The Siren

When the siren went off at 10am this morning for Yom HaShoah (Holocaust remembrance day), I watched as the entire country came to a momentary standstill. From a rooftop overlooking Tel Aviv, I watched cars freeze in the middle of the street, drivers turn off their engines, get out of their cars and stand at attention. Just beyond, on the busy shop-lined street called Dizengoff, I saw shopkeepers leave their stores and stand in the doorways and I saw builders stop drilling away in order to pause for two full minutes of silent commemoration.

I wish I could say that when the siren went off this morning, I was entirely focused on the victims of the Shoah. I wish I could say that my head was totally in the right place and that I was absorbed in solemn reflection and engaged in heart-felt prayer. While I was grateful to have the time to commemorate and while I did pay tribute to those who perished in the Holocaust, I also found myself, in those moments, dumbfounded at what it means to stand still. I am not a person who likes to stop. I find myself getting restless if I am sitting in the same position for more than 5 minutes. And yet Judaism is a religion that demands that we stop. Each week on a Friday afternoon, we have to put aside whatever it is that we are doing for a full day in order to respect Shabbat (Sabbath). We stop the rhythm of our normal days for holidays, celebrations as well as commemorations. We move not just at our own pace, because with every step we take we are dragging with us thousands of years of Jewish history. As Jews, we are reminded that we cannot move forwards without looking back at how hard we had to fight to be here.

I came across a video that was filmed on a bridge over the Ayalon Highway, as the siren sounded in 2008. If you have never been to Israel on a day like today, you should watch this video of everyday time coming to a standstill. It’s fascinating, admirable and worthwhile.

Always remember, never again and live for today.

– VOV

Seasonal Music.

Hm, well it’s not really seasonal music but the song is called ‘Pharaohs’ and it is Passover and all! So, I thought it was quite appropriate to share it with you during this time of the year. I’m sure many of you have heard ‘Pharaohs’ or other jams by SBTRKT, but if haven’t then you should definitely give it a listen because this is a top tune to get you in the mood for your Easter/ Passover holidays!

Happy Sunday everyone!

– VOV

There’s no place like home.

Passover commemorates our freedom from the horrors of slavery in Egypt, culminating with the birth of the Jewish nation: A healthy, liberating experience for both body and soul! Our ancient customs at the Seder and the special foods we eat – tell the amazing story of our freedom. And they help us to re-enact those precious moments of liberation, some 3300 years ago.

Clearly some of my dear friends got really excited for Seder night this year..

No, but seriously, Pesach in Israel is one of my favourite times of the year, especially in Tel Aviv. There is something so special about watching an entire city of beautiful people rushing, shoving and pushing to get to their Passover seder on time. Hm, perhaps not. But there is definitely something unique on a night like this that you wouldn’t find anywhere else in the world.

Why is this night different to all other nights? ?מה נשתנה הלילה הזה מכל הלילות

The weather is beautiful, families reunite, tourists flood in from across the world to be together in the holy land and Tel Aviv turns in to one huge balagan! It’s so unique and I think everyone should experience it whether they are Jewish or not. However, I must admit that the story of Passover is a little bit twisted..

Yet, we recite it every year, we get excited to be with the family and most importantly, we get to eat our aunts delicious food, our safta’s scrumptious kosher for passover cookies and we get to find a bit of hidden matzah that our dad hid 20 minutes ago, known as the ‘afikomen’.. Ok I should really stop there. Jewish traditions are really weird.

Chag Pesach Kasher V’Sameach

– VOV

Passover 2012.

In the days before Passover, Jews around the world traditionally spend time cleaning and checking their houses for “chametz” – leavened foods that are forbidden to eat during the holiday. It is also traditionally a time for soul searching and for clearing out old “stuff”.

This is pretty much exactly what is going on my apartment right now. However, whilst I am leaving my mum to do most of the hard work, I am actually writing this blog post and watching the Passover episode of the Rugrats that I would like to share with you all! I hope you enjoy it.

Happy soul searching!

Rugrats Passover

– VOV