KUMMUNIQUE

Shalom! We are proud to present another issue of Kummunique.
This issue is filled with Aliyah and Eretz Yisrael inspiration - so enjoy!

In this issue you will find:

1. "Observing Holocaust Remembrance Day Through Aliyah" by Ezra Halevi
2. "At The Top Of Her Game After Only 5 Months In Israel" by Amir Mizroch
3. "From Brooklyn To The Negev desert" By Hanson Hosein

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

1. "Observing Holocaust Remembrance Day Through Aliyah" by Ezra Halevi
From Israel National News

American Jew Scott Dubin moved to Israel Tuesday, having decided that the ultimate observance of Yom HaShoah, Holocaust Remembrance Day, is to participate in the rebirth of the State of Israel.


"I was looking at dates and had a choice between today and tomorrow," Dubin told Israel National Radio's Yishai Fleisher and Alex Traiman Show. "When I saw the opportunity to arrive in Israel the morning of Yom HaShoah in Israel, I knew it was the right day to celebrate our rebirth and renewal in our land."

Dubin, who worked to promote Aliyah (immigration to Israel) among young Jewish Americans while living in the US, under the auspices of the Jewish Agency and later the Reform Movement, represents a growing trend in the younger generation of American post-denominational Jewish youth. He has many friends that have already made the move, and though not outwardly observant, clings to his own spirituality and acknowledged truths in a way that can only lead toward the Land of Israel.

In an age where multiple planeloads of American Jews arrive and greeted by dignitaries, IDF brigades and musical accompaniment, Dubin's lone arrival was somewhat old-fashioned, yet nonetheless quite memorable. "I actually got bumped up to business class by a very nice Russian olah (immigrant to Israel) who had been working at El Al overseas for the year and was excited to help out a fellow oleh," Dubin said. "I was met at the airport by a great friend of mine, who picked me up and brought me to Tel Aviv, where I met another friend, Natan Gesher, and dropped off my things at his home."

Dubin, a 23-year-old Atlanta native, will be living in Tel Aviv for at least the first few months as an Israeli, while preparing for the World Zionist Congress in June, for which he is a delegate.

Like many American olim-by-choice (as opposed to immigrants from countries experiencing anti-Semitism or economic woes), Scott's parents had a difficult time with their only son's decision to move across the ocean. "There were a lot of tears at the airport," Dubin admits. "I know it is not easy for my parents and will not be easy for them, but I think their strength and conviction that I am making the right decision will keep them strong."

Dubin is the first member of his extended family to move to Israel and is the last carrier of the Dubin name. His grandfather, a Philadelphia native, was always intrigued and supportive of his grandson's decision to make the Promised Land his own. "My grandfather, until the end of his life, was always the person in my family that this made sense to," Dubin said. "When I told him years ago that I wanted to do this he never questioned it – and instead just began asking me 'When is the big day? How can I help out?" Even though he isn't with us anymore, I know he is pleased that I have brought the family name to Israel."

As for all the Jews still in the Exile, Dubin believes that the younger generation, like those who entered Israel after the Jews wandered the desert for 40 years after the Exodus, are ready for an 'Aliyah revolution.' "I think there is definitely a buzz and an understanding that it is the thing to do," he said. "Before I left on Aliyah, I spoke at Nefesh b'Nefesh events, at an Israeli film festival and to youth in other forums. A full-court press is needed. When we went to war to defend Israel in the War of Independence, it was important that we close ranks and fight one battle. It is now important to come together - the left, the right, the secular, the religious, the Orthodox and the Reform – to work together to support those who are coming."

Dubin insists that regardless of religious denomination, young people are the key to bringing a larger chunk of North American Jewry home to Israel than anyone hopes or anticipates. "I hope that every Jew in the Exile comes on a plane today to the Land of Israel, but [in order for that to become a reality] we have to remember what Herzl said in The Jewish State – that old prisoners do not leave their cells willingly and it will be the job of the youth to turn enthusiasm into action. We have to know that it is the young generation that will actualize the vision. If all I can get are those under 18 then we will take them. We have to be working with organizations in the US – organizations such as the Jewish Agency, Nefesh b'Nefesh, Tehillah and Kumah. I am now happy to say that both the Conservative and Reform movements now have specified Aliyah programs. There is even a gar'in [core-group of immigrants] from the Reform movement coming this summer. We have to continue working with the youth and that will light the sparks of the revolution and bring them all over."

Asked if pulling Jews home from Israel is as effective as pushing them and "lighting the sparks of revolution" from the states, Dubin said that he believes it is. "When olim arrive we need to make sure they know that they can still effectively spread the message of Aliyah. Every time you call home or come in contact with a birthright trip or a friend studying for the year in Israel, you really have to let them know that they, too, are home and not just visiting."

