week (but don't bet on it),
3) I sent them all Ye'he's beautiful nominating post (click on link above), and (drum roll)
4) I didn't win.
Slight let down. Ok, major let down, slight depression. Also relief: where would I get the cold hard cash to fly from D----- to New York, eh? To buy bus fare to and from the convention in Yerushalayim? To eat at Rimon on Ben Yehudah or Atara in Rehavia?
Well, maybe not the latter two; my Yerushalmi son said to me, (paraphrased) "eema, you will not eat in restaurants, you hear?! It's not as if you've never been to Jerusalem and never eaten out, is it? You can live with a trip not eating in restaurants. You'll stay with us and we'll feed you yummy 7-course dinners" (well, I don't remember if he actually said that last part, but. . . )
But is this story over? Not on your life. The whole episode gave me koach to continue to write about our fantastic little country, for even with all its growing pains, existential questions, adjustments and angst--think about it: created just in 1948, which makes it only a teenager in the great scheme of countries and nations--look at what it has achieved. And it gave me impetus to write about what it means to be a Jew in this topsy-turvy world, and to personally strive to get us (my kids' parents!) back to Israel.
In the meantime, I thank Ye'he Sh'may Raba Mevorach from the bottom of my heart for her thoughts and blessings, and I wish the winning bloggers/blogs: BadforShidduchim, David Kelsey of Jewcy, Orit Arfa of Jewish Journal, and Adam dichter of Jewish Week much hatzlacha!
Israel is, as they say, reisheet tzmichat ge'ulataynu, the "first flowering of our redemption." Without a safe and flourishing Jewish State of Israel, there is no future for the Jewish people in the diaspora, nor I might add--for the world at large.
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