I'm ready to go home!

No more exile for me! Enough already! Please God, let me go home!

"In each journey of your life you must be where you are. You may only be passing through on your way to somewhere else seemingly more important – nevertheless, there is purpose in where you are right now." (Rabbi Tzvi Freeman)

Oops, I saw this when in Seattle but forgot to publish it. This is just as true here in Winnipeg- God must have some purpose for keeping us here in exile still. I must have faith that, no matter how unpleasant being in exile is, it is part of God's plan.

A Promise to Rena, and a Vow and a Prayer to God (and some hishtadlut as well)

I've already said this out loud to Rena but I want to put it publicly in writing as well: As soon as God makes it possible we will go to Israel.

And now for the vow: At such time as I'm able to live in Israel with no obligation to go back to exile anywhere, I will stay in Israel and never leave Israel again as long as I live.

I tell Rena every time she asks about going to Israel: If Mashiach comes today then we'll get to go to Israel today. I tell Rena we have to pray that God sends Mashiach soon. I also mention this whenever she asks about people and communities that are far away. I explain that all her favorite people are in different places now because we're still in exile but that when Mashiach comes all Jews will be together again in Israel, the land that God gave us. I tell Rena that every time we do something nice for someone, like the time one of her friends in preschool was crying and Rena gave her a big hug to help her feel better, God comes closer to wanting to send Mashiach to the world. (Yes, I'm thinking of the Chabad slogan that says "Bring Mashiach through acts of goodness and kindness.)

Last chance to save the Dead Sea

Cross posted in Environmental Tip of the Week

In a few days, the government will vote on a bill that could save the Dead Sea. But the Finance Ministry and polluting companies are pressuring the ministers to block it. To win, we need just one minister to switch sides.

I've just signed a petition to the ministers calling on them to stand up to public pressure and approve the bill. This is our last chance to save the Dead Sea - join me by clicking here:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/save_the_dead_sea/96.php

notice

This and all my blogs are suspended until further notice (hopefully not forever) due to a number of things going on in my life currently.

"...it's because G-d wants all the Jews to move to Israel..."

Cross posted in The Daily Yay!

Have you heard? There are activists in San Francisco who want to ban circumcision, a religious rite for male Jews that also provides health benefits to male Jews and Gentiles alike. See the comments on this article for where the title quote came from. Yes, it's little reminders like these that remind us Jews where our true home is, where we can truly be free to be who we are: Israel, the land that G-d gave us. :)

I'm not in Israel...What happened?

My then fiance, now husband, was still in the US! Here's part of a note I wrote on Facebook the night before I left Israel, December 30, 2007:

Just tonight it really hit me that I'm leaving in the morning and only G-d knows when I'll be back. I want to thank each and every one of you for your own personal contributions to my wonderful experience here in Bat Ayin. I hope you all know that there's just one reason that I'm leaving ;) and this was a very hard decision. I believe it was the right one, though, much as I'm going to miss Bat Ayin. Please pray for us that we'll return ASAP, or better yet that Mashiach comes before the wedding so we can get married here in Israel and everyone can come.

Why haven't we made aliyah yet? 1. He had a green card and wanted to wait until he could obtain US citizenship. 2. We want to gain more skills so we can contribute to Israel, and we want to come with a solid financial backing. We don't want to be a drain on the country.

I intend to write in this blog from now until we make aliyah, to document both our physical and spiritual journey to Israel, and beyond. Our journey will not finish when we make in to Israel; we will always be growing. I also intend to follow and comment on the collective journey of Israeli society and the Jewish people as a whole, which also does not end no matter how many people make aliyah. That is the main reason I chose to title this blog "The Road That Never Ends."

Another meaning behind this title is to convey the sense of despair that I sometimes feel. I sometimes worry that we will never end up making aliyah. I have no idea if my husband will ever be ready. Moshe Rabeinu himself did not merit to enter the Land of Israel despite his deep desire and heartfelt prayers! Who am I to think that I deserve better than Moshe Rabbeinu? But guess what? I cannot live in despair! I keep praying to G-d constantly to clarify for me the ways in which I can merit moving to Israel. I cannot have the mentality that we will be stuck in galut forever! I must keep going with the surety that wherever I am and whatever I'm doing is another step in our journey to Israel! Where I am is where I'm supposed to be. G-d does not make mistakes. I cannot believe that G-d first put in my heart a deep, strong desire to live in the Promised land but then made it impossible for me forever!