Tu B'shvat

Okay, slow and steady wins the race...........I am getting there , almost caught up! I'll be caught up just in time for the Pesach onslaught!
So, what are all your memories of Tu B'shvat in chutz l'aretz? Mine consisted of JNF tree planting........not the actual planting of course, the collecting or giving of funds into that envelope with the trees on it, and the bag of gross out of season fruit and the unforgettable boxer, with which we never knew quite what to do! This Tu B'shvat was a new and special experience for all of us. I think I have written before how after spending more and more time here we find ourselves more connected with the land that we had before. When people talk about their gardens or trees or the fruit that comes off of them it is with zest and a love that we never quite understood. So you can well imagine that Tu'Bshvat is a holiday with great meaning and significance here.


On Erev Tu B'shvat we were invited to the house of Ilana and Adiel. You may remember them from Sukkot..Ilana is a teacher at the ulpan and they are a very lovely and special family we feel priviledged to have connected with. We arrived at the Luvitch's home to a table decked out with fruits fresh and dried and vegetation from their garden as centrepieces. Everything was very casual of course in the most lovely way. The kids hung and played and Ilana practised some songs on her guitar. Darrell was to arrive late as he was making his way home from Tel Aviv. The Frankls arrived and the seder began............there is another seder besides the big "SEDER" that goes with pesach. He explained the order and asked questions, gave answers and made alot of brachot! There was wine and fruit cakes and it was amazing. Darrell did arrive in the middle. Ilana pulled out her guitar and we all sang songs about the land and the trees and tu b'shvat. Then they had a Chidon Eitzim (a tree quiz)....they pulled branches out of the vase and asked to which tree it belonged..........you could touch and smell the branches , it was fun. There was a prize for the winner and prizes for the non-winners too. There was a colouring contest for the girls too! It was so nice and meaningful, I never really had related to this chag before.



The next day, in ulpan we again sang songs and had special treats. Everyone all around was so into this chag. On the way over to ulpan in Alon Shvut you could see the beginnings of blossoms, specifically on the almond trees..........the shkadia does porachat and right on time for its special chag!!! Who knew? We had a lady from the nature society give us a presentation/lecture about the different vegetation in Eretz yisrael.......it was very fascinating. Such a small country and so much variety. Ilana told her class a story which Stella retold to me and I found quite moving. She compared the trees and plants to us the new olim. She said we have been transplanted to a new soil, one that is special and the most appropriate soil for our type of tree. It has everything that we need to grow, be healthy and blossom. But when you transplant a tree, it sometimes looks good and then the leaves begin to wilt as the tree readjusts itself to the new soil. Sometimes it takes a short time and sometimes longer but eventually the leaves perk up and begin to regain its colour and then some, the flowers bloom and the tree , now in the best soil for it, grows and takes root and the roots become stronger and deeper with time. When I heard this story I felt as though I could burst out crying at any given moment. Because that is exactly what I felt, a little tired and wilted with this whole adjustment thing, but knowing that this is where it is best for us. Ilana's wish for us was that the transplanting process would go quickly and that we would grow and flourish in the holy land of Israel. What an absolutely beautiful wish!



The kids got of school early of course and made their way home with all their seedling and plants etc. Yonatan dropped his stuff and ran out yelling back at me that everyone was going out the the ma'achaz (outpost) to plant. And off he went. I went to the top of the hill to see what was going on and you could see kids of all ages walking and running out past the water tower to the ma'achaz to plant. B'nei Akiva had peulot of course. It was a beautiful day out to boot, you know a gorgeous spring day, light jacket only......The Sherman Family had a great Tu B'shvat!!!!!!!!!

Shayna and Lazer Visit Neve Daniel

Well once everyone left in December we began getting back into routines...........routines are good especially after a couple of weeks without them. Our next countdown was to Shayna and Lazer's visit. I thought it was just Darrell and I who were so excited but one day Yonatan woke up and commented on how many days left until the Friedmans arrive, it was very cute he said something like" man I wish I could just close my eyes and wake up the day they are coming"!

