Attention: No Spin Zone!

I have a few things to add to the last post. This is directed at any and all people who doubt Israel's right to exist. It comes out of reading many blog entries in which commentors are getting bogged down in the details of what I'm just going to call the "Crisis of the Day," because I think looking at the big picture is very useful.

Let me also just say that I guess I'm a Christian Zionist. Now I'm reluctant to "brand" myself with that name, because

A. While I've heard the term bandied about, I really don't know for sure what the "Christian Zionist" platform or beliefs are, or even if they have a platform or set beliefs, or any type of organizing body, and

B. I don't really feel like joining a group, as I'm more dynamic than any of the groups I've encountered!

But the facts remain that I am both a strong Christian and a passionate zionist, so I guess "if the shoe fits..."

So, returning to my soapbox:
Who in their right mind would doubt Israel's right to exist??!! Look around, people!! The land that God gave to Israel has been brought from a backwater, malaria-infested desert and swampland dotted with some archaic villages and one small city, and transformed into a thriving nation with great infrastructure, beautified areas, and tons of cities and towns, all in the space of... for the most part, 70 or so years. And don't even get me started on how ridiculous it is that people and governments who cared nothing about this unimproved land when they had it for nearly two thousand years, suddenly value this land now that it's been improved...

How do you think Israel pulled this off? Do you really think all of this progress was the result of a United Nations declaration? Or do you think it's because a group of Holocaust survivors landed upon the shore and (many in sick and emaciated condition) started working the land? Or do you think that it was made possible by these settler's zeal to be back in their land?

No. That is not how modern-day Israel came into being. Of course, all of the above factors did exist, but they existed because God orchestrated them. The Almighty didn't just find a convenient set of circumstances, and say, "Hey, I might as well use these factors to my advantage and bring my people back here. After all, I did give them this land forever as their inheritance." (Although, even if He had just done that, it would have been enough... )

But no: As difficult as it is for EVERYONE to accept, whether Muslim, Christian, or Jewish; God worked out the situation precisely. I'm sorry if that offends you. But if it does, I recommend that you take it up with God and not shoot the messenger (me). May I say, it's comforting to know at least that all three of our faiths believe in one God. Maybe this one commonality is a good place to start working toward understanding.

Finally, please accept my sincere apologies for all the run-on sentences in this post!!

Reality Check

I wrote this as a comment to an Arab on OlehGirl's blog, and I thought it was worth copying on my blog as well:
Let's cut the crap and be real here: You're wrong about Israel being "occupied land." I know Muslims have been living there a long time, people have been displaced, they will fight to the death, they don't think it's fair, etc., etc. We all know that no matter how many concessions Israel makes, how much "land for peace" Israel gives, and how many peace treaties both sides sign, Palestinians will not stop the violence until they get back every bit of what they perceive as their land. But you know what? YOUR ARGUMENT IS NOT WITH ISRAEL. YOUR ARGUMENT IS WITH THE ALMIGHTY, WHO GAVE THIS LAND TO ISRAEL AS A PERMANENT INHERITANCE. So you can fight all you want: in the end, after a whole lot of bloodshed and war, do you know who will get this land? Israel will. You might as well stop fighting G-d, because you won't ever win a fight against the Almighty.

Now, for some comic relief:

Underwear Is Very Important! Always wear clean underwear in public,

especially when working under your vehicle.

From the Northwest Florida Daily News comes this story of a Crestview couple who drove their car to Walmart, only to have their car break down in the parking lot.

The man told his wife to carry on with the shopping while he fixed the car in the lot. The wife returned later to see a small group of people near the car. On closer inspection, she saw a pair of male legs protruding from under the chassis. Although the man was in shorts, his lack of underwear turned private parts into glaringly public ones.

Unable to stand the embarrassment, she dutifully stepped forward, quickly put her hand UP his shorts and tucked everything back into place. Upon regaining her feet, she looked across the hood and found herself staring at her husband who was standing idly by.

The highly surprised mechanic required three stitches in his forehead.

