^ Page 8 -The Ganiadian Jewish News, Friday, February 22, 1974
Oleh: Is that too much to ask?
By BERNARD SHUMAN
I came here a year ago as a new oleh with my wife and three teen-age children to live as Jews among Jews, confident that Israel was the homeland of the Jewish peo-. pie, the only special place on ■ the globe where we belonged. The YomKippurWar has proven that this was not some idealistic daydream.
Since the beginning of the war, 1 have not given a single thought to returning to. the States. This IS ironic, because before the war, hardly a day passed without my thinking, seriously about the possibility of going back. The simple truth, is that the war has strengthened my commitment to stay.
Before the hostilities. I was beset by.the multitude, of problems: that are inherent ■ in. being a newcomer. The 'culture shock"" between lifein the United States and Israel was at the forefront of the issues that, troubled me . greatlv. The other problems. aM interrelated, ran the gamut from difficulties - with, the Hebrew-language, to the frustrating bureaucracy encountered in Israeli offices, to the outrageous prices asked for madequate - apartments in Jerusalem. .
Came the war, and. all these problems were placed m their proper perspective -- in the background.. It seems probable that thev will rear.their ugly heads again
once the crisis of war is over. But. for the present, it doesn"t matter. Patience is. the password. .There are more crucial things to oc--cupy the mind. This IS War! That is what matters.
.A.liva has proven to be a direct way of helping Israel m Its struggle forexistence. Before immigrating, contri---butions —'of monevandtime — were made from afar., Now. as an oleh hadash. you are giving of yourself- Your yerv presence in.the country as testimony tathe enormous contribution that vou are making.
.\\ no time during the fateful three weeks of fighting which preceded the present cease-fire, did I feel that 1 or mv family were in any
physical danger. We accepted the total, restrictive blackout as anecessaryprecautionary measure, and. prepared.our building's air raid shelter for use in the^ event of an enemy attack. If such-an attack had materialized, we were resigned to accept the harsh, brutal realities of war. .
An Israeli acquaintance, much more familiar withthe ordeals of. war, recently commented that we werefor--tunate to have American passports., implying that once the going gets really tough in Israel, we could run for shelter beneath the American umbrella...
We came here to share both the good and the bad. and without a doubt, war is
the pinnacle of the worse that can befall a country. And now we, too, share intimately with our Israeli neighbors their grief and concern over loved ones in uniforms. Now; we, too, are paying higher taxes, higher costs for the daily necessities and finding that some merchandise is in short supply, 1 hope that we don't have to burn our American passports to prove our solidar^-itv with our Israeli brethren.
Through it all. I have retained the utmost faith in Israel. All this tiny nation really wants is the right to exist and live in peace with her Arab neighbors. Is that too much to ask?
Immigrants today will partalte in Judaism
ByJUDYCARR
Why come to Israel now., when the nation is m a state of confusion; when we do not know - what our future will bring, when the most optimistic thing that can be said IS that we are a saddened people? .
Yet immigrants are arriving. Not as before, concerned with the size of their flat and their rights to duty free goods. to put it bluntly, ■what they can get out of Israel. They are now imbued with a sense of searching, asking the question: "What is the. make-up of thisgallant little nationwhoseveryexistence has plunged the world into turmoil? What gives this people the grit to hang on?" .
New Reality .
Paradoxically enough, this searching may bring aliya when all the material mcenr
tives' were largely unsucr cessful. In these confused days, people need a new reality. They are sickened by the fantasy world of the mass media which surrounds them and they demand a life style with a .true purpose, that gives communication and valid relationships. For many. Israel could be the answer.
On a visit to the affluent .England that existedacouple of years before the present-crisis,' I found a lack ofper-. sonal • and . group identity. There was an abundance of cheap entertainment, leisure and pleasure. With little effort you could lead an easv.. pleasant .life. But-from all. this wellbemg. and pseudo-; happiness there rose a tremendous, moan from a bored, under-motivated people.. "Where are we going?."" they cried out."What are wedo-ing beyond seeking new sen-
sitions? Liberate us from the prison of ourselves.'"
