| Avi and I are coming to the end of two months in Jerusalem. Avi has been volunteering as a pathologist at Hadassah Ein Kerem hospital, and I have been spending mornings studying Talmud at the Conservative Yeshiva. Besides studying Talmud, I read a collection of short stories in Hebrew, and worked on improving my speaking ability. This year I also took lessons in spoken Arabic, an addition to my yearly program that I liked very much. In college and graduate school I learned to speak Egyptian Arabic fairly well, but I have lost much of my ability over the many years since then, and learning a little of the Jerusalem dialect was an enjoyable new experience. Like last year, Avi and I went a number of times with a group that does agricultural volunteering in the settlements around Gaza that were attacked on October seventh. I also went once with another group that helps Palestinian farmers plant olive trees to replace those that were destroyed by neighboring settlers. We spent a great deal of time with our many friends here, and that is certainly the best part of the visit. The problems in Israel are enormous and deeply disturbing, but being here is, nonetheless very rewarding. The sun is setting on our visit, but we hope to be back again next year. |
| Created on 18 March 2025, updated on 1 October 2025 by Samuel Ethan Fox |