Aliyah 2020

It's interesting to see how varied the responses are when individuals hear that Charlie and I are planning to make Aliyah.  My minister friends are excited for us.  They mention a desire to visit us in the Holy Land and to explore the area together. Many of my Jewish friends are happy for us but sad we will be leaving the community that has been our home for nearly 47 years.  Some of them think Israel will be a hard nut to crack!  They are concerned that at our age the ability to acclimate to new surroundings will be difficult.  Family members have mixed reactions.  Some are thinking they will never see us again and others are already planning to take us up on our "open door policy." Although there are times in life when what others think seems very important, I must say that I am not inclined to think that way now.  I of course like hearing when people are excited for us, but I am of the belief that it is more important for the two of us to listen t...

Shortly after I hope to arrive in Jerusalem, I will be turning 70.  It will be the first time since obtaining my master's degree in 1973 that I will be fully retired.  So what will I do with myself?  Actually the question most people are asking is, "So what will YOU be doing with yourself?" I've thought about this a lot and personally, since I am fortunate enough at this moment to be healthy and alert, I do have plans.  #1..I hope to be a savta (grandmother) who will have a warm relationship with my grandkids, the youngest of whom in Israel is now 4.  #2...I hope to participate (with Charlie of course) in Shabbat of a Lifetime run and operated by our friend Nati Cohen.  Opening our Shabbat table to tourists from all over the world would be a wonderful experience in my book!  #3...I hope to get involved with tutoring English to high school students, perhaps through Sulam L'Atid.  #4...I hope to continue learning at the Pardes Institute perhaps th...

I suppose it is healthy or at least realistic to enter any new living situation with some thoughts about what the upcoming hardships might be.  As one who prefers to live my life with "rose colored glasses" fully intact, I will reassign the term "challenges" to the anticipated events. I imagine that it will be a challenge learning how to shop without a car, with most products labeled only in Hebrew, and with shekels rather than dollars! I imagine it will be a challenge learning how to understand the Israeli political system with its abundant political parties. I imagine it will be a challenge finding new doctors with whom we can develop a good relationship for care. I imagine it will be a challenge re-acclimating to synagogue life without taking a leadership role. I imagine it will be a challenge learning to read bills written in Hebrew and figuring out how the Israeli banking system works. I will need to remind myself that life always has challenges no ...

It is so much easier to be in touch with friends and family than when we were growing up and phone calls were prohibitively expensive for overseas calling.  We plan to maintain a Nebraska phone number while in Israel so our current US family and friends can reach us easily.  As in the past, whenever I have traveled to Israel while still serving Tifereth Israel members, I am always reachable via the internet and I love using FaceBook messenger to connect visually with my nearest and dearest. There is one more piece that I'd like to add to these forms of keeping connected.  I want our door to be open to family and friends coming to Israel.  It is my understanding that at our age, we are required to have at least a 2nd bedroom (in case we need a care-taker to stay with us down the road), but for now that 2nd bedroom and hopefully 3rd bedroom will be designated for family and friends to stay in.  A long time ago, I thought about opening a bed and breakfast in our ...

The first word that comes to mind about what I will miss the most is FAMILY.  In Lincoln, we've had 3 generations under one roof for nearly 14 years.  There is something special beyond words about multi-generational living.  Perhaps it is that as the "matriarch" of the older generation there has been the joy of watching another little one mature into a young woman.  Of course we saw those same changes with our own children, but for anyone who has been a grandparent, I'm sure you know how different it is when you're watching your grandchild move from infancy to the teen years.  I also think about the fact that my parents and grandparents are buried here in Lincoln. I have had many sacred times over the past several years visiting their graves (even officiating at their burials).  I know those who are taking care of Mt. Carmel Cemetery will continue to care for their burial sites, but somehow the idea of moving seems like another form of separation that is ...

It is hard to know exactly what life will bring as we settle in Israel.  Of course that does not stop me from thinking ahead to what I hope to experience.  First of all, although we will be moving away from family in here in Nebraska and in other parts of the U.S., I look forward to spending more time with my Israeli family...son/daughter-in-law, 5 grandkids, brother, sister-in-law, niece, nephew and his family.  Jerusalem is the place where the majority of my family is currently living all in one place!  Second, I look forward to being part of a Masorti congregation in Jerusalem.  After having been so involved with the religious life of our Conservative congregation here in Lincoln, I know that I will be anxious to find an egalitarian congregation that has individuals who care deeply about maintaining Jewish holydays.  Third, I look forward to being able to find kosher food easily.  I know this sounds silly, but for years before Trader Joe's ever came...

To be honest, I have wanted to make aliyah ever since I was 21 years old.  When I married Charlie, I suggested that we make aliyah at that point.  He was concerned that he could not learn Hebrew well enough to make a living, so the idea was put on a "back burner" so to speak.  When Yehoshua and Nava decided to make aliyah, I was somewhat living vicariously through them.  I gave them the candlesticks that my grandmother had brought with her from Russia in the early 1900's trying to find a place to live away from pogroms and hatred of Jews.  It felt only right that the candlesticks found a place to live in Lincoln, NE for decades and would finally find a place to live in Yerushalyim...lighting up a new home yet one connected to our family's heritage. Now that Charlie is no longer concerned about having the language skills to pursue a professional life in Israel, we are free to think about making aliyah without being burdened by that specific concern.  I ...

There are many questions that I have asked myself when contemplating this entire process of making aliyah. 1) Why do I want to make aliyah now? 2) What do I look forward to when re-establishing my life in Israel? 3) What will I miss when leaving a place I have lived most of my life? 4) How will I maintain the relationships with family and friends that I have valued and which have meant so much to me? 5) What hardships do I anticipate while acclimating to a new society/new culture? 6) What do I hope to do with myself when I am in Israel, knowing that I will be fully retired for the first time in my adult life? Answers to these questions will be forthcoming in another post.

We actually completed our portfolio which means we had to collect our birth certificates and our marriage certificate (with apostille stamps), letters from a Rabbi attesting to our status as Jews, a letter of reference from a friend living in Israel, health records, and information about our former travels in and out of Israel.  Once our portfolio was complete, we were interviewed by Ron L. in Omaha, the shlicha that serves the Omaha Jewish community. Her notes about our interview were sent to the Jewish Agency in Israel and now we must wait 2 months before we get permission to apply for a visa.  The timing seems long, especially since we've been working on the aliyah process for over a year, but I suppose if one has waited to age almost 70 to actually make aliyah, another month or two is really nothing in the scheme of things. So what are we doing while we wait?  We are learning about how to send some of our household effects overseas, figuring out what we will take ...

Once we decided we wanted to make aliyah, we connected with Nefesh B'Nefesh in Jerusalem.  The organization is amazing.  It led us through the paperwork needed, provided guidance about questions that arose, and kept track of the file that we had to submit to the Jewish agency.  Nefesh B'Nefesh even assigned us our own personal Aliyah counselor who was more than willing to answer our questions.  In addition, we took advantage of various Nefesh B'Nefesh webinars including ones about the health care system in Israel, retiring in Israel, and banking in Israel.  The entire process has been one of learning, trying to prepare ourselves for the changes that will take place, and trying to be somewhat organized for the actual date when we will be making Aliyah.