Dubin, always the activist, began brainstorming with radio hosts Fleisher and Traiman on ways to convince American Jewish visitors that Israel is not some sort of spiritual Disneyland to be visited and draw strength from, but a place to call home on every level. "Maybe we should block the streets so Jewish tour buses can't reach the airports to go home," Dubin suggested half-seriously. "Maybe we should go to the hotels and encourage people to get rid of their return tickets."

Fleisher mentioned an idea he has promoted for years. To stage a massive rally of olim in Israel, standing with literally open arms and inviting their brethren back in their old countries to come home.

Dubin said that although Aliyah for him consisted of saving up a certain amount of money and dealing with logistics, he is dedicating his Aliyah to a group of people who are having a much harder time reaching the Land of Israel. "There are 15,000 Falsh Mura who are still living in camps in Addis Ababa and Gondar in Ethiopia, waiting to come to Israel. Many are dying of TB and even chicken pox due to the condition and for less than $500 a person they can be brought home to Israel. I encourage anyone who wants to help them reach Israel to do so."

Summing up his first day, Dubin said simply, "I am happy to be home. The weather is perfect and I think G-d will hopefully hold back the rain for me for a while so I can enjoy this beautiful day."

Click here to listen to the interview with Scott Dubin

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

2. "At The Top Of Her Game After Only 5 Months In Israel" by Amir Mizroch
From Jerusalem Post

Rebecca Glueck (pronounced "Glick") has achieved quite a lot since making aliya five months ago. Originally from Kansas, this 23-year-old has managed to obtain citizenship, find an apartment, enroll in ulpan, become one of the best players in the women's soccer league, get called up to the national women's national soccer team, find a social network and be interviewed on Dudu Topaz's television show.

She has every reason to be optimistic, but...

"I'm so frustrated with learning Hebrew. I feel like I'm on the verge of understanding everything, but I'm not there yet," she said at an Ibn Gvirol cafe, frustrated that she hasn't mastered the ancient Semitic language in only five months.

She gets up at 7 a.m., hits snooze on her cell phone "like 15,000 times" and then heads off to Ulpan Gordon in Tel Aviv for five hours.

Extremely fit - she runs every morning, goes to the gym, practices soccer twice a week and plays one match a week - Glueck won't allow herself to indulge in much of what the city has to offer, unlike some other soccer players here, who she thinks don't take themselves seriously enough. She has nothing but praise, however, for teammates at the Ironi Ramat Hasharon Soccer Club.

Tracing Rebecca's journey to aliya is not easy, so where did the idea of coming to Israel to play soccer originate?

"After I graduated [from college], my dad asked me what I was going to do next. I'm not sure what the exact thing was, but I've always had a special place in my heart for Israel, and I love soccer. So I wondered if Israel had soccer.

"My parents took me to Israel when I was in my early teens. My family has friends here, and we keep in touch. My dad offered me [a chance] to come to Israel. His best friend comes here all the time on business. My father said I would have great opportunities if I wanted to go.

"My dad loves Israel. His heart is in Israel."

Why is he not here? "My mom, she wants to be close to her grandchildren."

"So I said I would give it a go, and I knew already what kinds of opportunities were waiting for me... I wanted to meet with universities and I had no appointments set up - and at some point I was quite discouraged. A few days before I came here I went on a run, and I was thinking to myself: Man, I'm going to Israel. What am I going to Israel for? I'm crazy. I'm so unprepared.

"The Jewish Agency's aliya emissary in Los Angeles, the person who had been helping me all along, sent me an e-mail before I came here, saying the national women's soccer coach [was] waiting [for my] call."

AN EXUBERANT, animated, athletic and smart young woman, Glueck is still finding her feet in her new home off the field. On the field, she is an aggressive, confident striker, playing out ahead of the pack. Off the field, she seems more easy-going and open to "whatever."

"I don't like anything boring in my life. I like to have fun. It's not fun if things are normal. I came here looking to find where my heart might be, you know what I mean?" she said.

"When Israeli guys hear that I'm a soccer player they're kind of awed. They're like: women play soccer in Israel? Really? I guess I don't look much like a soccer player. I think I look more like a nurse," she laughed.

Currently, there are at least four Israeli-born female soccer players playing on college teams in the US, and they usually join the national squad for international games. Rebecca is the only American-born college star and new immigrant playing on the women's national team.

