Today Is Yom HaZikaron For Our Fallen Soldiers

Today is Yom HaZikaron, Israel’s Memorial Day for its fallen soldiers and victims of terror. Yom Hazikaron began at sundown yesterday when a siren was sounded across the country for one minute. Everybody stops what they are doing, including cars driving on the highway, and observes the silence to show their respect and remember the fallen. Without our army we would not be a country as defense is a necessity unfortunately for our survival amidst neighbors who are not exactly friendly. You know, the kind of neighbors who think it is okay to send missiles into our yard and send their kids over to our driveway with guns. Not to make light of the situation, but this is reality here in Israel, a reality unfamiliar to most of the Western developed world.

There really are no words, but we offer our prayers for peace and no more loss of life. Today we remember those who paid the ultimate price for our Jewish homeland.

This oil pastel painting made yesterday, shows the beautiful mix of wildflowers that grow in the meadow just beyond the military cemetery in my neighborhood. Life is a crazy juxtaposition of joy and grief, and we pray that grief should only rear its head after a long fruitfal life for all.