1 discussed the respective life styles of Israel and England with friends and we came to the conclusion that with all Its problems life in Israel was worthwhile just because it was a struggle. The struggle provided people with ' a meaning in life that led to 'a. truer, knowledge of themselves instead of the "Never had It so good "attitude that drowns the individual personality till it ceases to'exist. - '
Different Times
Now. both m the western world and in Israel, times are very different. No one has It so good. Can this be making us see clearer and think and search our consciences instead of living for ourselves and our enjoyment. Weask— what'is themean-ing of our lives? Where IS.
the challenge to our existence? What are we put on earth for?
In Israel we certainly cannot complain of a lack of meaningful; content in our lives. If anything, we have too many doubts, arguments ; 'and questions: Can we hope .that this will.lead to anew, quality aii.va. an aliya of the intellect, an aliva of people who are searching for their roots.' 'who want something to identify with, valid conr cepts to care for and relate
to: ■ ■■
Previous to the Yom Kip-pur . War. complaints were heard from Jewish intellectuals abroad concerning a lack of .Zionist ideals in Israel, that Israel was. not a cultural and intellectual centre for world. Judaism, that . she did not conform to their superficial notions of what an ideal state should be. •
New Judaism
In the Yom Kippur War, Israelis have shown a courage and tenacity that puts these superficial summings-_ up to shame. They have created a Judaism tliat Rabbi Akiba and Bar Kochba.would relate to with pride, a Judaism of fire and steel. . Immigrants' who come here in these fateful days will partake of this new Judaism. They will be forged anew under the hammer that is shaping a new identity for the nation and for the individual alike. No doubt they will have problems, they will be bruised by new physical and cultural encounters, they will be hurt, but they will gain a fresh wisdom. They will find out most truly what
It means to be a Jew. More . . . they will cometounder-stand what it means to become a fuller human being;
Potential olim are urged to correspond with newcomers
; By ROCHELLE CARR ' TORONTO -
i Potential olim should be i in correspondence with peo-' pie having similar . back-'grounds who themselves
• emigrated to Israel a. few • t years before, suggested Mrs.
i Ethel Wolfson a former Tor-■ ontonian living withherfam-: • ily in Ramat Can since July, ' 1970.
, By corresponding, • the , transition can be eased by .'learning about Israeli life ! as well as learning the story i of how similar ohm adjusted i to It, explained Mrs. Wolf-
• son. Aware of the problems j and concerns faced by ohm ; and wishing to be of help, i.Mrs. Wolfson related her I own story during a recent ; visit to Toronto. _:: —
|.. -Both—she and her dentist I husband, Leo, were very af-) fected by-^theSix Day War; lEventually they were able to. I take a. two week trip, their: j first"!rip to Israel, j This trip, plus their Or-. thodox beliefs made, them i decide that "Israel was J where rwe should be and j where^e~shou|d raise our
• children. We hadr no unreal t picture \ of what \we were J going to. .We knevA that our ; attitude was most] import-
I ant. We knew that we should I not go thinking we wbuld try 'tit out for a year, but that we should go never considering, a permanent riturnV
The Wolfson Family-Olini Batsi and Allan. ^
in Israel.- Left to right: Rhonda, Marvin and wife_.
Recalling her thoughts as
she said.
she,'her husband and their three children, now, 21, 18 and 16 left Toronto, she remarked: "Through the hard times we. kept remembering . that we believed that this is a Jewish land and we want to help build this land." .. They enjoyed their six months m the ulpan learning Hebcew.and where they made close friends who were "all in the same boat as we were." Mrs. Wolfson stressed the importance of earning Hebrew for without knowing it well "you cannot feel part of Israeli society." ::
-Because her three children all attended Associated Hebrew Day Schools.in Toronto, their • adjustment to speaking fluent Hebrew was relatively easy. When they arrived the elder^son_began studymg^athematics "'and epmputer science at Bar-Ilan University\He has since married a sabVa and thdt "has helped hnn adjust too. "
"The younger son entered grade. 11 and at first had a rough_tJ^e," she said. ''The: Israeli educational system stressed a lot of mehiorizing and is generally not as pro- ^
gressive as here. Furthermore, .since children do not-go to an ulpan but right into schools when they arrive, these parents find that at some point their children need tutoring.". She added that her second son made a. complete adjustment when he entered a. five-year pro-, gram, at B'nai Akiva Yesh-iva,-that combines study.with army service; ./ Her daughter was 12 whW she arrived and entered the last. year in public school! Her hiother explained thaty she had the.,hardest time in
. the family adjusting, trying to make new teenage friends.
