Good Luck to the Chosen Bloggers!

There just ended--in case you live under a rock, or are not a blogger (same difference)--a contest to choose several bloggers to go to Israel and participate in person at the Jewish Bloggers Convention sponsored by Nefesh b'Nefesh to be held in Jerusalem on Sept. 13th . The winner would fly free (NY to Tel-Aviv, that is) and would be assigned to an oleh family (a family making aliyah, moving to Israel) and would blog about their experience.

I was shocked and thrilled (well, not so shocked; I was actually thinking of her and hoping she'd do it. . . ) when Ye'he Sh'mey Raba Mevorach of the Every Day and its Challenges blog asked me if I wanted to be nominated (are you kidding?!).

To make a long story longer, she did-and this is what happened:
1) I was thrilled,
2)I told my kids there was a smidgen of a chance I would be there next week (but don't bet on it),
3) I sent them all Ye'he's beautiful nominating post (click on link above), and (drum roll)
4) I didn't win.

Slight let down. Ok, major let down, slight depression. Also relief: where would I get the cold hard cash to fly from D----- to New York, eh? To buy bus fare to and from the convention in Yerushalayim? To eat at Rimon on Ben Yehudah or Atara in Rehavia?

Well, maybe not the latter two; my Yerushalmi son said to me, (paraphrased) "eema, you will not eat in restaurants, you hear?! It's not as if you've never been to Jerusalem and never eaten out, is it? You can live with a trip not eating in restaurants. You'll stay with us and we'll feed you yummy 7-course dinners" (well, I don't remember if he actually said that last part, but. . . )

But is this story over? Not on your life. The whole episode gave me koach to continue to write about our fantastic little country, for even with all its growing pains, existential questions, adjustments and angst--think about it: created just in 1948, which makes it only a teenager in the great scheme of countries and nations--look at what it has achieved. And it gave me impetus to write about what it means to be a Jew in this topsy-turvy world, and to personally strive to get us (my kids' parents!) back to Israel.

In the meantime, I thank Ye'he Sh'may Raba Mevorach from the bottom of my heart for her thoughts and blessings, and I wish the winning bloggers/blogs: BadforShidduchim, David Kelsey of Jewcy, Orit Arfa of Jewish Journal, and Adam dichter of Jewish Week much hatzlacha!

Israel is, as they say, reisheet tzmichat ge'ulataynu, the "first flowering of our redemption." Without a safe and flourishing Jewish State of Israel, there is no future for the Jewish people in the diaspora, nor I might add--for the world at large.

Comments

Batya said…
G-d willing, you'll be here...
and some of those bloggers were already chosen before the "contest." One at least was here even before it was announced.

If you discover a way to make money from blogging, please share...

Shavua Tov!
Lady-Light said…
Thank you so much: I needed that support from someone...

I didn't know anything about those bloggers, except that two seemed to be contributing to online news magazines (or perhaps they founded them), so they have a huge readership which is good publicity for NbN (I can't compete with that), and I am totally dismayed that they 'chose' - after your comment, I now have no idea if this was really a 'contest' - a blogger who after having made aliyah 9 years ago, left Israel for L.A.! Why would they choose her?
Aren't they supposed to promote aliyah?!
This is beyond me.
I am touched by your tribute! And I'm bummed that neither you nor Rivkah was chosen.

And now I have to get off my you-know-what and blog MORE!

Thanks for the push. YOu'll get here. I believe it.
Lady-Light said…
Ye'he: You are bummed? And, I might add, you get off your you-know-what?! I haven't posted since the 4th!
But one positive in all this: I watched the live webcast of the NbN El Al flight landing (the one I shoulda been on) and by gosh I saw an acquaintance of mine walk down the tarmac and wave to the camera--to all us galutniks! I didn't know that she had already returned 'home'...
It was worth it, just for that!

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