summer vacation

a strange period of time, a breach in routine – family time! at least it use to be …

the kids have grown.

uri is away in the army of course. he was home last weekend. he will be home tomorrow and then away for about three weeks. he’s happy and content, he always is.

tamar took upon herself a serious responsibility this summer. motivated by an urge to upgrade her cell phone and to begin driving lessons, the first thing she did this summer was to look for a job. and she found one. tamar is waiting at the ‘vanilla’ italian restaurant and cafe. shifts of 8-12 hours continuously on her feet, a grouchy boss and even an attempt to fabricate her salary for july, in favor of vanilla of course, all these could not deter her. insisting to settle the salary situation completely on her own without my intervention, she received absolutely everything she was owed and she’s still there working the long hours, absorbing the boss’s fits, in complete control of everything she is doing and plans to do.

i am very proud of her! i can’t express the magnitude of my pride for this young woman who in the last six months has matured beyond her years, is so independent and so in control. last night i received a warm hug, ” i feel i didn’t hug you enough today, dad”.

and hila, on one hand still my baby, still dependant, still very close, still a girl wanting to have fun. but on the other hand, only 12 yet with a consolidated mind of her own. she knows exactly what she wants, exactly what is right and wrong but she still needs me to drive her there. we were at the pool today – quality time?! i sat on the lawn catching up on email and rss feeds and looking after our things while hila disappeared with a girlfriend.

but she did remember - just as we were leaving “thanks dad! i had a lot of fun!” and for this it was worth it.

summer vacation – family time, not like it used to be! but i do have something to look forward to next week – three days in haifa with my three beautiful women, dorit, tamar and hila and no distractions, i hope!

pride and shame

the pride parade is planned for this thursday in jerusalem. last year police refused a to allow the parade in jerusalem, for fear of violence. a rally was held instead (does God love gays?). two years ago, one of the marchers was stabbed.

this years parade was not definite until recently the israeli supreme court ruled in favor. loud and somewhat violent objections have been sounding from all over. the ultra orthodox jewish community began its preparation last night in their attempt to foil the intentions, of what they call, defiling God’s holy city.

follow this post and amendments over the next few days. decide for yourself where lies the pride and where lies the shame.

this guy stole my blog post title (almost):

leviticus 18:22 “‘Do not lie with a man as one lies with a woman; that is detestable”

as always, prints and licenses may be purchased on my site at images of my thoughts . com

nir

attention! officer on deck! … soon

uri has come a long way since…

 uri’s draft, march 2006

and since …

 basic training saturday visit, april 2006

more than 12 months into his service uri has undergone rigorous training, hours of study and many nautical miles in numerous types of crafts. he has strengthened and toughened. he has matured and ripened. he has developed seeds dorit & i planted,  qualities that waited to bloom. and he is blooming! uri is content, full of interest, enjoying the challenges, eager for more! and we are so proud of him!

friday we were invited to haifa to take part in a ceremony honoring his graduation of the advanced stage of naval officers course. 33 graduated from over 100 that began the course. he still has a long way to go – another 16 months before he is fully ordained an officer in the israeli navy, but friday’s ceremony commemorates a significant milestone in his naval training.

we were fussy over the need to leave jerusalem at 06:00 to be in haifa by 08:00, but uri and his team mates left base at 03:00 to manually row zodiac inflatable boats in the cold mediterranean night prior to greeting us for the ceremony.

gathered near the beach with other proud parents, siblings and friends, we first saw them coming in from the sea. everyone cheered them as they rowed their last few meters to shore.

the ceremony was festive as the cadets marched and stood in formation and their officers, wearing festive navy whites, ran the ceremony.

lieutenant colonel yosi mashita, commander of the navy academy, shakes uri’s hand after pinning a gold commanders’ pin to uri’s left shirt collar

a gold commanders’ pin …

a symbol of the understanding of the value of life, the life of others, the commander’s responsibility for their lives - a legacy passed from generation to generation in israel’s society.

there are other traits required by a commander – knowledge, professionalism, integrity … but most important is the understanding of life – a commander’s ability to take it or to preserve it.

 

and the grand finale – a rose presented to mom!

so, attention! officer on deck! … soon.

nir

these are my thoughts today;

love, happiness, satisfaction, pride, content, concern, thankfulness and optimism.

and here is the image that goes with them;

and there is one very special person, very dear to my heart, who has made all this happen…

nir

niralon.smugmug.com