Two days after arriving here, Glueck was introduced to the Ironi Ramat Hasharon women's soccer coach, who immediately realized her potential and guided her to the Wingate Institute, where she met the national women's soccer coach, Alan Shaier.

"The [national] coach reminded me of my all-time-favorite-in-the-entire-world coach back in Kansas," Glueck said. "We clicked so well and immediately. He didn't ask me any personal questions, like where I was from or anything like that. He wanted to know what position I played, what I thought of the game, technical stuff.

"We spoke for a few hours, at the end of which he invited me to join in a friendly game the team was playing that afternoon against a male team made up of Wingate sportsmen."

"Ten minutes later I find myself wearing a white-and-blue sports uniform. I've been in Israel for just a few days. I've met the national coach and now I'm out on the field and I'm like YEAH! Is this happening to me? God, thank you so much!"

"The coach told me just to relax and get out there. He also put me out with the forwards, up front [even though Rebecca had played midfield in college]," she said. "All of a sudden I got the ball, beat a defender, I take a shot, and it goes in the goal. We won 1-0. I was in La-La land."

"Being a striker takes a lot more confidence than playing in midfield, it's a lot more pressure," she added. "You have to be ready and stay composed when you're right in front of the goal. And I'm a bit of scrapper, I really get in there," she said, punching her way through imaginary defenders with her arms and legs in excitement, drawing the attention of caf -goers around her.

AFTER THAT practice game, the coach invited Rebecca to stay the weekend at Wingate to take part in a training camp for the national woman's team. "The girls here are more technically proficient than they are fit," said Glueck, who describes herself as a "fitness-holic."

"It's less of a running game here, less physical. Still, the national team could beat most, if not all, US college teams, and could compete on the international level. We're getting stronger every day."

In the past month, the team has beaten Cyprus 6-1 and drawn with Wales 1-1 in a 2007 Women's World Cup preliminary. Glueck scored the first goal in the Cyprus match, her first official goal for Israel in her first game.

"I nearly started crying when they played the national anthem in Cyprus. I'm standing there and thinking, 'I'm playing for Israel. It's such a great feeling.'"

Right now, what concerns Glueck is an endorsement. She doesn't make any real money from her sport, and one day, in a rare acknowledgement of a minor technicality, she realizes she will have to do other things to survive here.

"How many fans even come to our games?" she asked, explaining why women's soccer is nowhere near as lucrative as its male counterpart. "Usually a lot less than one hundred."

Her club team has a few team sponsors, like chocolate brands, but none of the players have personal sponsors or endorsements from private firms. Glueck, as well as her other teammates, gets a salary, and she also receives some financial assistance from the government as a new immigrant.

"But you know, it won't last. I can't survive next year after the money from the government stops," she said. "My dad sends me checks all the time, and I rip them up. I look at them first, but I rip them up. My parents have done everything for me, but I want to make it here on my own."

So, what do you plan to do after the soccer season ends in May?

"Nursing."

Rebecca studied nursing at Southeastern Louisiana University while she starred for the school's Division I soccer team, the Lady Lions.
And then?

"I live my life day-to-day," she said. "If you're not happy today, then tomorrow is not even worth it. I'll worry about tomorrow, tomorrow."
What about your future?

"I see myself here in Israel, hopefully married and starting my own family. I just got my passport," she added gleefully. "It says I'm Israeli."

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

3. "From Brooklyn to the Negev desert" By Hanson Hosein
From MSNBC

American Jews journey to Israel — to bunk with a Bedouin tribe

DERAGOT, Israel, July 17 - The Bedouin are renowned for their relentless wandering across the Arabian peninsula. The Jewish "diaspora" refers to the millennia-old exile of Jews from their biblical homeland as they dispersed around the globe. But the Abu Hamad tribe, 800-strong, have parked their caravans and now live in the makeshift village of Deragot, deep in the Negev desert. And last week, the Julian family of Brooklyn left their home in America for good. They took temporary refuge — in the Bedouin village.

NOW THE FOUR Julian children help feed the sheep. And they all sleep fitfully under the stars on a rooftop, where it's cooler at night, but noise from the dogs, donkeys and roosters often wake them. Their reward is a spectacular sunrise that bathes the barren land in golden light.

"It's a good experience for all of us, especially for my kids," Hannah Julian said. "They will learn things here they will learn nowhere else in Israel."

The Julians were part of a mass exodus of 330 American Jews who left JFK last week on an 747 jet. They were part of an ambitious plan hatched by the American-Israeli organization Nefesh B'Nefesh ("Soul to Soul" in Hebrew) to bring at least a thousand North American Jews to Israel by the end of July. Every Jew has the automatic "right to return" to Israel. But immigration to the Jewish state has dropped since the violent Palestinian uprising began in September 2000. In 2002, 34,831 Jews moved to Israel, compared to the 76,766 who did so in 1999.

