A photo I took this summer while on our trip in Israel. But the photo needs some explanation.
Unlike in the U.S. where we have friendly Canada to the north and Mexico in the south, Israel is surrounded by unfriendly neighbors. The Jordanian border on the east is the quietest, and some Israelis have even been traveling there. But what you see here is a Hizbullah flag (circled in purple), very close to an Israeli guard station (circled in orange). Just two years ago the North was the scene of an ugly war. My friend who lives in Ma’alot lived in a bomb shelter for a while, but then she and the younger members of her family went down to Beit Shemesh in the center of the country for the remainder of the war.
Now the war is in the South… Hamas, which was elected by the people of Gaza, has chosen to spend the millions it receives in aid to stock weapons and attack southern Israel. While Hizbullah was created by Iran, Hamas now receives much of its weaponry and funding from Iran.
This isn’t supposed to be a political blog, so I won’t be telling who to vote for in the next election. But as I can’t seem to concentrate on what I was thinking of writing about (I thought about writing about how to get my daughter to pick her jacket up from the floor, see what a contrast?).
So I leave you with some links:
- War written by the Sandman, an anesthesiologist in Israel
- Israeli News Ricki’s mom strays from her usual topic of her daughter Ricki, a spunky 14-year-old with Down Syndrome.
- Video: Do You Know How People Live in Sderot from Carl in Jerusalem
- Understanding the Geographical Perspective of Israel (Westbankmama explains how close together everything is in tiny Israel)
- Conflict In Gaza: Primary Sources (Daniel Saunders quotes the Hamas Covenant, which makes it clear Hamas is against Jews, as opposed to saying ‘Zionists’)
- Jack is continuing with his Gaza Round Up: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3 (many, many more links…)
- A blog by some youth in Ashkelon, under fire (Hebrew)
And then one more pic, so you can enjoy the lush greenery outside the winery:
So sad you/we should write about this. Thanks for the links.
Thanks for including me in the links.
Good post. Thank you for the link.
Jack, sometimes it’s all us folks back here in the U.S. can do, write posts full of links. We gotta do something to help our brethren.
What lovely winery photos, Leora!
The entire situation is tragic and devastating, in more ways than one.
I have two friends (unrelated to each other). One is far from the situation, and one is about fifty miles from Gaza.
lovely photos, so peaceful
I have posts from people in the crosshairs on Shiloh Musings.
Batya, I’ve been reading those posts, even if I haven’t commented. Not sure what to say sometimes. Yes, isn’t it nice to look at something peaceful when the news is scary?
I can’t even begin to imagine what it must be like to live somewhere where I would have to move because of war or hide in a bomb shelter. It is a reality and a reminder that sometimes we who live in peaceful countries or areas take things for granted.
I don’t know what to say much either.
Except …
Peace.
It never ceases to amaze me how beauty finds a way to push through even in the ugliest of situations. Gaza, Mumbai, even Bagdhad all ravaged by violence but managing to retain their dignity and beauty to some degree. These photos are a perfect example.
Perhaps there will come a day when we’ll stop and see, and perhaps then we’ll be too struck by the sight to want to kill each other.
Dona Nobis Pacem