THIS YEAR IN JERUSALEM 8 Reasons to Take Your Children to Israel By Sharon Duke Estroff
I
actually did it. I finished the laundry. Five days and twenty-two
hours after returning from Israel with my family I've managed to wash,
dry, and fold every last sand-ridden bathing suit and falafel-stained
t-shirt. And now I can reflect on our experience - a two-week,
whirlwind journey through the Jewish homeland during which we
celebrated my son's bar mitzvah.
I'm not going to make a
Pollyannaish claim that taking four kids to the Middle East was a
smooth, simple, and stress-free undertaking. It was incredibly trying
at times and (thanks to the ever weakening dollar and our decision to
travel over the peak season of Passover) prohibitively expensive. But
it was also indescribably beautiful and perfectly life-changing.
Toward
ensuring the eternal bright future of the now 60 year-old Jewish state,
here are eight good reasons for Jewish parents to take their children
to Israel.
1) Hebrew, Hebrew, Everywhere! Studying Hebrew is
at the core of the Judaic childhood. From Jewish preschool to day
school to Hebrew school to bar/bat mitzvah tutoring, our kids spend
much of their early years immersed in this ancient lexicon, yet they
rarely have an opportunity to apply it outside the classroom or
synagogue. In Israel, Hebrew is a living, breathing language. From
the moment we arrived at Ben Gurion, my children's familiar moaning and
groaning over Hebrew homework became a distant memory as they moved
seamlessly into linguistic expert mode - translating menus for their
grandparents, asking for directions, and ordering their weight in
"glida" (i.e. ice cream) with confidence and pride.
2)
Jewish Like Me. No matter where we live in the United States, no
matter how Jewish our children's daily world may feel, the reality
remains - Jews compose but 1% of the US population. While this truth
can do wonders for building our kids' Jewish identity, it also serves
as a daily reminder that they are fundamentally different from the vast
majority of Americans. So my children sure were excited about being
the same for once! Rather than dodging bread at every turn this
Passover, we ate it (the kosher for Passover kind that is). Every
supermarket we entered had its chametz quarantined, every restaurant we
dined in had swapped out its ingredients in keeping with the holiday.
(Although I remain dubious about those suspiciously chametz-like buns
at the Burger Ranch.)
3) A Great Miracle Happened HERE. Every
year at Hanukkah, our children hear the story of the brave Maccabees
who reclaimed the Temple from the Syrians - and the day's worth of oil
in the Ner Tamid (eternal light) that miraculously burned for eight.
Nes Gadol Haya Sham, the Hebrew letters on our dreidels remind us, " A
Great Miracle Happened There". But in Israel, the dreidels are
different. The Shin for "Sham" is replaced with a Peh for "Po" meaning
"here". As my kids stood wide-eyed and speechless at the foot of the
steps to the ancient Temple in the new Jerusalem Archaeological Park -
feeling the presence of the Macabbees from their Atlanta Braves hats to
their Air Jordan sneakers - it was clear that they'd never spin their
dreidels quite the same way again.
4) The Soldiers. The first
time my family saw a gun toting Israeli soldier we were admittedly
taken aback. Not only was this 18-year old girl carrying a gun - she
was carrying a gigantic gun that was easily taller than my five-year
old. But our initial discomfort was quickly replaced with a sense of
security and awe at these young Israelis who - completely devoid of the
self-centeredness and air of entitlement characterizing so many
American teenagers - exuded wisdom and maturity beyond their years,
tangible love for their country, and a personal responsibility for the
greater good.
5) Back to Nature. In his book, Last Child in the
Woods: Saving Our Children from Nature Deficit Disorder. Author Richard
Louv argues that kids are so plugged into television and video games
that they've lost their connection to the natural world. In Israel, my
children left behind all NDD tendencies, as they witnessed a connection
and respect for the land that they rarely have an opportunity to
experience on our side of the planet. Our Israeli tour guide - a
rugged, former tank commander - spoke endlessly about the beauty the
trees. The bountiful Israeli breakfast at our hotel was piled high
with fresh fruits and vegetables without an artificial color or flavor
in sight. Even the flowers seemed bigger, brighter and more fragrant
than those we have at home. And the best part of all is that my kids
noticed.
6) L'Dor V'Dor. Many contemporary children are being
raised to believe that the world revolves around them. And while being
the center of the universe certainly has its perks, it can also put a
little kid under a whole lot of pressure. The Jewish concept of l'dor
v'dor - from generation to generation - is the antithesis to the
dangerous "sun rises and sets for me" kiddie mentality. In other
words, as my son stood before the Kotel, reading from the Torah in the
footsteps of his parents, grandparents and hundreds of generations
before, he received a priceless bar mitzvah gift: the stability,
consistency and safety of knowing that he isn't the center of the
universe after all, but a part of something far bigger and stronger
than he could ever or would ever want to be.
7) Joy and
Celebration. Perhaps the most striking aspects of Israel exist in its
dichotomies: Contemporary shopping malls amidst ancient relics, lush
forests amongst parched deserts, Palestinean/Israeli Tensions within a
remarkable Old City of Jerusalem where Arabs, Christians and Jews
peacefully coexist. And perhaps it is this understanding and
acceptance of life's inherent fragility that has Israelis in a seeming
constant state of celebration. Singing and Dancing; picnicking and
partying; living today to it's fullest in the face of an uncertain
tomorrow.
8) We got to stop at 7. It's always that 8th day
of Passover that gets us. We can't look at another piece of matzah.
We would give our right arm for a bona fide risen bagel. We are
counting the seconds until we get to dive into that pizza at sundown.
But in Israel, there is no 8th day of Passover,as the extra 24 hours of
torture are strictly reserved for the Diaspora. Which is why my kids
insisted on making one last stop on Ben Yehuda Street before heading
home, where they would fill their bellies, souls, and laundry bags
with drippy, gooey, gloriously Israeli falafel.
SHARON DUKE ESTROFF
Sharon
Duke Estroff is an award-winning educator and author of "Can I Have a Cell Phone for Hanukkah? (Random House,
2007). Her parenting articles appear in over 100 publications including
Parents, Good Housekeeping, and Woman's Day. Her popular Undercover Mom Blog on Net Family News
gives digital immigrant parents timely, straightforward advice on raising digital native kids.