The immigrants are well taken care of when they arrive, and are assigned Israeli families to stay with until they can move into permanent residence.

But Sinai and Hannah Julian had other plans. And it's all because of Younis Abu Hamad, a Bedouin tour guide and the couple's friend.

"What are you doing in New York?" According to Hannah Julian, that's what Abu Hamad asked her when the Bedouin first met them during a trip to Israel a year and a half ago, "You're a Jew," he said. "This is supposed to be your place."

It was all the convincing the Julians needed. They had been planning to move to Israel for years, and they saw Abu Hamad's invitation as a sign that they should finally come. And when they did, the Bedouin insisted they stay in his house until their apartment in nearby Arad was ready.

"They're wonderful people," Sinai Julian said. "They've been like family to us."

SPECIAL RELATIONSHIP It's unusual enough that Arab and Jew should get along so well here, especially during a volatile period where a tenuous truce could erupt in violence at any time. It's even more strange that urban Americans would choose to spend their first days in a new land, living in such Spartan conditions in the desert, near the Dead Sea.

However, the 185,000 Bedouin of Israel, have typically been on good terms with the Jewish state. Some have even served in the Israeli army and are famed for their tracking skills. Yet, these Arabs have been a slow collision course with Israel, because of their land claims in the Negev. There have been a number of expropriations and evictions as the Israeli government eyes further development in the region that accounts for nearly half of the country's land mass.

Deragot is an "illegal" Bedouin village, according to the Israeli government. Younis Abu Hamad's family built their homes here without a permit — which is why they don't receive any services from the state, such as running water or sewage. They maintain a large generator that supplies the village with electricity.

Still, the Bedouin don't have the same highly-charged dispute with Israel as do the Palestinians who live in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. The Palestinians claim their own "right of return," and are frustrated that the Israeli version has only resulted in their further displacement. The Julians may have exercised their rights under Israeli law, and immigrated with relative ease. Still, Abu Hamad says he doesn't believe he's contributing to the plight of his fellow Arabs by encouraging more Jews to come here.

"The people can live together," he said. "It's not a matter of your religion, or your color." He pointed at the Julians. "We are a special example for other people. To come, and to try, and to sit, and to speak together."

The tour guide added that sometimes when a hotel asks him to lead a group of Jewish tourists, they will refuse to go out with him, even when the hotel's Israeli management stands up for him.

"People are afraid because I'm not a Jew," he said.

'RESPECT' FOUNDATION OF FRIENDSHIP

The Julians say a few of their friends wondered if they were crazy to accept Arab hospitality.

"The fact of the matter is, Jews and Bedouin can live together with no problem," Hannah Julian said. "They respect our customs, we respect theirs."

Sinai does his prayers in the garden, in plain view of the rest of the village. This deeply religious family is still able to keep a kosher kitchen because Abu Hamad has given them a house to themselves. All the children play with each other, resorting often to sign language. And Bedouin modesty has a lot in common with Orthodox Jewish decorum, along with the separation between men and women who aren't married to each other.

"I've probably got less of a chance of being attacked here in this village as a Jew than I have in the streets of Jerusalem or Tel Aviv today," Hannah Julian said. She added that the terrorist attacks against America on Sept. 11 prove that nowhere is really safe. "If God really wants me, he knows where to find me."

This is the kind of attitude that heartens the Israel government.

"We don't cower before terrorism," Israel's finance minister, Binyamin Netanyahu, said in an interview. He said the renewed interest among American Jews to move here proves Israel will ultimately triumph. "It is telling the terrorists you're not going to succeed. This is the ultimate victory over terrorism."

Nefesh B'Nefesh's Tony Gelbart said there's been very little fear of violence among the Americans he has helped emigrate. "You would think terror or turmoil will deter these people," he said. "But actually, it eggs them on, it pushes them forward."

DEMOGRAPHIC TIME BOMB

Immigration is crucial to the future of Israel, whether or not the current U.S.-backed peace initiative succeeds or not. Officials worriedly point to the demographic time bomb that forecasts that sometime within the next two decades, Arabs will outnumber Jews in the area that makes up Israel, the West Bank and Gaza. And they say that threatens the viability of the Jewish state.

Which is why even Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon was on hand to welcome the Julians and the other American Jews when they landed at Tel Aviv's Ben Gurion Airport last week. Israelis are positively thrilled that citizens from their closest, and strongest ally, opted to leave the comfort of America to move here.

