Up until two days ago, Yom Kippur was just a Jewish holiday with a funny name. Now I think it should be an globally recognized day of peace. For the Jewish, the Day of Atonement, as it is called, is a day of fasting, meditating on one's sins, and seeking forgiveness for them. This means all stores are closed and all roads are empty ... of cars, at least. For the non-devout, including heathens like myself, the Day of Postponement, as I've nicknamed it, is a day of dropping any obligations, drinking wine in the middle of the road, and bicycling down six-lane highways. And as a special touch this year, we played Taboo, with at least one round devoted to sex-related clues only.Okay, so I'm not one for the religosity. But I can definitely get behind a forced day of relaxation. Besides the shouts of pre-adolescent biker gangs, the streets are quiet. And the air is so clean that the anti-haze sunset is more stunning than usual. If I had the power, I would mandate a non-driving, non-thinking, non-doing day for every country, big cities especially.
Like all contradictions in this country, Yom Kippur has a dark side: the stonings. If for some reason you find a need to drive, you must take care to post a red Star of David in your window, to represent an emergency. Otherwise, you might encounter angry mobs, armed with stones to express their discontent with your non-atoning. One of my co-workers got a flat tire on his bike on the way home, and his wife encountered quite a bit of trouble leaving the neighborhood to pick him up. Despite knowing this, I rode to Tel Aviv without a spare, and guess what? Yup, a flat. Thank goodness for better-prepared boyfriends of co-workers who save me from walking the 10 miles home.
As far as religious spectacles go -- and I'm counting those South Americans who crucify themselves and those Spaniards who toss goats from towers -- this is one of the most amazing ... yet more enjoyable. I invite all of you to try reflecting on your life with a tipsy ride on a Trek.
6 comments:
Lots of fun to bump into your blog and read your perspective on all things here, down to the flushing technology. Please forgive us for this impossible month of holidays and holiday eves, on which nothing can get accomplished. One more to go following this four day weekend.
I like your use of biblical titles for your heathen posts. I'm a complete athaist and found myself posting pretty much exclusively about religion over this holiday season. This country's dangerous for rationalists. Run while you can!
Yuval: Congratulations on being the first person I don't know to read my blog! I'm so glad you took it for the tongue-in-cheek observation I intend it to be. Because of these holidays, I am at a wireless Internet cafe because I can't get Hot, Bezeq or Yes to come to my house for installation. But then again, I'm drinking coffee and blogging during the middle of the week instead of working, too, so I can't complain.
I can't possibly be the first person you don't know to read your blog for two resons. The first: you've got 60 views on your profile, I doubt your family is this large. Your international readership must just be to baffled by what you describe to utter a response. The second: You are now in Israel where everybody knows everybody. You and I are two degree of seperation apart at most.
Hot, Bezeq and Yes are only good for one thing: simply by naming them you baffled the public once more and intrigued it too. keep them guessing.
So how long would it take it you to atone? And where do you think that puts you on the karma scale (think mother thersa and hitler as the sterotype extremes)
There aren't enough days in the Jewish calendar for me to atone. I'm outpacing my atoning with this blog and other comments by a rate of 3 to 1. I think that puts me somewhere below Hitler but above that guy Earl. I hear you've been atoning, though. Teacher of the year?!?
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