These past few weeks have been a surreal experience.
Wednesday night, June 11, Peni and I boarded an El Al flight from Israel to Miami, followed by a flight to Panama. We travelled to celebrate the wedding of Isaac and Perla. I was at Isaac鈥檚 Brit Milah, I officiated his Bar Mitzvah, and he was a student on my Sephardic Educational Center Hamsa Israel experience in summer of 2017. Being under his huppah was extra special, as thirty years ago, I officiated his parent鈥檚 wedding. Perla is from Venezuela, so Panama was the 鈥渃onnecting canal鈥� that brought the Los Angelenos and the Venezuelans together. Both the Shabbat and the wedding were beautiful celebrations deeply rooted in Sephardic traditions 鈥� prayers, tunes, customs and foods 鈥� and genuine love between a beautiful couple.
Our joy was blended with deep concern for what was happening in Israel. For many at the wedding 鈥� myself and Peni included 鈥� Israel is our actual home. We have kids serving in reserves and friends in bomb shelters. Being away from home is unsettling and nerve wrecking. Isaac and Perla asked me to add prayers under the huppah for Israel, for IDF soldiers, and for the hostages. This was a poignant moment in an otherwise celebratory atmosphere.
From Panama we flew to Boston to celebrate my father-in-law鈥檚 90th birthday and my mother-in-law鈥檚 88thbirthday. This past weekend, the children, grandchildren and great- grandchildren all gathered to celebrate. Like in Panama, this joyous family celebration was blended with deep worries in our hearts over the situation in Israel. Sunday鈥檚 celebration was in the aftermath of America鈥檚 heroic mission destroying Iran鈥檚 nuclear sites. Relieved, but still anxious.
Now Peni and I begin the challenging process of finding a flight back home. As many have remarked, Israelis are the only people in the world who 鈥� if abroad while their country is under attack – scramble to get back home in a hurry.
As Peni remarked, in Israel, even as missiles fly over us and sometimes land and do damage, we are free to be who we are: Jews. We are free to wear a kippah, speak Hebrew, attend synagogue or go to Israeli concerts 鈥� all without the fear of someone in the streets yelling 鈥淔ree Palestine鈥� (as someone did to us here in Boston this week).
Peni and I are feeling a blend of Judah Halevi鈥檚 poem 鈥淢y Heart is in the East鈥� and Dorothy鈥檚 鈥淭here鈥檚 No Place Like Home.鈥� We yearn for our morning walk that starts with 鈥淏oker Tov,鈥� pauses for a 鈥淐af茅 Hafukh鈥� and continues with 鈥淪halom, Ma Nishma鈥�? In Israel – our home – we feel 鈥渂a鈥檅ayit鈥� – at home.
In Hebrew, 鈥淏ayit鈥� means 鈥渉ouse鈥� and 鈥渉ome.鈥� We miss both 鈥� our physical 鈥渉ouse鈥� (apartment) in Herzliya, and our 91传媒 鈥渉ome鈥� 鈥� Medinat Yisrael. Praying to get back home soon.
Shabbat Shalom
Rabbi Daniel Bouskila is the international director of the Sephardic Educational Center.
