Israel Independence Day

Thursday is Israel Independence Day or Yom Ha'Atzmaut.  It is now 64 years since the State of Israel was founded in 1948.  I am an unabashed supporter of the State of Israel and years ago, when I was in high school and college I strongly considered making Aliyah or moving to Israel and making my life there.

As a Jew, there is something about Israel that appeals to me on a deep emotional level.  As someone in a technology industry, Israel appeals to me on a logical level as well.  So, you may ask, why don't I move to Israel?  That is a very difficult question for me to answer, but I will try.

I went to Israel the first time during the summer of 1979 on a program called USY Israel Pilgrimage.  It was an amazing summer, reinforcing everything that I had learned about Israel in school up to that point.  I fell in love with the land and felt at home like never before.  I swore that I would be back.

In 1982 I had one of the biggest fights I ever had with my parents because they would not give me my passport.  I was either 19 or 20 at the time, and Israel was in the midst of the first Lebanese War and I was going to move to Israel and join the army.  My parents (wise as they were) knew that if I did that, I wasn't coming home and they knew that I needed to finish my college education.  So I did that, I got my bachelors degree in December, 1983.

By the time I graduated, I was in a serious relationship with Elyse, who would become my wife about 2 1/2 years later.  As the John Lennon song says, "Life is what happens when you're busy making other plans".  Elyse and I settled in New Jersey, started our careers and started our Family.  By the time Haley, our older daughter, went to Israel the 2nd time to spend a gap year there, it had been 30 years since I had been to Isreal.

We went to visit her in 2009. The land had changed and I had changed.  I was no longer a wide eyed 17 year old, but rather an overweight 47 year old.  Israel was no longer a borderline 3rd world country, it was now a country with High Rises, High Tech and High Taxes.  Would I still love the land?  Would it still love me?  The answer to both is yes.

I am proud to say that my love of Israel has been passed down to my children, both of whom have been to Israel multiple times, and to my wife who's love of the land rivals my own.  Am I going to move to Israel?  That's still a very difficult question to answer.  I'd like to say yes, but the reality is that our family is all in this area and living in Israel is more difficult then living in New Jersey.  The one think I can promise you is that it won't be another 30 years before I go back again.

So, Happy Birthday Israel!!!  At 64 you are a mere child amongst the family of nations and I have hopes and dreams that you will be around for many, many, many more years to come.