"We always needed you," Sharon told the new arrivals. "But now, we need you much more than ever."

There are still about a million more Jews in the United States than in Israel. But Nefesh B'Nefesh says it hopes to encourage another hundred thousand to join this latest group in the next 10 years.

The Julians say they're excited to finally be here. Sinai hopes to teach English in the town of Arad. Hannah is a social worker, and runs a Jewish attention deficit disorder group in the United States, so she'll have to commute between both countries for a few months. This duality also affects their children.

"When you come here, it feels like you're home," 12-ear-old Kobi Julian said. "But then you go back to America and you feel like you're home too."

Nonetheless, her parents say they're making an important statement by choosing to live here — and to befriend Arabs.

"This is family," Sinai said, pointing to the Abu Hamads. "We all have the same roots, going back to our father Abraham. It's time for the family to come together. And stop having this family fight."

Shalom! We are proud to present another issue of Kummunique.
This issue is filled with Aliyah and Eretz Yisrael inspiration - so enjoy!

In this issue you will find:

1. "They Tried To Destroy Us, We Won, Let's Eat" by Malkah Fleisher
2. "Have I Done the Right Thing?" by Go´el Jasper
3. "Understanding the Exodus Personally: The Kibbutz Haggadah" By Carol Novis
4. "Insight Into the Heart Of Israel" by Jeremy Gimpel and Ari Abramowitz

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------


1. "They Tried To Destroy Us, We Won, Let's Eat" by Malkah Fleisher

Passover is often degraded into a Jewish gastronomic experience. "Oh no, no rugelach!" "Oy, more matzah?" "Be careful to check and make sure there's no kitniyot in that pasta sauce!"

But Passover isn't about food. Did you hear that? PASSOVER ISN'T ABOUT FOOD.

As I declare war on things like bread crust and cereal flakes, I feel more strongly than ever that Passover isn't a "food" holiday. Passover is an intense, life-consuming meditation, a bold assertion of our odd identity in this world.

We eat matzah, we avoid leavened products like the plague (pardon the pun), we spend hours around the table partaking in symbolic foods, and recalling one wild night we experienced 2,000 years ago. For what?

Sometimes we forget how personal our Jewishness is. Sometimes the Torah seems "legendary", our laws antiquated, our practices ritualistic (G-d forbid!). Passover comes to remind you that it's all so modern, it's all so personal, that it's as if it just happened yesterday - that it's happening right now. Your G-d has come to redeem you - right now. The world is being turned upside down in submission to your formidable righteousness, your intimate association with the Creator of the World - right now. You are being wisked out of your miserable rut and into the clean desert winds of promise - right now.

You tied the lamb to your bed post. You threw the dough together with shaking hands. You sat up all night, considering how to explain everything to the kids. You let tears fall as you heard the screams rise up out of Egypt. You pleaded with stubborn Jews who were too stuck, too lost to leave a land of squash, leeks, melon, onions, and garlic. You felt your shoulders slump as a massive army came to return you to bondage. And you saw G-d bend nature around His love for you.

For one night a year, we return to Egypt. Every year, we're freed, with an outstretched hand, with signs and wonders. We don't "commemorate" the exodus from Egypt. We don't "practice" Judaism. We live it - past, present, future, all fresh, all real, all relevant.

Eat the matzah. Drink the wine. You'll need your strength in the wilderness.


Here's a Passover recipe from a proud Kumah family, the Brenners of Beit Yatir:

Passover Apple Cake

2 cups potato flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup oil
3 eggs
3/4 cup brewed, cold coffee (decaff)
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
2 1/2 cups apples or pears, peeled and sliced
1 cup chopped nuts (optional)

Dissolve baking soda in the coffee. Mix dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl, stir in wet ingredients and blend. Add fruit and nuts. Pour into a greased pan. Bake at 180 degrees for 50-60 minutes or until it tests done. Cool cake for 10 minutes, then invert pan over plate. Sprinkle with powderd sugar (optional) and serve warm or at room temperature.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

2. "Have I Done the Right Thing?" by Go´el Jasper
From Israel National News


Every week, with my co-host Dr. Simcha Shapiro, I talk the Aliyah talk on Arutz Sheva's "The Aliyah Revolution" show. We help people understand that Israel is the place for all Jews; that this is the place to raise your kids; that, while the US was great to us, Israel is where the future of the Jewish people is unfolding.

But the other day, I thought, "What about the people who are already here, the ones who have already made the move?"

How do you inspire someone who is already inspired? How do you motivate someone to make a decision they've already made?

I started to think things through and I realized that there is one thing that brings all recent olim together. You might say that it's the mere fact that we're all olim. And that's true, but there are plenty of olim who have now been here for decades.

