30 July, 2006; the 6th of Av, 5766
We just could not afford the rental prices in Jerusalem and we had to move elsewhere. Money was hard to find, so we put out several different calls for help — one of them went here. One of those calls for help worked and we are now ensconced in a small village of 96 families in what is known in Hebrew as Matéh Binyamín, the Benjamin District of Samaria.
We now live in Ma’aléh Levoná. Ma’aleh means “rise” in Hebrew. We live on a hill. Beneath us in a valley is a well-plowed field worked by the Arabs who live there. It’s flat, like the fields in Minnesota. That’s a rarity in this part of Israel, which is all hills, valleys, and mountains.
We’ve benefited by moving here. In Jerusalem, we had a relatively roomy apartment, and we paid a very high rent for it. Here we are living in a house, and while it is not totally as roomy as the one we sold when we left Saint Paul, it is certainly bigger than the apartment we rented, has two stories, and stairs that the cat can climb and keep limber on. At least he will lose weight, even if none of the rest of us does. And the rent is less than half of what we paid in the City of David.
It is quiet here. And I do mean quiet. You can hear the crickets chirp at night and see Jupiter rise in the evening sky. You can hear the bus as it comes at 6:00 in the morning traveling all through the village. Here, the cock crows in the morning, and he keeps crowing all day long. Maybe he would stop if he had a few hens to keep him happy! Nobody honks his horn here. Nobody has to. If you have some really good binoculars, you do not really need a telescope. The binoculars will let you see the four biggest moons of Jupiter. On a really clear day, you can see the snow-capped peak of Mount Hermon, the highest mountain in the country.
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Article comments
1 - Michael J. West
Good for you, Ruvy. :-)
Will you be changing your screen name?
2 - troll
It looks beautiful there Ruvy
may coexistence in the 'west bank' prove possible in the long run
troll
3 - Christopher Rose
Nice place, glad you're safe and well, wish you were further West.
4 - jack e. jett
ruvy
if you are in israel, please tell your folks to leave this poor children and old people alone. let them get the services they need.
we all now know your are big, tough, rednecks. we know you can kick ass. does it give your country a hard on to kill the elderly and the children.
sick, twisted piece of shit of a country.
jack jett
5 - Ruvy in Jerusalem
Troll,
The photo was taken from the top of the synagogue and is primarily of the eastern part of the village. We live in the western part. For the moment the country is at war and tempers, my own included, are not fitted to peace. But trust me, I've not forgotten my concepts.
It is written as prophecy that the Children of Kedar will sacrifice at the temple in Jerusalem. So, it is as a matter of faith that I try to work out a method of reconciliation between the Children of Israel and the Children of Kedar (the second son of Ishmael).
6 - Ruvy in Jerusalem
Mike,
Thanks for the kind thoughts. For all the facts of living out here, I still view myself as a Jerusalemite. Whenver I have to do any serious business, it is to Jerusalem I go.
So, I'm keeping the same moniker.
7 - Elvira Black
Ruvy, so very glad you're safe and sound. Your new community sounds idyllic. All my best to you and yours.