Although they arrived in Israel on a Sunday for their hockey tournament in Metulla we didn't get to see them until Friday when they made their way to our house. Darrell did get to see them with young lad Ari in the streets of Tel Aviv but unfortunately the rest of us missed Ari! Next time Ari, you won't get off so easy.
Friday afternoon Darrell picked them up in Jerusalem, he took them straight to our new house to show them around before shabbat and then they were at our driveway. We ran out to greet them, it was sooooooooooo great! The kids were cute, so excited and not sure what to do.........in the end there were hugs and smiles and we were all so happy to have them. We settled them in and lit shabbat candles............i had thought many times about having them here and now they were here. They were also our first shabbat guests since we had really settled in.......officially Roberta and kids were the first but we all spend shabbat with boxes all around. This was real, we were unpacked and unlike in August we were now really a part of this new community that we wanted to show and share to the Friedmans.

Now I have never really had a chance to describe Shabbat on our yishuv..........suffice it to say it is very special and we all REALLY look forward to it. It is hard to put my finger on exactly what it is but even Sara counts down to shabbat. On Thursday when she asks yet again how long until shabbat and I say its tomorrow, she jumps up and down and tells me how she loves shabbat and is so happy! One of my personal favourite parts of shabbat and my week for that matter is Kabbalat Shabbat. In Toronto, after I lit candles I would plunk down on the couch, read with Sara or most often doze off until everyone came home. Here I set out with the whole gang down the street to a little shul in someone's basement. And there I experience bringing in Shabbat in a way I never had experienced. It is a small little place packed with men and women and the singing is extraordinarily beautiful!! I don't think there has been a week where at one point in the davening I feel tears brimming in my eyes. THe tunes are spectacular, but what is more amazing to me is hearing everyone's voices together, and in harmony. You hear in the tones and depth of emotion of the singing that people here understand what they are saying and that makes it that much more beautiful.

So we lit candles , hugged and wished each other shabbat shalom and set off to shul. It is a short walk but there is a beautiful view overlooking the hills of Judea and Efrat, the air is crisp, everything is quiet except sometimes the prayers of our cousins over the hills can be heard. I take deep breaths and my shoulders drop and I always begin my shabbat with a little silent prayer to hashem , thanking him for bringing us to this day in this place. We arrived in shul and took our places and soon the singing began with yedid nefesh and went on and on. After Lecha Dodi, the men dance and sing on for a while, i hadn't dared to look at Shayna before this moment........so I leaned over and said.......isn't it an amazing davening......yup..........can you believe I get to do this every week......"I can't really talk too much right now, I don't think I can talk right now, I'm holding myself together but it may not last" was Shayna's reply and I knew exactly what she meant. We finished Davening and headed outside to make our way home, people came over to meet our guests and it was a nice feeling for our old friends to meet our new ones and to have some kind of connection between the two worlds. We had a lovely shabbat dinner, the kids enjoyed the attention and didn't want to leave. After they went to bed ,we stayed up to the wee hours of the morning schmoozing ....just the four of us. It was great to be with our dear old friends.........not that our friends are old just our friendship!

Next, morning we attended the Bet Knesset mercazi , the main shul. Shayna and I sat upstairs in the balcony...........just like we use to. The davening was nice, our rav spoke and Shayna was so pleased she understood most of it. Can you believe it ,I asked , in a little over a years time we will be celebrating Yonatan's barmtizvah here. During tefilla, someone in the mens section fainted, and there was a call out loud for a "rofeh", I realized right away what had happened. The man was fine and was taken care of quickly. As it turns out Lazer had a little fright , thinking that something was going on other than a sick congregant! Baruch hashem he was mistaken. After shul, we walked to a second shul on the other side of neve Daniel , our friends were throwing a kiddush in honour of their daughter's batmitzvah. We didn't make it for the kiddush but we got to see some of our friends and connect our two worlds again. I think it was also nice for Shayna and Lazer to get a sense of where we are now and that it is a good place.

We made our way home, and had a wonderful lunch with our friends the Ports..Jeffrey and Ariella and their five wonderful kids....three of whom are best buddies with Yonatan, Avital and David. It was fun and lively and I felt very content. The Frankles stopped by for dessert also...........so then it was REALLY lively!! Darrell and Lazer went to shiur together and Shayna and I schmoozed. MAariv on the street below us and shabbat was coming to an end. It had really been a very special shabbat.


