I'm not posting because I'm just too busy. I just got back from NY where my son married a girl from Crown Heights and we did Sheva Broches and we baked matzos and tried to spend some time with all the kids in some meaningful way and now Pesach is a few days away and I'm TOO BUSY.
And of course all the patients have decided that they need to see me. But I need to find a flat for the newlyweds before they come. So I'm too busy to see patients. Well, I'll see a few. Then I'll see a few flats. Then I'll pick one and arrange schleppers to get the furniture that I've collected over to the flat.
And them I'll cook borscht. And fish. And other Pesach food.
So have a kosher and happy Pesach and I'll post when I'm not too busy. Whenever that time comes.
Wednesday 20 March 2013
Saturday 9 March 2013
ORDINARY HEROES
Now that I am sitting quietly in the Changi airport lounge, on my way to my son's wedding- escorting him actually- I have a few minutes to reflect on the events of the last few days. Which have been very busy. Understatement.
I won't go through everything, such as the fact that I had Senator Joe Lieberman and his lovely wife Hadassah, as house guests over Shabbos, hosted a lunch for 20, and then flew out after Shabbos, leaving my guests in my home. Alone. Until they flew out too. (A few hours later). Weird but it's not as if I was afraid they would trash the house or anything.
No. Not writing about that. Didn't want to name drop or anything (but I kept wishing me parents could see me now).
The Senator was here to help fundraise for UIA (yeah yeah, I know you're all sick of UIA but it really does good work and as much as I'm sick of the work and stress and stuff, I get such a buzz out of meeting famous people! I confess.) and we had other awesome guests.
And now I can talk about Gilad Shalit. There was a whole blanket thrown over his visit for security reasons (a security blanket?) but he's left for home now. I managed to spend a bit of time with him and his minder/friend Halel. I have to tell you, he is a terrific table tennis player, according to my kids. And he is a sweet guy. He looks like a 15 year old with freckles and a goofy grin. He is small and slight. And he is the most unlikely accidental hero you could meet. He was abducted and imprisoned basically in a Gaza dungeon, in solitary, for a quarter of his life, and was released through relentless activism propagated by his parents and carried on throughout the Jewish world, eventually released after an obscene prisoner exchange, for 1000+ Palestinian prisoners many of whom were convicted murderers and terrorists. It was an awful decision that Bibi had to make but he made it and Gilad was released. Whoever has seen the footage of that event would be haunted by the image of the emaciated, ghostly pale youth saluting his superiors and embracing his father. (And would also be angered by the stark contrast of the hale and hearty Palestinians released in their multitudes from Israeli prisons). Not to mention that interview by that cow of an Egyptian TV 'journalist' immediately after his release.
When Gilad came out of that hole in the ground where he had been kept for 5 and a half years, he was unable to see more than about a metre in front of him and had no peripheral vision. He had untreated shrapnel wounds to his shoulder. He could barely walk. He needed to relearn basic social skills and still has trouble eating in public. He is very polite and won't push people away, but everyone who sees him wants to hug him and tell him their story (I prayed for you when I lit candles, I wrote letters to embassies. IRC, UN, I campaigned for you etcetc) and he is very grateful; but it's like torture to him.
Ironically, the main reason he survived was that he was an introverted kid, not a social type of guy, and thus he had a rich inner life and was able to stay sane. And now he walks into a room and people stand and applaud him and want to touch him and have photos with him.
He got a little overwhelmed a few times and had to go somewhere quiet with his minder to recompose himself but he did ok. It's not easy being someone who symbolizes so much to so many. He does not enjoy his celebrity and he loved the relative anonymity he found in Australia.
He is Quiet Stoicism. He is a Survivor. He symbolizes the injunction of Pidyon Shevuim, redemption of the captive. Of how all Jews are responsible for each other, of He Who Saves A Single Life, It Is As If He Has Saved A Whole World. And all the Jews are looking at him and wondering; are you worth it? What will you do with yourself? We expect great things from little Gilad.
Well, I can tell you, he is doing really well and he is very grateful to be free. He is working hard at learning how to live again. And once he has finished touring the world to thank all the Jewish communities and being an incredible drawcard to Jewish fundraising events, and catching up on stuff like backpacking and things that normal young Israelis do, he should just be left alone to finish his rehab and live his life. Won't be a star athlete or Nobel Laureate I think. Just a nice regular quiet guy. But tough.
Another person whom I had he privilege to meet is Noam Gershoni, Israel's first gold medal- winning Paralympian. He won gold in 2012 London, wheelchair tennis.
You couldn't find much more of a different personality from Gilad. Noam is a cheeky charmer, a real social animal; but again, inner toughness in spades. His story is one of too much happening, as opposed to Gilad's absence and deprivation.
He was a helicopter pilot whose Apache collided with another Apache while flying on a mission in 2006 in the Second Lebanon War. The other pilot and copilot were killed as was his own copilot, also a friend. He was almost given up for dead as a result of his multiple injuries and catastrophic blood loss, but the medics didn't give up on him and he survived. He underwent multiple surgeries and long rehab, surprising his doctors and nurses with his resilience. As much as he sort of fell into flying, as it had never been an ambition, he sort of fell into wheelchair tennis, and was adept even though he just played for enjoyment, not caring that much about winning (to the despair of his coach). Before his accident he had been a sporty guy, enjoying extreme stuff like bungee jumping and skydiving as well as skiing, and it wasn't about competition for him. What spurred him on to win in London, according to his speech, was not wanting to disappoint his family and the friends who had bought tickets to see him win. He says he is just a regular guy 'maybe with a bigger gold necklace than you'.
