Five Reasons to Come to Israel…and More

By: Paula R. Stern
April, 2006

Sometimes you have to feel really low to remember the really high points in your life. Thinking about all the things I have to do, worries about budgets and scheduling, a secretary who left for a “better opportunity” without giving the legal notice period, training schedules, preparation for Passover, an injured relative that I wanted to be with, and so much more, I was feeling overwhelmed and a little down when I read a recent email on one of the aliyah lists asking a simple question, “In your opinion what are the five "must bring" items that you would advise we take with us?” when they come live in Israel from the United States.

My first thought was a computer, a really good one. I thought of Entenmann’s cakes, a freezer full of snow, a really good mixer, and maybe a year’s supply of SURE deodorant. Other items popped into my head, things that used to be on my list and were, over the years eliminated because they are now available here for the same price (less or slightly more). As the pictures formed in my head, I suddenly thought of different items that we all need as we maneuver through the lives we have here in Israel.

I wrote a response…and then thought about a few additions to the list. To all those who are about to come, those who are thinking about it, those who are dreaming about it, and, in part, to those who are already here…

I know that people may advise you about bringing certain electrical equipment, perhaps stores of some foods or medications, furniture, shoes, clothes, maybe even certain books. I'll leave that to others - here are my suggestions:

1. Bring your sense of justice - Israelis have a deeply ingrained sense of right and wrong. We don't always apply it...but somewhere, somehow, sometime...justice is delivered. Justice may come five years later, bringing a terrorist to trial...or sixty-five years later when finding a lost loved one from the Holocaust, or finding a credit from the government because they over-charged you...or just all sorts of things. We are a just society, surrounded by others who question our right to our land. Despite those realities, we elect a wide spectrum of people to serve in our Knesset: Jews, Druse, Christians and Arabs. Men and women of all religions and countries drive our roads, learn in our universities, shop in our malls. Our hospitals do not treat people according to their beliefs, but rather, according to their illnesses. Israel is a land of justice.

2. Bring your sense of adventure - Israelis love to explore our own land, other far off and exotic places, and even within our hearts. If there is a path, some Israeli will take it, and many others will follow. There is great beauty in the desert of Israel as well as in the beautiful forests up north. Everywhere, there are trails to take, scenic routes to drive, and mountains to climb. Come a holiday and a chance to take a break from work, Israelis take off to the parks, the forests, the beaches. Everywhere, anywhere, just to glory in the land itself. Come learn (or never forget), Israel is a land of great beauty.

3. Bring your sense of patience - things sometimes take longer here. If you let everything drive you crazy...you will indeed be crazy. You’ll get on a short line in the supermarket, only to find that the person in front of you was “holding” a place for three others, or the person’s cart was only half full because while they were advancing on the line, their spouse was collecting more items to fill the cart. Or, the government clerk will tell you how to spell your name (incorrectly, of course), and then argue with you when you try to correct him. You’ll arrive at a government agency and take a number and be amazed that with only five people in the room, your number is 40 away from being called, and then, for the next hour or so, people will slowly shuffle back in, just in time to walk right into the little cubicle while you sit there, afraid you’ll miss your turn if you even go to the bathroom. And then, just when it is your turn, a woman with an infant will walk in and ask, “Would you mind?” and of course, you won’t because Israel is a land that loves its children.

4. Bring your sense of wonder - Israel is...above all else, a wonderful place. There is NO other country with people so good, people so willing to help, willing to understand. You'll walk with your children and Israelis will tell you to close their coat or they might get cold. Israelis will offer you directions...not always to where you wanted to go...but directions nonetheless. Our little country astounds the world with its technology, its medical research, its inventions. It is a wonder that such a small country occupies so much of the world’s energy and attention. We are besieged, embattled, closed in on all sides and often under attack and despite this, we live normal lives devoted to our work and our families and our country. Israel is a wonderful country, a land filled with wonder.

5. Bring a sense of kindness - Israel is a kind country. People help others, give to others. Israelis volunteer as part of their character. You'll see a young boy help an old man across the street, the pizza delivery boy kiss the mezuzah as he walks out of your house. You'll arrive here and not eat in your own house for a few weeks as neighbors rush to invite you. The dentist may not charge you the first time you go there with an emergency...or you'll call and tell him your daughter fell and he'll say - come to my house and between stirring the soup, he'll figure out that she's fine and just needs to cuddle (and luckily they were baby teeth anyway). Boys will come on Friday afternoon and collect “extra” food to give to needy families; used clothes are given away to charity; young brides can borrow magnificent gowns for the simple cost of getting them cleaned after their special day. The hospitals announce a blood shortage and the next day ask people to please stop because they don’t have enough volunteers. Israel is a kind country.

And, having finished the initial list of five things they should bring, a few more that I thought of and others suggested:

6. Bring your love of Israel - but accept it as it is...for all the good and wonderful things...and yes, at times for the bad. Know that 10 years from now, you'll still have a stupid grin on your face when you see a sign in Hebrew, when your kids fight in Hebrew, when you see a Hasidic Jew conversing with a guy with a pony talk and an earring. When people call you because they hear your mother fell and want to see how she's doing. When the sun is shining, as it is right now, and Jerusalem glistens in the distance. When your sons grow strong and your daughters lovely and smart, you’ll know there is no place better for them to be.

7. Bring your sense of humor – Golda Meir once said, “Those who don't know how to weep with their whole heart, don't know how to laugh either." Israelis truly know how to weep, and how to laugh.

 8. Bring your love of democracy and freedom – this is perhaps our greatest asset and our greatest contribution. Israel needs people who understand democracy, who love and expect freedom and a responsive, representative government. With our love of justice, these qualities are what sets us apart from our neighbors and reminds us of the many reasons why Israel remains the truest, safest harbor for our people.

You can bring food or appliances or furniture or clothes...but more important than all of that (because they have it here already)...is the most amazing and deep reasons why you want to come here in the first place. Hold on to that...even when the bureaucracy chokes you or the government does something that baffles the mind, or you go in circles with the insurance broker or the Ministry of the Interior drives you to distraction...

More than all the daily frustrations and worries...welcome to the most fantastic experience of your lives (hold on to your hats!).