My Aliyah Journal

While we were cleared to leave the mamad 10 minutes after the siren ended, we continued to sit there long after, trying to process what had just occurred.

While I generally had a lot of fun on these interviews, I still am embarrassed when I recall our first in-Hebrew television interview.

Indeed, I could not believe how grown up she looked at her party. Sitting on her birthday throne, crowned in a wreath of flowers, bedecked in her best party dress, she looked like such a little lady!

With Sukkot evenings as delightful as this, I no longer understand the age-old dvar Torah about why Sukkot is celebrated in the autumn instead of the spring.

Think that despite it all, things are going fine? Perhaps you “chai b’seret,” live in a movie – i.e. not in reality. (Someone who is a drama queen is referred to oddly as “l’echol sratim,” someone who “eats movies.”)

Before calling the municipality to arrange a special pickup of furniture or large appliances, residents often post pictures of these items on Facebook or WhatsApp groups with the simple message of "limisira b'ahava" (for donation with love).

As I approached the school along with tens of other children and parents, the excitement was palpable. The principal stood at the gate of the school, greeting each child with an elbow bump and a smile.

I know I will probably be processing this experience for a while to come, but one lesson that is already apparent to me is that Israelis are amazingly tough and resilient people.

Making aliyah is never easy, let alone in the age of coronavirus.

He advised us, though, that we didn’t need to be a “fryer” (a naive oleh) and accept the terms since everything in Israel is subject to negotiation.

While olim are offered a steep discount on taxes associated with purchasing a new car, it comes with many complicated strings attached.

In true “Big Brother” fashion, the Shin Bet finds contact points between Covid-19 patients and others using cell phone tracking systems generally employed for counterterrorism operations.

In the late 19th century, when the first aliyah arrived in Palestine, the land was a barren desert. Through hard work, sacrifice, and belief (not to mention a whole lot of hashgacha pratis), the land was transformed into the lush beautiful country we all enjoy today.

Every gift came with a personalized note, letting the recipient know that her Secret Maccabee was thinking of her.

Throughout the city there are various historical and archeological sites connected to the Maccabee time period, and my husband and son were lucky enough to participate in a shul trip for the local kids to one of these sites.

We find daily excuses to run in to pick up just a loaf of bread, and leave with our hands laden with hot bourekas, pita, and lachmaniyot (rolls).

As my kids and I have taken daily walks for a month now, it is not an exaggeration to say that we literally know every crack in the sidewalk within our allowed kilometer.

Neighbors congregated in the building hallway to commiserate. Apparently, like cats on patios, power outages are a common part of life here in Israel – especially in the summer.

I wish I could say it has been smooth sailing since then, but the banking system here is more complicated than I can do justice to here.

While sometimes the letters spell out the party name or represent the party leader’s name or platform, there isn’t always a clear connection between the two.

While I certainly don’t love giving my Adi too much screen time, I must admit that I found myself easily caving whenever he begged me to allow him to “review” the videos just one more time.

Her eyes, however, were wide open, taking it all in. She was fascinated by the surrounding babies after our long indoor confinement.

In an apparent effort to ensure both employee and public safety, only a limited number of people were being allowed into the building at a time.

Why did I stuff my life into 15 duffle bags and fly with my husband and kids amidst an international pandemic to live halfway across the world?

As we’ve learned time and time again through this aliyah process, ultimately everything is in Hashem’s hands.

The items wouldn’t be replaced or refunded. I was informed that they had been delivered by their use-by date and that I could have frozen them.

Interviews in Israel are run more casually, and an interviewer may ask some pretty personal questions.

Despite the chaos, it's clear that the government is committed to trying to keep us safe while allowing life to continue as much as possible.

I spent the rest of the day wondering how he was doing. When I arrived for pickup, I was relieved to see his smiling face.

While the chag was still nice, it just wasn’t the Adar excitement we had expected. Reflecting on this over Shabbat, my husband and I decided we still had time to make this holiday special.