Traveling to Israel, taking the boys for their first trip!

Reflection on Our June 2019 Trip to Israel

Shabbat June 15, as the adventure begins in earnest it is hard to balance the excitement with the realities of my wonderful boys.  They are excited and they are anxious for the unknown.  I could not imagine a better destination for this first overseas trip for our family.  Israel is a people and a place that has and continues to enrich Rachel and my life.  There are certainly realities that continue to challenge both of us in regard to Israel, yet being ohavei Yisrael - lovers of Israel - is part of our beings.  Sitting on the plane and waiting to take off has finally allowed the reality of returning to Israel with my family for the first time sink in in earnest.

Hopes abound for the experience at hand. I am dreaming first about moments of realization for Caleb and for Jonah.  I am dreaming that their minds will seize the connections between being Jewish and being Jewish.  And what I mean by that is the hope that their identity as Jews - a minority in Tahoe - will connect with the identity of Jews as majority in Israel.  This is something that must just happen for them and no matter how hard I may try I cannot manufacture it for them. 

I pray that our days are each filled with such unique gifts that both boys continue to unpack them throughout their lifetimes.  In that, I am also praying that these twelve days leave indelible and positive experiences that our family grows in our love of Israel and continues to struggle alongside her in reaching for Israel’s potential.