Crossing the Yarden

By Yarden Frankl

Our Secret Weapons

We are home!

After three weeks away, the Frankl family is finally back in Neve Daniel. Pizza Etzion will be greatly relieved.

Standing in the airport in Washington D.C., I was fascinated watching CNN. They were showing the rocket attacks on Israeli cities, followed by the response of the Israeli Air Force. Then they explained how thousands of Americans were fleeing the war in the Middle East. All of a sudden, they announced that despite the violence, 200 Americans were at the airport in New York, preparing to move to Israel. I could see that many of the people watching were a little stunned by this report. They could not figure out why so many people had decided to flee America for Israel in the midst of a rocket war.

I know several of these families moving here. They were quite comfortable in America. They had good jobs and were part of very supportive communities. Their kids went to great schools, and they could go eat kosher doughnuts without fear of someone throwing a rocket at them.

Yet, as we did some time ago, they decided that life in America, however comfortable, was not enough. They are not moving here with unrealistic expectations, they know that life here can be described in many ways, but "easy" is not one of them. Look, the fact that they are flying here at the same time as rockets from Lebanon speaks volumes about their motivation. Today it is my turn to be inspired by new Olim. (If any of the new Olim are reading this, stop by for a beer, I owe you.)

As for us, we just spent three weeks in America, seeing the family and friends we had so painfully left behind last year. It was wonderful to return as visitors, comfortable with the knowledge that we can make it as Israelis when we return.

Yet, as nice as it was to see our families and friends, we were anxious to come home. Unlike last year, there were no politicians or marching bands to welcome us at the airport, but the return flight, traveling under Israeli passports, was every bit as meaningful.

I may be one of the few who miss the old airport. I miss getting off the plane and onto a bus and being shuttled to a noisy, giant terminal where you had to wait with a crowd of sweaty, tired Jews arriving from all over the world. Today, moving walkways carry you in comfort down glass enclosed halls past the giant sign wishing you a "Baruchim HaBayim" from the Nokia cell phone company. It's just not the same.

We hailed a taxi, and the driver handed me a card telling me in English that he was required by law to use a meter. Then in truly Israeli fashion he inquired if we wanted him to use the meter. Next, he started telling me how concerned he was for his family in the North while almost killing mine as we drove off from the airport going slightly faster than the airplane we had just left.

We returned to a house decorated and stocked with food from our fellow olim families. Just breathing the Neve Daniel air again felt wonderful. And as I saw the front page of the paper, I realized how incredible this country is. On the top was a photo of grim faced soldiers bearing one of their comrades on a stretcher. Below, was a picture and article of a couple that had planned to wed in the North. Instead of moving the wedding out of the area, they had it in a bomb shelter.

We will never forgive or forget the enemies of our nation. We will scream with fury at those responsible for the deaths of our nation's youth. Yet we will continue to have weddings, britot, and other celebrations. We will continue to welcome more and more of our people to our land until the whole world finally realizes: this is our nation, and we're not going anywhere.

Shabbat Shalom from the most moral, courageous, undefeatable, and blessed nation in the world.

© 2006 Yarden Frankl