According to Jewish tradition, the month of Adar is a time for joyful celebration due to the Purim festival. However, since February 28th, weeks of tension in Israel over when the next war with Iran would begin have turned into harsh reality. Israelis' nerves are stretched to the limit. How are they coping in this tense situation? CSI reporter Livia Tiersch asked her friend Tehila.
By Livia Tiersch
Tehilah lives in Bat Yam with her one-year-old daughter. She is the only member of her family to have moved from Frankfurt am Main to Israel a few years ago; most of her family remained in Germany. When Iran launched rocket attacks on Israel during the Twelve-Day War last summer, she was visiting family in Germany and initially unable to return to Israel. "It was hard being so far away and witnessing from the outside what your friends and your two cats back home were going through," Tehilah recalls. Bat Yam was directly hit in one of the attacks, severely damaging the house of one of her friends.
Overcoming tough times together
This time, despite everything, Tehila is glad to be in Israel. “I’m here with my people. That makes me feel like I’m where I belong. This is my home. Israel is a commitment for me. When you move to Israel, you have to accept the country with its positive and negative aspects. The war is one of the negative aspects; you simply have to accept that. Even though we’re experiencing very difficult weeks here, at least I don’t feel like I’m abandoning my home. This time, I’m simply happy to experience with my people that we’re making history here, that we’re sticking together.”
Long-time Israelis and newcomers often mingle in the air raid shelters. A woman sitting opposite Tehilah during one of the air raid sirens asked her where it was better—outside of Israel or inside. Tehilah answered without hesitation: "Here, one hundred percent." She was actually relieved that something had been done and that perhaps the terrorist axis could finally be broken. Previously, they had lived in uncertainty for a long time about whether and when it would happen.
Celebrating Purim despite the most difficult circumstances
Tehila also considered the timing of the attack significant: Purim, the festival commemorating the story of Esther and Mordecai. Simultaneously, on the preceding Shabbat, the text from Exodus 17, which recounts the battle against the Amalekites, was read in the synagogues. "It's incredible how history repeats itself on the very days when we commemorate our victories over our enemies. It feels like we're making history."
Although all Purim events had to be cancelled with the outbreak of war, the Israelis refused to let their Purim joy be spoiled. Even in the bunkers, they celebrated and danced. "We didn't let the festival be cancelled. We took Purim with us, along with our families, to the shelter," reports Tehilah.
Between the rocket alerts, Israelis are trying to maintain a semblance of normalcy. Shops open for a few hours, and people go to work as best they can. Only schools remain closed, so children stay home with their parents. "It's a bit stressful for the parents," says Tehila. "But you try to take the moment as it comes and enjoy the time together. Complaining doesn't help—quite the opposite. And we still have the month of Adar, in which we are obligated to be joyful. And we won't let anyone take that away from us."
