Sunday, October 15, Day 9

At 5 pm yesterday, Saturday, I received an email from the US Dept of State stating that there would be flights departing on a rolling basis throughout the night and morning. If we wished to depart, we should proceed to Ben Gurion airport and look for the flag. Flights would be going to Athens or Frankfurt. 

Noah and Rob had gone out to walk to the Tayelet, or the Haas Promenade (yes, those Haas of the Levi-Strauss family). This is a series of terraced walkways with panoramic views of Jerusalem, including the Old City, Hebrew University, and the tower of the Jerusalem YMCA. It is about a 25-minute walk from our apartment. 

We had backup reservations on El Al leaving on Tuesday and Wednesday, but I knew we should get on the US charter flights. In the hour before Noah and Rob returned, I threw in a wash, packed my things, and put away the kitchen items we used over the past few days. When the guys returned, I announced to their stunned faces that we were leaving tonight. Shabbat was ending at 6:45 pm and we would leave as soon as we could after that.

I called Shuki, a taxi driver I have used in the past, who drives a spiffy Mercedes, decked out inside with colored led lights. Shuki is a typical Israeli taxi driver, full of stories of his background, opinions on politics, and advice on anything you might ask. He was available to drive us to the airport, and we arranged for him to come at 8:30 pm.

On the way to the airport, which is about a 50-minute drive, there were red alerts on our phones, which indicated rocket fire. We actually saw two of them, red spots in the night sky, that blur into white smoke when the iron dome intercepts them. Shuki pulled over to the side of the road, joining a line of other cars doing the same. My nerves were on end, hoping that our trip to the airport would not result in injury to any of us. He had his phone turned on showing the Israeli news for the entire ride.

At the airport, orange vested personnel with "Embassy of the United States" in big letters directed us to a sign-in desk. We filled out forms with our personal information and signed a promissory note declaring we would reimburse the United States for the cost of the flight. After ten hours in the airport, we boarded a Lithuanian airlines flight to Athens. From there, we flew to Amsterdam, where I am now in a hotel writing this.

My 9 days in wartime is over, but my heart is in Israel. All of our friends have children and grandchildren who have been called up. How they are able to cope and function thinking of each of these precious family members fighting for the life of the country is hard for me to understand. Their resilience and steadfastness is inspiring. They refuse to let fear dictate their lives.

The images in the media are now all showing the destruction in Gaza, the cruel and inhumane murders committed by Hamas last week are ancient history. It will only get worse once the ground invasion begins. How can a terrorist group such as Hamas be destroyed? If every single one of them is killed, will that do it? Surely Hamas knew that what they did in the border communities would be met with an overwhelming response by Israel. Are there any leaders in the Arab League that can intervene? Is the strength of the US enough to prevent Hezbollah and Iran from getting involved? 

Tomorrow I will return to the US and watch the war from afar. I pray for a swift end to the fighting. I pray for my people, the Jewish people, to emerge unified and strong from the darkness that now surrounds us. Thank you to all of the family and friends and friends of friends who have read this blog. I hope I have given you a small sense of hope from Israel.