Summer, winter and spring,
we had all seasons this week in Jerusalem, Israel.
Official delegations came from Kenya and Egypt,
Bosnia, Malta, Japan and Bulgaria,
now time to rest.
שבת שלום
flowers
Winter in Jerusalem: Good, Bad, Ugly and Beautiful
Snow in Jerusalem, Israel.
Last week snow was forecast,
but after all the excitement and buzz,
there was no snow.
Instead there was rain, lots of heavy rain and grey fog,
and no beautiful photos of white snow scenes to go viral.
We also had a garbage strike
with lots of not so pretty pictures.
I will only share one photo of an over-flowing bin
of umbrellas which are useless in windy Jerusalem,
and skip the photos of mountains of ugly garbage.
The security situation did not keep me off the streets,
but the weather conditions certainly did.
With the sun now shining and warming the air,
it is time to see what is really happening.
The walk through First Station was depressing,
as at midday there it should have been full of life
and more than one jewelry stall with one customer.
One family from Melbourne was wondering where all the people
were, and became my new friends and Tourist of the Week.
As for a walk through the Old City,
this pathway is usually packed with people.
I often wanted the Old City streets quiet for photos,
but this was too quiet.
Only a few people were out enjoying the weather.
Even the colorful lions were all alone.
Color, it is that time of year
when I marvel at the winter colors in Jerusalem,
red,
orange,
yellow,
green,
blue,
purple,
fuchsia,
pink,
white,
pink and white,
and the sky at sunset.
Tourists are cancelling.
Fear is keeping people away.
But those who come have had a great time.
These visitors from England
were able to be the first to walk on the new path,
near the skate park in Liberty Bell Park,
but more on that next time.
And the good out of the current situation?
Traffic seems to be moving better than usual.
Jerusalem Darkness to Light
From Jerusalem will come forth light,
from the Jerusalem light festivals to Hannukah lights,
it is an old, if not ancient theme.
However, this week we saw some unique lights.
Those red, white and blue lights on the Walls of the Old City
and on the Knesset building, where the Israeli flag flew at half mast.
After Shabbat, the flag was lowered
to symbolize the link with France after the terror attack in Paris.
Israeli flags over Beit Hanasi were lowered as well,
while French flags were unfurled over major Jerusalem streets.
I found it ironic that new signs were posted
for a new App for Jerusalem night life–
who knows what will happen next?
When I see new signs like this one,
I snap photos of them,
only after did I realize, it was posted for the filming of a TV movie.
Make sure you know whether what you see is real or not.
The Jerusalem municipality posted hundreds of large and small signs
asking MK Kahlon “Do not forsake Jerusalem”
in the new budget in the Knesset.
This week in Jerusalem, while the weather is cool,
the roses are blooming
and the oranges are ripening.
However, I want to share
one other very special light coming out of the darkness.
My friend Varda wrote of the horrific terror attack last erev Shabbat.
We know the Rav of Meitar and his family,
and we have many friends there and visit occasionally.
We have driven the road from Meitar to Otniel.
Such darkness,
to drive to a simcha and get ambushed by murderers.
But, from Jerusalem, came forth light.
On Tuesday night, in the wedding hall,
at the time the wedding of the daughter of the victim was to take place,
an overflow crowd of women and girls
filled the hall with prayer and music, and words of unity.
Tears inside during the sad, slow Shabbat song
and crowds of girls outside.
The Litman-Beigel wedding is rescheduled for next week,
and this time everyone is invited.
If you want to participate, check this out.
To help the Litman family, you can donate here:
https://www.gofundme.com/bwaq2zbd
Am Yisrael Chai!
May lights continue to come forth from Jerusalem
to shine and inspire the world.