After shabbat Darrell got ready and set off to the airport for his first trip to Chutz. He said it was the first time he did not feel so bad leaving because he was returning in just over a week. Then Shayna , Lazer and I ......a new threesome........set off to Alon Shvut to see the Simon and Garfunkel Tribute concert. It was amazing, it was a pretty anglo crowd from all over the Gush, and the music was fabulous. The emcee was Yonatan and David's principal...........the charity was jobkatif an organization which helps evacuees retrain and find employment. At one point I leaned over to Lazer and said ...."you see, even crazy,evil settlers like to kick back and enjoy the little things in life" .......we also realized that an event like this could never happen in Toronto. We saw the Seidenfelds and the Kleins there and Shayna and Lazer bumped into a few more people they knew to boot. We made our way out of Alon Shvut through the fog and came home exhausted and very happy. Shauna Tepperman showed up at our door and we stayed up late again talking and laughing.

The Friedmans spent the next couple of days in Jerusalem and then on the Tuesday morning I did my carpool to Bet Shemesh and drove into Jerusalem to pick up my buddies and we were off to the Dead Sea. We had two nights and almost three days of fun and hanging. I was worried about still going on the trip when Darrell had to back out to go to Chutz, but it was wonderful. There aren't too many friends that i could go away with , without my husband for over two days and feel comletely comfortable with. Poor Lazer, he was suddenly being told what to do by two women..........he was a great sport and whenever overwhelmed he turned up the volume on the Ipod and closed his eyes. Shayna and I indulged in a spa massage which was lots of fun. We hung, we walked, we swam and relaxed. We also bowled, i was sore for two days after. Oh, and did I mention the food which was out of this world! I think the three of us were the last in the dining room both nights.......yapping and yapping. I must admit that as comfortable as I felt I did miss Darrell.........We definately have to go back there, this time together.






drove back to jerusalem, to the Dan Pearl........no one talked about this being the end of a great trip and that a good bye had to be made once again. To make matters worse in the parking lot I banged into an out of sight ledge and yes I made the first dent in our new car.........I so wanted it to be Darrell!!! We said our sad goodbyes...........it was awful......i can't keep saying goodbye to you all ,over and over!!! Luckily, I called Dan Rand who had just arrived and he met us at the hotel and he came out with me to Neve Daniel to see the kids and our new home. Being male, he didn't seem to catch on to my deep sadness and talked away about this that and the other, it was just what I needed! So I deleted Shayna and Lazer's temporary Israeli cellphone number from my phone and added in Dan's number which I had to delete also 5 days later!!!! ADD-Delete, ADD-DELETE...........Thank G-d..........keep coming, we love to see you!

Our Trip Down South (and I don't mean Miami)

After all our visitors in December, we thought it would be great to end off with a real vacation. Something we just did not have time for until now. We planned to go with the Steinmans on the Mitzpeh Ramon portion of their trip. We headed off on a Sunday morning, heading south with Moshe in the lead. We had walkie talkies so we could hear Moshe's running commentary from their car. We headed south and made some stops, one at a nature reserve and the second near Sde Boker for a hike in the wadi.

We were having a grand old time until Darrell decides to walk on the edge of some major hill, which from my viewpoint was the edge of the grand canyon...........and worse yet, he had David right beside him. I heard my voice saying , get down from there..........and when he said it's nothing..........I heard someone else's voice hysterically screaming and crying that he better get down from there right now if he cares anything about me............I felt my heart beating out of my chest and realized that the second voice was also me and everyone was staring at me ...........okay , Darrell said , we're getting down!
We went on with our hike and Moshe decides to take all the kids through these cracks in the wall ......he points at Golda and I and says "you two stay here!"..........well, I never! The Chutzpah........okay, we say, like we even have a choice! The kids reappear later on in the wadi only to disappear again into some other crack in the wall. This time Golda's other voice appeared and stated in no uncertain terms that there would be no more cracks in the wall for our kids!!! The kids reappear laughing and having just a grand old time! We continue on and bump into a big group of kids, maybe B'nai Akiva or maybe a school tiyul. Where are you guys from Ned asks?.............oh anachnu me kfar Pinas they answer. I am not going to elaborate on this story too much except that there was a lot of laughing ........a lot of laughing and red faces!
We continued on and moshe gave us most interesting explanations about the vegetation and flash floods etc. Suddenly we pass a group of the girls and Avital grabs my arm and says..........I think that was Liran Dembitz, you know from my class in grade 4 Netivot! Say hi , I said, we'll wait! No, she passed already. .......well some of the girls heard Avital and called out to Liran who came back and she and Avital had a little reunion.........in the middle of the desert, in the middle of some Wadi, Avital bumped into an old classmate! Where are you from Avital asks..........."don't laugh" Liran says.........."I'm from Kfar Pinas".
We finish our hike and make our way to Pundak Rimon near the machtesh Rimon. We come out of the Wadi and get a lift up to Sde Boker memorial with the bus of kids from you know where. On the bus kids were singing and laughing and it was nice. The youth here are somewhat outstanding and it was fun to get an inside view.