Maybe so. But not everyone could have gone through what he did and not only lived, but turned his awful misfortune around, to change direction and succeed. The physical and mental strength needed is awe-inspiring.
So, two unintentional heroes. I don't think Noam could have survived what Gilad went through, nor do I think that Gilad would have survived Noam's ordeal. But they both survived and are themselves trying to understand why.
And the rest of the Jewish world can draw inspiration and strength from their examples. And donate to worthy causes in Israel. Please.
I won't go through everything, such as the fact that I had Senator Joe Lieberman and his lovely wife Hadassah, as house guests over Shabbos, hosted a lunch for 20, and then flew out after Shabbos, leaving my guests in my home. Alone. Until they flew out too. (A few hours later). Weird but it's not as if I was afraid they would trash the house or anything.
No. Not writing about that. Didn't want to name drop or anything (but I kept wishing me parents could see me now).
The Senator was here to help fundraise for UIA (yeah yeah, I know you're all sick of UIA but it really does good work and as much as I'm sick of the work and stress and stuff, I get such a buzz out of meeting famous people! I confess.) and we had other awesome guests.
And now I can talk about Gilad Shalit. There was a whole blanket thrown over his visit for security reasons (a security blanket?) but he's left for home now. I managed to spend a bit of time with him and his minder/friend Halel. I have to tell you, he is a terrific table tennis player, according to my kids. And he is a sweet guy. He looks like a 15 year old with freckles and a goofy grin. He is small and slight. And he is the most unlikely accidental hero you could meet. He was abducted and imprisoned basically in a Gaza dungeon, in solitary, for a quarter of his life, and was released through relentless activism propagated by his parents and carried on throughout the Jewish world, eventually released after an obscene prisoner exchange, for 1000+ Palestinian prisoners many of whom were convicted murderers and terrorists. It was an awful decision that Bibi had to make but he made it and Gilad was released. Whoever has seen the footage of that event would be haunted by the image of the emaciated, ghostly pale youth saluting his superiors and embracing his father. (And would also be angered by the stark contrast of the hale and hearty Palestinians released in their multitudes from Israeli prisons). Not to mention that interview by that cow of an Egyptian TV 'journalist' immediately after his release.
When Gilad came out of that hole in the ground where he had been kept for 5 and a half years, he was unable to see more than about a metre in front of him and had no peripheral vision. He had untreated shrapnel wounds to his shoulder. He could barely walk. He needed to relearn basic social skills and still has trouble eating in public. He is very polite and won't push people away, but everyone who sees him wants to hug him and tell him their story (I prayed for you when I lit candles, I wrote letters to embassies. IRC, UN, I campaigned for you etcetc) and he is very grateful; but it's like torture to him.
Ironically, the main reason he survived was that he was an introverted kid, not a social type of guy, and thus he had a rich inner life and was able to stay sane. And now he walks into a room and people stand and applaud him and want to touch him and have photos with him.
He got a little overwhelmed a few times and had to go somewhere quiet with his minder to recompose himself but he did ok. It's not easy being someone who symbolizes so much to so many. He does not enjoy his celebrity and he loved the relative anonymity he found in Australia.
He is Quiet Stoicism. He is a Survivor. He symbolizes the injunction of Pidyon Shevuim, redemption of the captive. Of how all Jews are responsible for each other, of He Who Saves A Single Life, It Is As If He Has Saved A Whole World. And all the Jews are looking at him and wondering; are you worth it? What will you do with yourself? We expect great things from little Gilad.
Well, I can tell you, he is doing really well and he is very grateful to be free. He is working hard at learning how to live again. And once he has finished touring the world to thank all the Jewish communities and being an incredible drawcard to Jewish fundraising events, and catching up on stuff like backpacking and things that normal young Israelis do, he should just be left alone to finish his rehab and live his life. Won't be a star athlete or Nobel Laureate I think. Just a nice regular quiet guy. But tough.
Another person whom I had he privilege to meet is Noam Gershoni, Israel's first gold medal- winning Paralympian. He won gold in 2012 London, wheelchair tennis.
You couldn't find much more of a different personality from Gilad. Noam is a cheeky charmer, a real social animal; but again, inner toughness in spades. His story is one of too much happening, as opposed to Gilad's absence and deprivation.
He was a helicopter pilot whose Apache collided with another Apache while flying on a mission in 2006 in the Second Lebanon War. The other pilot and copilot were killed as was his own copilot, also a friend. He was almost given up for dead as a result of his multiple injuries and catastrophic blood loss, but the medics didn't give up on him and he survived. He underwent multiple surgeries and long rehab, surprising his doctors and nurses with his resilience. As much as he sort of fell into flying, as it had never been an ambition, he sort of fell into wheelchair tennis, and was adept even though he just played for enjoyment, not caring that much about winning (to the despair of his coach). Before his accident he had been a sporty guy, enjoying extreme stuff like bungee jumping and skydiving as well as skiing, and it wasn't about competition for him. What spurred him on to win in London, according to his speech, was not wanting to disappoint his family and the friends who had bought tickets to see him win. He says he is just a regular guy 'maybe with a bigger gold necklace than you'.
Maybe so. But not everyone could have gone through what he did and not only lived, but turned his awful misfortune around, to change direction and succeed. The physical and mental strength needed is awe-inspiring.
So, two unintentional heroes. I don't think Noam could have survived what Gilad went through, nor do I think that Gilad would have survived Noam's ordeal. But they both survived and are themselves trying to understand why.
And the rest of the Jewish world can draw inspiration and strength from their examples. And donate to worthy causes in Israel. Please.
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