Rabbi Zeff is in Israel,helping his family set up for the year before he returns to the U.S. at the beginning of September. He wrote this reflection.
Our first days in Israel have been a whirlwind of arriving, setting up our apartment (you can see the view from our balcony at left), negotiating getting our kids into schools, shopping at the Talpiot marketplace, and determiningv exactly where we can find the best falafel in Haifa (so far, it’s Falafel HaZkenim on HaWadi Street).The most striking thing to me about our experiences so
far is how ordinary they have been. Part of the miracle of Israel is the creation of an ordinary life for millions of Jews, right here in the place where we first became a people. In the midst of news of conflict and struggle, we can sometimes forget that every day, Israelis are working,
praying, shopping, studying, playing, caring for children and elders, and doing all of the things everyone in the rest of the world is doing. Our prayer is that Israelis along with all people will continue to be able to live such ordinary lives in peace. Ken y’hi ratzon – so may this be God’s will.