You might say that many of us were products of Nefesh B'Nefesh. And that's true, as well, and we owe them so much. But we've all gone off in different directions since we got off the flight, right?

Let me offer what I think the one thing is that brings us all together.

Your kids are picking up the language and the culture, but boy do they miss their grandparents. Your community is great, but it's just not the same as fill-in-the-blank (Baltimore, for us). And what I wouldn't do for an American hot dog, with American mustard on an American hot dog bun - preferably while watching an American baseball game.

The one question that brings us together?

Did I do the right thing by picking myself and - in many cases - my family up and moving to this place?

Here I am, a bit over one year since we made Aliyah, and I think about all that has happened to me and to my family. Just a quick review:

Things started happening fast. I received a job offer on my Nefesh B'Nefesh flight. A week after we arrived, my grandmother, zichrona livracha, passed away. I started working for Ruder Finn, the PR firm that represents Nefesh B'Nefesh, and had the opportunity to be "on the other side" when last summer's flights arrived. I became host of The Aliyah Revolution, the very radio show that had played such a major role in helping my family to make Aliyah.

The government decided to leave Gaza, so we all watched thousands of our brothers and sisters leave their homes. And we bought our first Israeli home in the town of Kochav Yaakov. It's a house less than half the size of our house in Baltimore, but my wife says that she wouldn't trade this one for that one in a million years.

My wife gave birth to Yitzchak Yehuda, our little First Generation Yerushalmi, in a delivery room at Hadassah Hospital that had a view of the Temple Mount. My six-year old, Tzviki, landed in a class with zero English-speakers - including the teachers - and refused to speak any Hebrew for the first eight months we lived here. But he also became an English-language bookworm, and has plowed through more than 100 books. And he also speaks Hebrew now.

Late last year, my grandfather, zichrono livracha, also passed away. I arrived in Israel with two living grandparents. Now, just over a year later, I have none.

A couple months ago, Hamas came to power.

My father paid his first visit to Israel - at the age of 61 - to visit us. He and my step-mom arrived concerned about even having a good time in this "third-world country filled with rude people." He left after the two-week visit concerned about how long he could be away before returning for his next visit.

Just a couple of weeks ago, on Shabbat, my daughter Tehilla was hit in the forehead by a rock thrown by a little boy in our town. His father, without an ounce of remorse in his voice, simply reported to me what had happened. But he also went with us to the doctor's house and stayed there until he knew everything was okay.

And just last week, elections. Based on the result, who knows what will be in the coming year.

So, there you have it. A year in review. Many, many important events left out. But as I look back on this first year one thing is clear:

What an intense life we are leading here.

And therein lies a hint about the answer to the question of whether recent olim have made the right decision. How much meaning do you want in your life? How much depth? How much do you want to be sitting on your couch watching Jewish history pass by, versus actively participating in it?

But again, that's just a hint. The real answer will come from each of us. There's no one answer that will fit all of us.

And here's how to arrive at the answer for yourself:

What is the fundamental reason you made Aliyah? It wasn't so that you could hear your kids growing up with Israeli accents when they speak Hebrew; although that's great, isn't it? It wasn't because of the seventeen different happy birthday songs they sing in Israeli kindergartens; although that's amazing, too. And it certainly wasn't simply because of the ability to ski in the Golan in the morning and hang out on the beach of the Dead Sea in the afternoon; although, that's more than possible here.

It's something deeper. For some, it might be the ability to live as a member of the majority in the only place where that's possible for a Jew. For others, it's simply a mitzvah to live here, and so they have decided to do that mitzvah.

For me? I made Aliyah because I believe that the more Jews there are living in Israel, the closer the Mashiach is to arriving. And I really, really want that to happen, so I'm here doing my little part. But that's just my reason.

What's your fundamental reason for making Aliyah? You've got to figure it out and keep it in mind. Tape it to your refrigerator if you have to. But keep it in mind, because this is an intense place. We've all experienced it. We've all felt the exhaustion of no Sundays. The pain of being away from family. The challenges of income not necessarily matching expenses.

Yes, we're here. Yes, we made Aliyah. But what brings us together is the need - not the desire, but the need - to live here until 120 years, no matter what happens along the way. Because we each have big fish to fry. We each have a larger, fundamental reason for being here.

As long as we always keep in mind what that fundamental reason is, we will stay no matter what happens along the way; and we will live long, meaningful lives in the land designated for the Jewish people, the land promised to our forefathers.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

3. "Understanding the Exodus Personally: The Kibbutz Haggadah" By Carol Novis
From the Forward

On Passover, Jews are told to read the Haggadah (literally "the telling") as if one personally had been a slave in Egypt and then redeemed. By individualizing the text, each person confronts the narrative in new ways, in terms of his or her own life and times.