We arrived , checked in, and ran to go swimming. First though we had to light candles it was the last night of Chanukah. They had a lighting for all the guests and had a table set up for those who wanted to light their own. As we walked into the lobby , we hear our name being called and look up to see cousins Reena, Elliot, Jacquelyn and Marlon, sitting in the lobby. What a shocker......way out here in the middle of nowhere! We spent a few minutes and lit candles and then the kids wanted to swim, we would see the cousins at supper hour........Another, small country story.
We had supper.......absolutely phenomenal food there, by the way!! We hung out in the lobby and the kids hung out together. Yonatan and David played pool with Marlin and we got to catch up with Reena and Elliot. We went off to bed as we were getting up early for a day of hiking in the machtesh. Or so we thought........David woke up in the middle of the night, heaving ....big time. Next morning, when i woke up, Darrell walked in from Minyan and was looking white, no green, no white. Within minutes he too was heaving in the bathroom. Oh, my Gd. I was surrounded. Well, I went to have breakfast with those left standing and let the gang know what was happening with us. It was in the dining room where Yonatan started to feel sick and I quickly sent him back to the room. He too was soon heaving! Well needless to say we did not make it down to the machtesh. I got a late checkout and let everyone continue what they needed to finish and then I packed the car and loaded my sick soldiers, each armed with a plastic bag on their laps. I drove out of the pundak.........Darrell , should we stop somewhere and just get a view of the machtesh? No, No let's just get home. Okay and off we went. It was a good thing I armed them with bags. We found our way back to the yishuv , all my sickies climbed into bed and fell asleep. We didn't get to the second half of our trip with the Steinmans but we soooooooooooo enjoyed the first part and thank them for the great time!!!
COME BACK AND VISIT SOON!!

