Once again, a reader has put me to shame. Perhaps deservedly so. Manya Shochet, a frequent commentator here, sent the following comment to Friday’s post:
Good luck in arranging your trip back home. don't envy you the anxiety and inconvenience this must be causing you.
My children are literally burying their friends, their classmates, and friends of friends. The close-knit nature of Israeli society and the horrible immediacy of internet connection have made the slaughter of last Shabbat unbelievably personal for all of them. As one of my daughters said eliptically, "Whole groups of friends, just..." And we can't even speak about the agony of the parents and children who suffered things worse than we can even imagine.
I've been translating a post given to me by a young mother from one of the kibbutzim, the hesped of a father for his soldier son, civilians under fire, and that has taken a lot out of me.
I cannot bear to think what must be happening with our shinshinim, the boys doing a year of community service during army service and all our achingly young adult volunteers and employees who are surely going through the unspeakable right now, for our sake. The thought that we may never see some of them again, chalila, and the huge hole that is going to leave.
Although Manya graciously sympathizes with our ‘plight’ what follows is a story too horrible to contemplate! Only it’s true and just happened as a result of the vicious Hamas terrorist attack a week ago.
To say that the anxiety my wife and I have been experiencing pales in comparison is the biggest of understatements!
I grieve for all the families of all the lost loved one massacred by terrorists in an unprecedentedly successful attack. Killing at least 1500 Jews, among them young people serving in the IDF for purposes of protecting us all. There is no way ANYONE can ever understand the depth of suffering experienced by the families of those who died so suddenly in such horrible ways. Instead of getting on with their lives after a joyous Holliday, they are now mourning their unexpected sudden loss.
As for my wife and me, we have been blessed to be living in the relative safety of RBS. Although there is a lingering fear about the war somehow reaching us here, life goes in as normal except for the massive amount of Tehilim being said by the Charedi and Dati world with the additional Teffila for the IDF being said by the Dati world (among those reservists that haven’t been called up to serve).
My wife and I have managed to book a flight to Chicago with one stop. If all goes well we should be back in our home in Chicago at about 10:00 AM, Monday.