[img]96|left|||no_popup[/img] Dateline Jerusalem — Somehow I skipped a day this week. I do not know how it happened. Perhaps I am too relaxed since I no longer have a job. All of a sudden I realized that tomorrow is really today and yesterday didn’t make it to my calendar. I have an article due for my editor and I have nothing to write about that hasn’t already been said better than I could ever say it. Between barbecues, bonfires, and fireworks celebrating the Lag B’Omer holiday to the speech made before the U.S. Congress by Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu of Israel, it could not have been a better week.
Spring is in the air and pollen abounds as allergy season has begun in Israel. I have been sneezing non-stop. I feel sorry for the neighbors in my apartment building because when I sneeze, the entire street knows it. I could wake a hibernating bear with the timbre of my sneeze. I even think that perhaps it makes the building shake a little. All I know is that when I sneeze, I shake. I must be losing a few pounds just from the calories I burn off with each sneeze. Great exercise, but there must be a better way to lose weight. When I first moved to Israel, I thought all my allergies stayed behind in the U.S. I didn’t sneeze, cough, or have tearing eyes. I used to tell everyone Israel was allergy free. But, as with everything else in my life, give it time and it will happen. Now I am allergic to everything here. I even thought I had a cat’s hairball in my throat the other day, only I do not own a cat.
The barometer has been rising as the humidity in the air has turned the country into a steam bath. Air conditioner units and fans must be on 24/7 for the mugginess, not the heat. Yet, it is not summer and when that time comes, I will have a face as red and perspiring as a leaky water balloon. On bad days, my body will melt like an ice cube. How I dread the month of August.
And how could I do without the mosquitoes? I realize sometimes I have been described as having a “sweet” personality. But these annoying insects have decided to fly up 4 flights of stairs in search of my sweetness. I look like I have welts on my arms and legs from all the bites. But, it has been a good week.
How could I complain when Israel is in bloom? Israel is an oasis in the desert. Its tropical palm trees sway in the breeze, and there are flowers of every color and shape, each with its own distinctive fragrance. An artist with a palette of oils would have a difficult time trying to paint G-d’s creations. It is an absolute pleasure to walk down the street and breathe in the perfumes of the blossoms and feast my eyes on the beauty of the landscape in every tint, tone and hue imaginable. It is hard to believe that Israel was a desert not too long ago.
I must admit life here is conducive to senior living. However, I had a conversation with my pension plan, and if I were to retire now (only have to be 60 in Israel), I would receive a whopping 210 shekels a month, or in U.S. dollars, only $60. Not exactly something I could live on. Although I am seriously looking for a fulltime job, I am enjoying the scenery, relaxing, and penning the novel that I have wanted to write for the last 45 years. I have 20 pages so far!
Life is good. Israel has been a gift to all my senses.
L'hitraot. Shachar