Visitors to the Gush

As you can see, December was a crazy month filled with lots of visitors and simchas. We were running everywhere. It was wonderful and exhausting all at the same time. One aspect of all these visitors that we had a hard time accepting was and is people's reluctance to set foot over the greenline. Listen, we do understand on one level, it was our choice to live here not yours and there is a definite perception that people have of the increased "danger" in the "territories". On the other hand, it is hard for us to think that you won't come see us in our home or won't even examine the issues around it. The truth is that most of you , after spending a little time in Israel and seeing what really is and isn't have said you would come out. And those of you that only realized it too late this visit have said that next time, no question you are coming out. I would not feel right to convince anyone to come out...we try to present the facts as we know them and options re. how to get out here in a way that you feel comfortable and then the decision is up to you. Believe me please that we respectfully accept whatever decision you make , that doesn't mean it isn't hard when you say you are not coming. I always tell people that we are 10 minutes from Talpiyot, you don't have to drive through any Arab villages, that car shootings have been virtually non-existant in two years , and that if you are not comfortable in a car the gush bus is a private line that is bullet proof and will bring you right up into the yishuv. I also just remind people of the statistics of piguim and note that my feeling is that the cities are actually more dangerous than the highways out here. When people ask me if I feel in danger out here my response is "no more than anywhere else in the country" and unfortunately that is the reality of Israel , that wherever you are there is a definite risk of "incidents" and danger. That being said everyone has to find their comfort zone. A bunch of us "settlers" were talking about this issue and the "relativeness" of it. One woman was telling us how they were invited to a yishuv in the shomron (cannot remember which one) which is in a "more risky" neighbourhood, and her answer was that she didn't want to drive out there in her private car..........the woman who invited her was shocked and said " how can you say that, you yourself live over the greenline and drive back and forth to Jerusalem almost daily".......my friends answer was " that's different, that is just driving home from work not visiting." A similar incident just happened to me when the bat sheirut asked about organizing a shabbaton for the olim in Ofra. Would you like the kids to go by bus or can we take them in private cars?.......Well, uh, I would prefer a private bulletproof bus , to be quite honest?.....I started to chuckle and pointed out to her how bizarre my statement was.......I drive my kids back and forth to Jerusalem in my unprotected car and here I wanted a bus to go to Ofra (which we have driven to before in our car, to visit the Vanleewens).....sort of silly isn't it I ask her......no she said it's normal, everyone is comfortable or knows their Arab villages and the routes they need to take regularly, everything else is dangerous. Many people in this country take buses in the city, I am not ready for this and I have Yonatan take a taxi daily from school to the Tzomet where he would transfer to the gush bus or a tremp. That's just where I am ...I gave a lady a tremp a couple of weeks ago from the Yishuv........the bus routes have all changed and it is quite difficult to get into the downtown area, you now have to transfer in the city and take a city bus instead of the gush bus all the way. Anyways, she told me that until two months ago she would not take a city bus, then she decided it was crazy and expensive and "she turned off her mind" to the possibilities and now takes buses in the city, which she describes as built in entertainment and comedy. I am blabbling and I apologize, it is just that this issue is near and dear to my heart. I guess what I am staying is that you can all make your decisions and we will deal, but I am asking that you atleast examine the issues and look into ways of coming to visit that will make you feel more comfortable, don't make a blanket statement about not going over the greenline, wait until you are here and look into it and then decide.

SOOOOOOOOOOO it was with great pleasure and excitement that we received our visitors to the Gush.....first the Kleinbergs including Brian, Simmi, Eliana and Talya and shortly after the Steinman gang including Golda, Ned, Noam, Dini, and Yona .oh yeah and Moshe Ben Baruch.




Simmy, Brian, Eliana and Talia came out one morning one Chanukah. Darrell picked them up at the Pomsons and soon they were pulling up into our driveway. It was so great to see them!!!!!! And so nice to have them in our home and to show them around. We showed them the house and our new house, gave them a drive around tour of the yishuv. Then we were off the the sound and light show at Kfar Etzion. I stayed and watched it with them and Darrell did some errands. Now , Brian had just found out only weeks before that he had cousins who perished in the fight for Gush Etzion in '48 and he had just met their baby who had been sent out of the Gush to Jerusalem and survived his parents. so this film and area had new special meaning to Brian. We watched the movie and descended into the memorial. After it was over we began looking for his cousins names on the memorial and found them. The door to the theater opened and I looked outside for Darrell .....look Brian found his cousins on the memorial I called out........a woman at the desk looked up when she heard this and ran over.....who are your cousins?, Brian showed her, Tzippora and Yechiel Rosenfeld.......would you please come and sit with me , I want to talk with you.......I am Ora and I was the first baby of Kfar Etzion and I know your cousins. Wow, it was unbelievable. She came to the table with a pen and paper and asked Brian endless questions, wanting names and details. Then she finally told us her story and Brian's cousins story as she knew it. When all the women and children were sent out of gush etzion, brian's cousin Tzipporah would not leave her husband and sent her baby son Yossi in with the convoy with one of the single woman to take care of him. As it goes, both of Brian's cousins were survivors of the Shoa and had only been married a short time and were not willing to be apart. The battle for the Gush happened as it happened and both were killed in the battle. She told Brian that when the Arab's were interviewed about the battle , later on , there was a description of a blond woman who was firing from the window of the main building making the capture of kfar etzion more difficult and inflicting many casualties among the Arab Legion. No one was sure who this was but most suspect it was Tzipporah. She went on to describe what happened to Yossi , the baby ....that the single woman who was in charge of him gave him up to another family to take care of him and how to this day always wonders if she herself should have brought him up. I was blown away by the whole scene and first hand accounts of the unbelievable acts of heroism and the difficult situations which resulted. To hear of these unbelievably difficult decisions, I cannot even imagine. A man walked in to the room in the middle of the discussions..........these are Yossi's cousins, it was another "baby" from Kfar Etzion, it was really living history. Ora told us that her father survived the battle with an injury to his arm and they came back to Alon Shvut post-1967 to resume their lives in the gush. We were walking out of the building together, and I was overcome with emotion. Ora, I said, we are new olim living here in the Gush because of you and your family and their friends, it is only because of their sacrifices that we have the zchut to live here and I just want to say thank you to all of you for what you did for us! I don't know how I even got the words out of my mouth , and in hebrew too but it was important for me and an opportunity I would regret if I did not. She nodded, with watery eyes and I knew she understood how much I really meant it. Brian and I walked out of the building together and we were both crying, it was just so unbelievable and real.
Brian has told me that his cousins are mentioned in the book O'Jerusalem and that there is an amazing account of the battle for Gush Etzion. He said I should reference it to my readers.............I think that is all of you!