To clear up any confusion, and to answer Mia's good question on my last post, a little more background about me. (By the way, thanks, Mia, for motivating me to write about this.) As written in my profile, I'm not Jewish. Only my maternal grandfather was Jewish, so I'm not Jewish any way you slice it. I'm a Christian, and (for reasons that are still unclear to me! lol) I'm considering aliyah. So how does that work? Legal stuff on the Law of Return first: As you probably know, Israel's government welcomes olim with a single Jewish grandparent, as long as they can prove that the grandparent is/was Jewish. (That is why my great aunt and great uncle, who were my grandfather's siblings, will be assisting me, since sadly my grandfather has passed away.) Here is the confusing part: If a person was raised Jewish and has departed from the faith, (ie. converted to a new religion), then they are no longer eligible to make aliyah. If, however, a person isn't Jewish, and was not raised Jewish, they are eligible for aliyah because of their connection through their grandparent. Therefore, I'm eligible because though neither my mother nor I was raised Jewish, her father was definitely Jewish.
The Aliyah Dept. has been very kind in explaining these and other intricacies to me, and I have to say I'm very grateful-- both for the laws and the explanation of them . It's with a lot of respect and concern that I even consider making this move. I know people will be offended by my aliyah. That's a sad fact for me, but I understand it.
If Jewish people dread the question of "Why do you want to move to Israel?" then think how much more I hate it! At least Jews can say "I'm going because it's my home," and that's a hard concept to argue with.
Maybe in another post I'll tackle the "why" question. It will be good practice for my aliyah application, if nothing else! Thanks for tuning in. :)

Dating Disgust

You know, I'm just sick of this. So tonight I went to a fundraiser with friends, to whom another 'friend' also attended, partly to see me. I wanted to see him, too, so I was excited and actually wore my sexy new shoes. I told him my big news that I'm considering and really serious about aliyah, and he's like: "What exactly are you looking for? Why would you want to do this?" He totally doesn't understand me, and I just wanted to shout at him, "Why don't you want to do this? What's wrong with you?!" But of course, I didn't, because that's not polite. Instead, we talked about how I'm learning Hebrew, and he said "I'll never learn Hebrew." Which is a stupid thing to say, when who knows what the future holds for Jews anywhere? I reminded him that he had indeed already learned some Hebrew as he was Bar mitzvah, but he said he's not planning on learning more, and that he has no interest in even visiting Israel. I felt like kicking him in the shins. Now you might think that I'm making a big deal out of a little situation, but there is a reason why this really bugs me. It's because like me, he is of a mixed background, so we have that whole Jewish/Christian family thing in common. And we run in the same social circles, and he and I are the only two with any Jewish ancestry at all in our preppy/yuppie circle. It doesn't hurt that he's also quite wealthy and has his own law practice, but I swear that's not the main attraction. It's that people (men) with real potential for me to match up with are few and far between, to say the least. This was the second time that he and I tried to feel each other out (as opposed to feel each other up! lol), and for the second time, we seem to have really struck out. C'est la vie. NEXT!

Note to Friends and Family: No, I'm Not Crazy

Here's another reason for starting a blog: I'm tired of seeing the look on the faces of my secular friends when I talk about Israel. They think I'm a little 'off' to even consider moving there. Everyone around me thinks I'm crazy to move to "such a dangerous place." Please. So my desire to make aliyah is something I have to hide from almost everyone in my life, including most of my family at this point. And yet, it's all I'm thinking and praying about-- How can I NOT express it?!
I should give a plug for my mom, though: she knows I'm planning to make aliyah, and she doesn't think I'm crazy. She is supportive, and I have secret hopes that I can get her to come to Israel for her retirement. We are currently planning a trip, so that will be a huge start. Of course, her support was pretty important on more than just an emotional level: I will need to contact her aunt and uncle to obtain my aliyah paperwork (proof of my ancestry), so it's great that she can be sort of an intermediary between them and me. I could ask them to help me directly, but of course they would just pick up the phone and call Mom. It also just feels right to have her support.

My Aliyah vs. Parnassah Debate...

Welcome to my new blog! I started this as a way to express my excitement, angst and fears about making aliyah (immigrating to Israel). You're welcome to join me in the blogosphere as I navigate through the maze of decisions and bureaucracy. My blog will also contain plenty of mundane, day-to-day non-aliyah stuff, such as info about my pets, making a living, my pathetic love life, family, etc. Sorry in advance if that stuff bores you, but hey, it's my life.

You've probably heard the joke:

How do you become a millionaire in Israel?

You go there with two million!

Well, that pretty much sums it up for me right now. I'd love to go, but how will I make a living? I'm a real estate agent in the States; could I pass the test (in Hebrew?) to be a Realtor in Israel? Could I make a living after the government takes out taxes??