Another day of mourning.

Today is the Memorial Day for fallen soldiers. Every Israeli family has lost relatives or friends in wars or on army duty. The price for independence has been high.

One of my best friends in Israel is a 95 year “young” woman. She fled Germany together with her husband in 1934 and arrived in Israel. Before they left Germany her mother made sure to have some clothes made for her. These clothes and other personal belongings were put in two boxes and brought with them on the journey. She came from an “upper class background” and was heading for a new life in a kibbutz.
The two boxes didn’t really fit in with her new home. There were no permanent buildings other than the children’s houses and she and her husband lived like all the other adults in a tent. She was happy the day the boxes were opened for whomever to take what they pleased. There were no occasions for her to wear the clothes inside but others had never seen tailor made clothes of such quality before so they grabbed whatever they could get hold on and left the boxes empty for her.
My friend told me that nobody believed that she would ever make it on a kibbutz, but “ I had everything I needed in life as long as my best friend and husband was there right beside me.” They had left everything behind and were facing the future holding on to one another.
The War of Independence left her with the memories and a grave.

A couple I got to know in another kibbutz were both Holocaust survivors. He managed to flee Nazi Germany and she was from Italy and had survived a concentration camp. They got three sons and were proud and happy parents until the Yom Kippur War.
Today they have one son left.

I shall never forget the week when one of my neighbors received the message that their son had been killed. A special team from the army came to deliver the heaviest of news to the parents one evening. The fear of such news lives like a ghost together with every Israeli family for as long as their children are serving in the army.
Soon the news spread to all the neighbors and it seemed like all the other mothers came out from their houses. Some of them were holding their face in their hands as if afraid of loosing it and others were folding their arms around their tummies and were kind of bending forward as they were walking.
When a person passes away in Israel the family sits at home and mourns for seven days. During this time they are visited by friends and people who want to show participation in their sorrow.
The following morning and throughout the day our street was full of soldiers. They were both inside and around the house. People were coming and going non stop.
My oldest girl was in kinder garden when this happened. Her group of children adopted this family and tried to be a comfort to them throughout the year on various occasions.

As I have been writing the day has turned to evening and the stars are visible. Soon the celebrations of 61 years independence will begin and fire works will light up the sky.

Elin Elkouby