We continued on our tour of the Gush. We went to see the "Lone Tree" or the lonely tree as the incorrect English sign calls it. We drove through Alon Shvut and on our way to Efrat we stopped at the Etzion Judaica centre. Another cute story..........we told the lady who was serving us that we were from Toronto. It turns out that her family did shlichut in Toronto.....the Taburi's.....and her husband was Principal of Ohr Chaim. Anyways, we were talking about this one and that one........Simmi as you know is very good at this game........and she told us she taught at Eitz Chaim. She began to tell us about a grade 2 class that she will never forget until this day. And who do you think was the little boy who she really cannot forget.................Mordie Shields!..........."where is he and what is he doing?...don't tell me, I'm afraid to hear the answer" We assured her that little Mordie Shields had turned out just fine and was not in prison as she had feared!

Off we went to Efrat,
we drove through, stopping a couple of times to see the view and describe different sites. We drove back to Neve Daniel, stopped at our amazing bakery.......shiffon and came back to the house to have a quick bite.
Our visit was coming to an end and we were sad to say good-bye but felt really great about the day and the amazing experiences we had shared. We were very proud of Simmi! She was great! I drove the Kleinbergs back to Jerusalem and on the way Ariella called on Simmi's cell.!!! We are driving back to jerusalem from the Gush I heard simmi saying, we're just at the Machsom(checkpoint).........what Ariella said, mommie you went out to the Gush, without bulletproofing.......I don't believe it, Ariella was also proud! We passed through the Machsom and the Kleinbergs gave the soldier some goodies we had bought for them......Chag Sameach everyone yelled from the car. Chag Sameach the soldier called back.......we drove on in silence towards the tunnels.........."that was so meaningful and amazing" said little Eliana from the back








Only a few days later were we blessed with more visitors.......the Steinmans and Moshe Ben Baruch were coming out to spend a Friday in the Gush. We were especially proud of Golda as it was a hard thing for her to do and we know that she really went over and above to make the effort to come out despite her worries. We also knew that eventhough she wanted to see the area she was mostly doing it for us and wanted to see our home and support us. So I thank you for your efforts, you did make us feel very supported and it is so nice now when we speak that you really know what we are talking about..............THANK YOU!!

