Monday 19 May 2003

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Today was a very emotional day. We started off with a discussion of the matsav with Dr. Debbie Weissman and Israel Meidad, both modern orthodox but on the left and right, respectively, politically. The group then split up, with most going to see Dr. Michel Strachansky, the director of research at the Bank of Israel (the equivalent of the Federal Reserve). A few of us (Addie, Elana, and myself) went to Hadassah Hospital on Mt. Scopus to hear about how the matsav has affected their work. After a brief overview and tour, we met with several victims of piguim who are recovering from their injuries (Mt. Scopus specializes in rehabilitation, in contrast to the Ein Kerem hospital that specializes in trauma care).

Needless to say, our meetings with the victims were the most emotional part of the day. The first woman we met with was Filipino, and has been working in Israel. She was on a bus that had been bombed, and is just now recovering the use of her arms and hands, but is still not able to work. We then met with a woman who had been at the hotel in Kenya that was attacked, and who spoke with pride of the Israeli military response to those who had been injured. The last man we met with had lost part of one leg and had the other seriously injured when he spotted a bomber trying to get on a bus and stopped him. While he faces the possibility of having his leg amputated, and his baby daughter had just gotten out of the hospital with severe medical problems, his optimism and drive to keep going were inspiring. It is this heroism on the part of everyday Israelis that in some way defines the response to the matsav. "Every Israeli is a soldier" is not just a military statement, but represents the willingness of everyone to sacrifice for the good of the nation.

As this evening marked the start of Lag B'Omer, we had a session describing the various views of the holiday (religious and secular), before going to Mea Shearim (an ultra-orthodox area) and Emek Refaim (a secular area) to observe the celebrations. Standing on the balcony at the hotel later, we could see a number of bonfires burning in celebration of the holiday.

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