Nina Ingram: Day One
Arrived at Ben Gurion International Airport, at 3:55 pm ... As I continued to sit in Seat 40B of Continental International Flight CO90, I kept reminding myself, to 'calm down' (from the excitement and anticipation of beginning my journey.) I began this little exercise - breathe deeply through my nostrils, inhale/hold, then exhale slowly and relax (about three repetitions).
I wondered how the others in my group were feeling. Surely, they were just as excited about 'the journey' as I was. I could see it written all over their faces. The long, but quiet, restful and pleasant, flight to Israel was a very good way for us to begin our group bonding process.
Landing on the tarmac, exiting the plane, collecting our bags and departing for the tour bus all seemed a little surreal to me because I knew that pretty soon I would be stepping on to 'holy grounds.' After meeting our tour guide, driver and security guard, we departed Tel Aviv for the north. We were all captivated by the historical delivery of knowledgeable information by our guide -- it seemed not to matter if this was a second or even third trip for some of the members of our group.
Israel is breathtakingly beautiful. Along the route to our hotel, the Dan Carmel, in Haifa, the lush, green landscape was filled with avocado and grapefruit trees. After viewing a magnificent sunset over the Mediterranean Sea and Haifa Bay, we had a very delicious buffet group dinner.
We tried to save a little room for dessert but without a doubt, the high point of the evening after dinner was a time to reflect -- led by Rabbi Mark Strauss-Cohn, Shirley Frye, Nancy Brenner, Marilyn Chandler and Susan Feit. This was a very moving session as it was noted how 'Time Heals Wounds' and 'Building Bridges Can Change Things.' Tomorrow? Yom Hashoa -- Holocaust Memorial Day -- and off to Akko!
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One of the lessons I have learned from traveling around the world is that while every land has its differences from what I'm used to at home... there are also many similarities. In every "exotic" place, you will find people who are very much like your neighbors -- living everyday lives, working to keep home and hearth in place, getting along with their neighbors. In other words, being completely unremarkable.
I expect that even in Israel, most of the people there don't think of the "holiness" of their place of residence, except maybe on religious festival days. Certainly, just looking at any spot of land on the planet, there's nothing to differentiate it from any other, to make it look or smell or feel more "holy."
Except, of course, for some text in a book. And to think... people have been fighting and dying for only that reason for thousands of years. Makes you wonder about people sometimes.
Posted on April 21, 2009 11:17 AM