yom hazikaron

today (wednesday) is israel's memorial day for faller soldiers (yom ha-zikaron le-halele yisrael). memorial day in israel is observed very differently than in america; it actually means something there to the average person.

i don't have that much to say (unusual), so i'll just link to some posts and mentions a few random thoughts.

* * *

one of my first posts was about the son of my madrikh in israel, matanya robinson, who was killed in the battle of jenin in 2002 (click here). (i still get a lot of hits from people doing google searches for "meaning name matanya.")
a few years ago a new bet midrash was dedicated in matanya's memory in camp moshava (indian orchard, PA): midrash matanya:
in the hallway leading in to the bet midrash is a memorial corner:

"Memorial Corner for Fallen Soldiers"

Thy beauty, O Israel, upon thy high places is slain!
How are the mighty fallen!
Saul and Jonathan, the lovely and the pleasant in their lives,
even in their death they were not divided;
they were swifter than eagles, they were stronger than lions.
I am distressed for thee, my brother Jonathan;
very pleasant hast thou been unto me;
wonderful was thy love to me, passing the love of women.
How are the mighty fallen
(II Samuel 1:19, 23, 26, 27) (click here)

(click on any picture to enlarge.)

to read more about matanya, please see my post here.

* * *

One of the yom ha-zikaron traditions is sponsored by the radio station Gale Tzahal: Od Me’at Nahafokh le-Shir (Very Soon We Will Be Transformed Into Song). This radio program, which was first initiated in 2003, features songs written by fallen soldiers that have been turned into music by Israeli artists. in 2004 rappers from the TACT clan performed Shir Shel Rega Ahat, in memory of st. sgt. yaakov paz (click on youtube window above). for more on yaakov paz, please see my post here.

this years gale tzahal program (27 songs) can be downloaded for free by clicking here.
reshet gimmel is playing appropriate music all day, which can be heard by clicking here.

* * *

i think it is also appropriate to remember those POWs who never recovered from the shock of their internment. one of the saddest books i ever read was Prisoners of Hate: The Story of Israelis in Syrian Jails (1969) (click here for full text). it chronicles the abject conditions under which israeli pows were imprisoned and concludes with the account of an Israeli-Syrian prisoner exchange that freed 8 israelis. seven of the eight had mentally lost it while in prison; only one, reuven liebes, managed to maintain his sanity during his incarceration, but he finally broke down as he crossed the bridge to freedom.

i think liebes was eventually rehebiliated, but others were not as lucky. i remember reading (ca. 1993) an article in the israeli press entitled האיש שלא היה about one former POW who following his repatriation had been left to languish for years and was completely neglected by the state.

for a recent JPost article on the difficulties faced by repatriated pows, click here.

* * *

yom ha-zikaron concludes to tonight as yom haatzmaut (israeli independence day) commences. if you are in brooklyn, i highly recommend the festive program hosted by the yeshivah of flatbush (tefilah hagigit, choir presentation, rikkudim). i've been going for almost twenty years and i can't imagine that there is a nicer celebration anywhere else. click here for more information.