Our first stop was Independence Hall, where David Ben Gurion declared the establishment of the State of Israel on May 14, 1948. Seated comfortably in the air-conditioned home of former Tel Aviv mayor, Meir Dizengoff, we watched a brief film connecting the birth of the first Hebrew city to the culmination of the Zionist vision of Theodor Herzl. We then joined a few other groups in the main hall - decked out with the original furniture and paintings - for a passionate retelling of the events that fateful day 62 years
ago. Ben Gurion's recorded voice echoed 'round the room as he read from the declaration, the rabbi tearfully blessed the shehecheyanu, and we all stood for the orchestra's rendition of Hatikva. I've been there on more than a hundred occasions, but it gets me every time.
Once again on the bus, we zipped across town to the northern edge of Tel Aviv, where we first refueled (and some offered a mournful caffeinated goodbye) at the university's branch of Aroma. Then on to the Palmach Museum, a hi-tech story of 10 young men and women who join the ranks of the Hagana's "strike force", many of them eventually paying with their life to defend the Jewish communities of Palestine in the years leading up to statehood. Another fairly emotional (but a wee bit less patriotic) ending to one more chapter of the fantastic story called Zionism.
With the numerous narratives neatly tucked away, we returned to the hotel to grab our luggage, check out, and make our way to dinner at Lilith, a high class restaurant with a social justice message. The folks at Lilith not only pride themselves on excellent food, but also on their outreach to and training of local youth-at-risk, who are brought into the kitchen for 1-2 years of skill acquisition, confidence building, and purpose. Judging by my vegetarian dish, they've clearly learned the right stuff! We also dedicated some time to share a few final thoughts - "ouch" moments and take-home memories - followed by thank-yous and, of course, a bissel of text to round out this stage of the PJC Israel experience. May you all remember the altar you've built on this side of the Jordan, to serve as a witness between your children and our children - so long as you maintain it, nourish it, maybe even pay it a visit once in blue moon - so that no one side may ever claim to have more of a stake in God, our history, tradition, or the future of the Jewish people. Amen!
I'd like to take advantage of being asked to author this final post to say thanks to all of you for welcoming me into the PJC family and really making me feel at home. It was truly a pleasure to share with y'all my love of the Land of Israel
- and even more so to watch you gobble it all up! I wish you an easy landing back into your regular routines, along with much nachas sharing your unforgettable stories and photos (and scars!) with friends and family.With love from Jerusalem,
Jared
jared at pobox.com