So I spoke to Golda on her cell from Moshe's Car on their way out. Yep, here we are , on our way out.....I could hear the tension in dear Golda's voice. Yep, on our way out.......uh Moshe, how long will it take and where are we going so I can tell the Shermans. Uh, Ruth, they aren't telling me anything.....I think it is a policy Moshe and Ned have adopted for the day! Okay, yeh, well I guess I will call you whenever we get wherever! Okay, that sounds like a plan for me....Golda don't worry , we'll meet up with you at wherever! Okay , good, good.........I'll call you from wherever. Moshe is a smart cookie,he took Golda to the Judaica Centre as a first stop! Nothing like a little browsing and shopping to calm the soul! We ended up meeting up with them at Kfar Etzion , the movie again! We greeted the Steinmans as they came out of the show. Golda , was already in a calmer state and kept saying how happy she was to be out here and how amazing and meaningful the movie was etc. etc. Moshe walked us around the kibbutz and showed us a few places that were important to the battle. He explained how important Gush Etzion was for the war of Independance and how Army stationed in the Golan were relying on the fighters of Gush Etzion to hold back the forces. We headed back out towards Kfar Etzion, of course to the Lonely tree again, it can't be so lonely, we had visited two times just this week! Moshe was taking us to Derech Avot! This is a walking path between Alon Shvut and neve Daniel, which is called derech Avot after our Avot (fathers) who walked this path. Avraham and Yitzchak walked here on their way to the akeida and Darrell jogs on it every erev shabbat. Again, everyone has their rules and comfort zones, and I had sort of taken the advise up until now, not to go on Derech Avot alone, and if you go to go with Neshek (gun)! Okay, we were not alone, we were all together, but we certainly did not have neshek. I was not going to bring up the issue with my good friend and really good sport Golda, so we continued on. Moshe took us out to a Mikva, which was from the time of the second Temple. People who were "holchei regel" walking up to the holy temple in Jerusalem would stop here on their way and purify themselves in this Mikva. Well in the middle of Moshe's drasha , a nice Arab shepperd and his grandson and his many goats or sheep or whatever they were began walking by. Well, I must say that Golda was amazing, despite her nervousness she managed not to go balistic and instead sat and pretended to listen to what Moshe was saying. The kids were jumping all around and having a grand old time. Of course, my husband who had gone down to the car to get something , stops beside the arab shepperd and begins to talk to him. I see the Arab saying something to him.......What's he saying to him Golda mutters in a not so affectionate tone.......why is he talking to him.....does he want to finish me off here? Darrell heads back," what did you ask him?" ......."I asked him how many goats does he have with him?" , "yeah, and what did he answer"........"I don't know, it was in Arabic!"......."maybe he said get off my land you stinking jew!"........"No, I don't think so, I would have heard that in the tone". Well, we all piled into the car and drove the rest of the way up to Neve Daniel....I had never done that before and it is a beautiful view! We stopped to eat at the Bakery and then took everyone down to see our new house. We stopped at the rental and then the Steinmans were off! Both Golda and Ned and of course the kids were so happy that they had come out and seen the Gush and we were so happy to have had them here. THANK YOU Guys!

(note the background in this picture..click on the picture to see Darrell's friend and his goats)

It was very cute, especially for those of you who know Moshe. When they left our we were standing outside the house to wave them off. Moshe went down the hill and they were all waving. I had told him to turn around and come back out the way they came in. So Darrell and I are standing there waiting to see them come back up and wave again..........you know like the Waltons,happy endings! So we are waiting and waiting and they just aren't coming. Darrell, I say, it's a dead end down there where could they be? Just when I was going to go in and call them or go down to find them, they come driving up the street. Where were you guys, it is a short little dead end street what took so long? Golda, looking, flabbergasted, was hufffing and pointing at Moshe............"He wanted to take his van, with my family in it up that steep. unpaved, small mountain...........partway up I decided that enough was enough and I am in charge............NOOOOOOOOOOOO.........I screamed, I am in charge here and we are not going up this mountain!" Moshe looked at me and said" she went crrrazy!.....it was just a little hill, why should we turn all the way around"............Bye y'all have a good trip back to yerushalayim we did our wave and went in to get ready for Shabbat!

In summary, we are waiting for all your visits with open arms and big smiles. We will show you around and try to give you a taste of what life really is here!

Yonatan Made a Phone Call

Normally you would read this and wonder what I was talking about! Of course Yonatan can make a phone call he is almost 12 years old. So let me explain...........yesterday Yonatan came home from school to declare that he wanted to go swimming! Okay I said , you are going to have to find out when there are boys hours and when there are hasaot. Here is the phone number. Now usually, he hands me back the number and says could you please phone for me Ema, I can't in hebrew?! Yesterday he simply went to the phone, picked it up and I heard him asking to be connected to the pool IN HEBREW! Then I heard him asking about hours for boys and when he wasn't clear on it he asked again.....IN HEBREW! Then he asked about hasaot and what time they would be, a few questions and answers went back and forth..........IN HEBREW! Then he said todah rabba and hung up. He looked up at me who was sitting with my mouth dropped open and you guessed it ...tears in my eyes....and said "what's up with you Ema?". What's up with me?...I'm so absolutely amazed by you and proud of you I kvelled..........."it's only a phonecall, no big deal" Well it was a big deal and you my friend are "blogworthy"

YASHER KOACH YONATAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!