The result has been a multiplicity of Haggadot through the ages, each with its own way of viewing freedom, history and tradition. So different are they that today you can find Haggadot for feminists, for children, for families, and even for vegetarians and Buddhists.

No group, though, has taken the reinterpretation of the traditional Haggadah more seriously than the kibbutz movement, which over the years has produced an estimated 1,000 different versions. Taken together, these Haggadot offer a fascinating perspective on the still evolving social movement.

Of all Jewish texts, the Haggadah had special significance for the early kibbutz pioneers because it dealt with concepts important to their ideology: national freedom and socialist ideals.

"The Haggadah particularly resonated with the early kibbutznikim because they felt that they were like the people who had gone out of Egypt," historian Muki Tzur said. "They saw the Haggadah as a historical text." Tzur, a renowned ideologue of the kibbutz movement, was an editor of the seminal book "The Seventh Day: Soldiers Talk about the Six-Day War." He lives on Kibbutz Ein Gev, located on the shores of the Sea of Galilee.

Tzur has edited a lavishly illustrated book with designer Yuval Danieli, titled "Yotzim B'Hodesh Ha'aviv" ("Going Out in the Month of Spring"), which was published in 2004 by Yad Yitzhak Ben Zvi, the Ben-Gurion Institute, Yad Tabenkin and Yad Ya'ari. It includes extracts, designs and explanations from hundreds of kibbutz Haggadot written between the late 1920s and the '60s. The book was a joint project of four research institutes: Yad Yitzhak Ben Zvi, the Ben-Gurion Heritage Institute, Yad Tabenkin and Yad Ya'ari.

The staggering number of kibbutz Haggadot can be attributed to the fact that few were actually printed; most were simply stenciled in small numbers to be used in a particular year by a particular kibbutz. It was only later that official kibbutz federations published standard versions.

Even the Orthodox kibbutzim made the Haggadah their own, though they did so more through addition than through alteration.

Tzur points out that the first Passovers in Israel were difficult and strange for the early kibbutzniks, and the traditional text didn't speak to their new circumstances.

"The sight of the Passover tables just reminded them how far they were from their parents and their homes. Of course they knew the traditional text, but they didn't use it, because it made them too homesick. It was a very sad evening. They would just sing, and slowly they began to add parts into the Haggadah."

By contrast, in the cities of pre-state Israel, Jews tended to read the traditional parts of the Haggadah quickly and then congregate in the streets to sing and dance — "an unintentional return," Tzur noted, "to the times of the Temple, when Passover was like a big community gathering. In Europe, there was always danger to Jews in the streets. When you opened the door to Elijah, there was fear that there could be a pogrom. It was a night of danger. Here, the Jews felt they could celebrate openly."

Kibbutz Seders have been traditionally communal rather than intimate. (The reason for this is that early kibbutznikim had no families here and so the community substituted for family.)

"It's a big evening, with hundreds of people," Tzur said.

Of course, Seders this big do pose certain challenges. At home, if the kids are bored you can skip a part of the Haggadah. With 400 people, skipping isn't an option.

As the kibbutz Seder matured it developed into more of cultural happening, with classical music, literary readings, music and a choir. The Haggadah became a symbol of the revolutionary vision of the people of the kibbutz and a record of their own experiences.

References to the Holocaust began appearing in Haggadot early on, often in connection with calls for revenge. ("Pour out thy wrath upon the nations.")

Much of the Haggadah came to be seen through the prism of the kibbutz experience.

The Four Questions were recast in a new idiom. One kibbutz Haggadah asked, "When will all the Diaspora Jews come back to Israel?" (The answer was ambivalent: "That question will always be asked.")

Another asked, "Why are there rich and poor, hungry and full, instead of giving a helping hand to others?"

At Kibbutz Ein Harod in the 1930s and '40s, the Four Questions were: "Why do people all over the world hate Jews? When will the Jews return to their land? When will our land become a fertile garden? When will there be peace and brotherhood in the world?"

The section on the four sons, traditionally "the wise son," "the wicked son," "the simple son" and "the one who doesn't know to ask," were also altered frequently. Sometimes they became a satire of people on the kibbutz. The Wise Son, for example, became the kibbutz treasurer; the Wicked Son, the member who arranged the work assignments.

At other times they referred to ideological issues. Such is the case in the 1951 Beit Ha'emek Haggadah, in which the wise son asked, "What are all the political parties, movements and factions in our young country that interfere in matters of state at such a fateful time?"

