This is not the first time there has been a war. It is also not the first time it has penetrated our days between times. It is also not the first time that we are in a dilemma about what to do and what to organize.
But this time it's different. Because this time we are certain that the war will end any day with a ceasefire or at least a slight respite.
Thus, people who had organized a vacation for themselves were content to take the low but existing risk. Various travel organizers, as well as bus organizers from cities across the country, found themselves in doubt until the last minute.
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Finally, it was decided: We'll cancel everything until the end of the Tisha B'Av weekend and see what happens. No one goes on a trip when there's fighting. No one wants to see yeshiva students being rescued from the heart of the desert or the heart of the sea in 669 helicopters while other helicopters are carrying wounded from the south to Soroka.
The great men of Israel also instructed the yeshiva students to continue their time until the end of the week.
And now the weekend has come and it seems that the fighting has stopped, the missile barrages have ended, and we can return to normal.
The tour managers began work to organize campers and vacationers of all kinds, and the acting mayor of Elad, Rabbi Shmuel Grossbard, did everything possible, together with the mayor, Rabbi Israel Porush, to provide the city's residents with transportation to the beaches and various parks.
The final details were already closed, the suitcases were zipped, and the coolers [including the ice containers] were packed. We all thought this was...
But then last Friday we all discovered that we were in a strange Middle East. A Middle East that has no rules.
And now the dilemma is back: Should we organize buses or go out with the children wherever they are, or is that 'not appropriate'? Should we unpack the suitcases and open the coolers, because once again, we can't vacation when young Jews are ruining their lives in Gaza?
Who knew?
