Let My People Go
My whole life I have lived in big cities. I’m one of those people who knows about three
kinds of animals: dogs, cats and pigeons. I used to say I like to see nature while
driving by at 100 kph.
Today
I’m a little older and possibly a little slower, but I enjoy nature slightly
more and I generally do "stop and smell the flowers" mostly because
the two little people I live with want to smell, touch, look, enjoy, and ask
"ma ze?(what is this) about 500 times in a 30 second span. I appreciate
and marvel at their curiosity and therefore enjoy it more.
As
you probably know by now, I live in Tel Aviv which in terms of cities is
similar to Manhattan. Until now I’ve said that Tel Aviv is Manhattan but more
Zionistic. It pains me greatly to say I
no longer believe this to be the case.
Tel
Aviv has always been the most modern and diverse of Israeli cities. That is what makes it wonderful. However,
there are two sides to everything and in the last few months I have realized
that these things might make my continued residence here untenable. If I was
alone, some of these factors would never have even made an appearance on my
radar but I am no longer a sole operator and my kids' upbringing and education
is of utmost importance to me.
How
do I want to raise my kids? What values do I want to instill in them? For me, the most important thing is a Jewish
education. For diaspora Jews who care
about these things, either a Jewish day school or an afterschool/Sunday school
program fulfills these needs. So too, Jewish summer camps. But here, in Israel, as ironic to those of
you residing outside of Herzl’s dream land, this in NOT a given. While I love
Tel Aviv for its diversity it is also what bothers me the most about it.
Shouldn’t it be a given that living in a Jewish state, which based on the
number of non- Jewish moms in my mommy groups is no longer a given either, they
would automatically receive this? Sadly, heartbreakingly, no. While my rather militant view of
intermarriage has lessened to a certain degree, shouldn’t this still be
predominantly a Jewish state? With Jewish values? I was in the university yesterday and I saw a
sign for a discussion on the place of the Rabbinate in Israel...SERIOUSLY???!!!
Where else is there a place for the rabbinate if NOT in Israel?
Haven’t we fought, struggled, died for, been tortured, murdered and discriminated against enough that at least in one place in the world throughout there is room for us and our beliefs?
Haven’t we fought, struggled, died for, been tortured, murdered and discriminated against enough that at least in one place in the world throughout there is room for us and our beliefs?
So
it got me thinking. How do I want to raise my kids? In what type of environment
do I want them to live? I myself am a study in contradiction. As a single
person, I can live with my inner struggles which most of the time were cool, to
my former way of thinking, but now I see that it may not have been to my
advantage. I certainly do not dress like
an observant person and my family structure is certainly one that would, at the
very least, raise eyebrows in certain segments of the community. It is clear to
me that a part of our population would view me as not observant because of
that. But I don’t want my girls to live on the fence the way I have. I want
them to be on a team. It is something that I didn’t have and it isn’t easy to
ride the fence. I struggle and I am stuck.
So as much as I love the diversity, freedom and openness I dislike the lack of Zionism and Judaism. It has become just like Manhattan. On the other hand, I want to be in a homogenous community even less, although I wonder if that isn’t best for my kids.
The
bottom line is it is up to me to instill the values, the beliefs and the love
of Torah, Judaism and Eretz Yisrael so I am staying here, in Tel Aviv, the White City on the Sea. I hope I am doing the right thing. Just another thing to worry and lose sleep
over.
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