Mrs. Wolfson's husband, after practising dentistry for 20 years, found no,trouble m adjusting to the clinic in Tel Aviv where he works with three other dentists, one Israeli and two other olim
What is the hardest thing to get used to? Without:hes-itatmg, Mrs. Wolfson answered, I'the bureaucracy. You must retain a sense of humor throughout and must roll with the.punches. They have a European way of doing business which is hard for North Americans to get used to."
What is the nicest thing of ■ all? "Just the feeing of hying in a Jewishiland is so. beautiful. There are many lovely experiences with Israelis who are concerned about you andliappy you live there now^ You know you are doing youfs part, no matteiLu how small, just by being there," she explained.
What is her only regret? "Next to Israel, Toronto is the best place to live in. But still, the only thing we really miss is our family and close friends and inot the way of life'or luxuries." /Thinking back on the Yom (Kippur War, Mrs. Wolfson ^aid: "It v^as a very sober-''^ing experience. We now know : what Israeli ciourage means. We were all very proud to be there and all of us felt we would have ^een very un-vhappy if we> were not there then." /
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No Aliyah Succeeds Without Hebrew
For Hebrew Classes call KEREN HATARBUT
of the
CANADIAN ZIONIST FEDERATION
787-0197
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n-'nan w^^im dx rum .wnp n-'nnV nnmjaa
'ps?^3 :D"'a75na 3ln-;ri nspa
Mi8J3 DH^lD'? n^oiD .T\in ■.-uS^v r\v^y, D'-ntt' Dm
there is a place for you in
ISKKEL
OPPORTUNITIES AVAILABLE IN ISRAEL
THE TECHNION
a. Ptograni Director and Lecturer in Quality Assurance and management. Must have at least a Masters degree and speak Hebrew fluently. ^ -
b. Education Psycholagist - PHD. with some experjerice in educationartechnology.
MINISTRY OF DEFENCE-Israel Aircraft 5. Engineers in Aircraft Design - Design of Layout - Primary structure - systems installation.
b. Electronics Engineers - two major Jields -pwckagingand reliability.
c. Materials Engineers - Aluminum plastics - ex-perience related to missiles and aircraft,
d. Electronic Engineers - Experience in television - video - image Sprocessing and pattern recognition.
e. Electronic Engineers - Design of analog and . digital circuitry.
f. Electronic Engineers - Control and Servo systems.
g. Electronic Engineers - Experience in R.F,, Antennas, micro-waves.
h. Production and Manufacturing Engineers -
Experience in electronic metal. production plants.
i. Mechanical Engineers - Experiencewith pfrob-lems related to welding high pressure alloys.
OTHER PLACES
a. Kalil - Non Ferrous Metals Industries requires people experienced in aluminum extrusion.
b. Industrial Planning and Engineering Co. -
Lif^ Ltd. - Haifa - Requires Project - Mechanical Engineers in Refinery Petrochemical orChemical Plant Design.,
c. Laniado Hospital - Kiryat Tzanz, Natania -Requires internists and pediatricians, candidates should be orthodox.
d. Panel Ltd. Tel-Aviv - Requires:
I - Electrical Engineers with nuclear power
experience,
II - Mechanical Engineer - experience in oil refineries,
III - Chemical Engineer - experience in petrochemical industry.
For more information contact
Israel Aliyah Center
788 Marlee Ave. 7814660
Start a iSlew-Ufe in hmd...^
ALIYAH NOW MORE THAN EVER
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