The song "Had Gadya" ("One Kid"), which seems, on the face of it, to be a simple nursery rhyme about a dog that ate a cat that ate a kid, and so on — ending in the Holy One killing the Angel of Death — was also of particular importance to kibbutzniks, who invented many versions of their own. Not only did they translate it from the original Aramaic to modern Hebrew, but they also changed the focus of the song from the macabre to the ideal. "Had Gadya" became a song in which people cooperated with each other, instead of killing each other, in a socialist model.

"Everybody beating everyone else seemed antisocial to the members of the early kibbutzim," Tzur said, "so they used the same characters, but the cat and dog, for example, all built one kibbutz."

Today, Tzur said, the situation is more complex. Although communal Seders are still held, many kibbutz members choose to hold smaller, family-centered ones instead.

"It's a sociological change. The early kibbutz members were orphans — spiritually, if not in reality. Now, they have rebuilt their families, and these families have grown large."

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

4. "Insight Into the Heart Of Israel" by Jeremy Gimpel and Ari Abramowitz
The Land Of Israel.com

A tiny Jewish army equipped with little more than spitballs and slingshots defeated a massive Arab coalition united in their unwavering passion to destroy our beloved Jewish state.

In short, that about sums up the War of Independence. The nations feared and respected the Jewish People, and we walked upright and proud.

58 years later: "We are tired of fighting. We are tired of being courageous. We are tired of winning. We are tired of defeating our enemies." Ehud Olmert. And a Prime Minister was elected on that platform! (G-d forbid).

How could we have sunk to such depths? Where is our resolve?

During our service in various infantry units of the IDF, we encountered a comprehensive cross section of Israeli society and there was one terrifying theme: No one knew who the first King of Israel was! King David would have been flattered at his popularity, but even more disappointed that his beloved flock didn't know of his predecessor, King Saul.

Our fellow soldiers, upon discovering that we volunteered for our service in the Israeli Army, began to question our sanity and beg us for our American passports, expressing their deepest desire to shed their IDF uniforms and leave Israel for good.

Could Ehud Olmert be right? Have we given up on the dream?

As always, we turn to the bible and Jewish teachings for inspiration and understanding. We are approaching the Holiday of Passover. As Sabbath commemorates the creation of Heaven and Earth, Passover marks the creation of the Jewish people as a nation.

When the Jewish people emerged from hundreds of years of slavery in Egypt, they trekked through the desert as G-d tended to their every need. As a fire lead them by night and a cloud during the day, their food was miraculously delivered in the form of Manna falling daily from heaven.

Imagine a young child born in the desert who has never seen a tree bare fruit, or his father work the land. When his food fell from heaven he saw no miracle; just nature in action. For this desert Jew, Manna falling from the sky was just as natural as an apple falling from a tree.

Unfortunately, this is the condition of so many of our brothers and sisters living here in Israel. For them, Israel is the only prism through which they can fathom reality. They were born into this dream, surrounded by Jews their entire lives, speaking only Hebrew and exactly for that reason they don�t see the blatant miracle of the State of Israel. How can one not be honored to serve in the first Jewish army since the times of King David?

There are many causes that contributed to the spiritual bankruptcy, lack of historical understanding, and biblical ignorance of the Israeli masses and the first step to solving this crisis is to acknowledge and understand it.

This Passover, as we celebrate the biblical Genesis of the Jewish nation, we must focus on the future of our people. This Passover, we should not sit next to friends at the Seder table, but next to children. We should go out of our way and invite those who are less connected to our heritage to teach them and inspire them. We must make things real, not abstract.

The Torah is the spiritual blueprint of the universe and when studied correctly we are given the key that opens the door to the secrets of our existence. After surviving the reign of a modern Pharaoh that organized and executed the most horrific persecution in the history of mankind, we are in the spiritual Sinai desert that our Torah spoke about thousands of years ago.

Let this Passover be a starting point. Let us look at our lives with courage and intellectual honesty, however painful that may be. If we find ourselves living in a self imposed exile, raising our children in a nation not our own, is the payoff worth the price? Have we relegated ourselves to a life of mediocrity and compromise backed by justifications and rationalizations?

We are not prisoners to the past and we are not prisoners of the present. Each moment is a new creation, and our greatest gift is that we have the free will to make it our own.

It is our decision. Are we the generation of slaves who perish in the Desert fearing change and the unknown, or are we a free people meriting to enter the Land flowing with milk and honey? Let us prove Ehud Olmert wrong and show him that we are not tired of fighting because unlike him, we understand who we are and what we are fighting for.