It's the Little Things and the New Experiences that Bring True Joy

It's funny how with all the sacrifices of material possessions that go along with a lower standard of living and income in Israel one starts to appreciate the little things in life.  For example, until last week I did not have a mailbox.  For some reason my landlord just never put one in, so I finally took the initiative and had one put in myself because I couldn't stand it anymore.  I can't begin to explain the joy that I felt when I first saw my solo mailbox standing alone next to the other nine mailboxes that are lumped together in a 3 x 3 cube.  You all need a visual, oh how I love that every phone these days has a camera. Well I do and I don't because privacy has become a thing of the past, but let's not get too off-topic just yet.  But seriously, it's a little sad, but also really funny how excited I became over a mailbox, something that I always had until I moved to this apartment.  You never know how much you truly take those little things in life like a mailbox for granted until you don't have one.

Not only do I now get excited over what would seem small insignificant things, but I'm also amazed at how many every day experiences are things that I had never encountered in the states.  For example, sprinting for the bus because you see it stopped at a red light and you happen to be about 50 meters from the stop.  Yes, that was me today.  Not that I'm complaining because I haven't been exercising at all lately, but I'm sure I'm not the only new oleh who has experiences in Israel that they never had in their home country. 

*Not me, but this is probably what I looked like to the bus driver seconds before I made it in the door.

I've recently been thinking back to nearly two years ago now, in February of 2012 when I was going back and forth on trading in my car for a different car instead of paying a significant amount of money on repairs for my then older car.  I've been comparing that conundrum to my current situation only instead of buying a newish car, I'm weighing the purchase of a bicycle.  And no people, not one of those new trendy electric bikes that can go up to 20-30 km/h with a battery that will take you 20km on its own, I'm talking a simple, single-speed bike.  It's just shocking to look at the turns that my life has taken in such little time.  Don't get me wrong, I'm completely happy with where I am in life, just amazed at how different my life is here compared to my life in the states.

The exact bike that I may buy in the next few days.

And have I mentioned all of the new experiences that go along with moving to a new country?  I think I did earlier, but at the ripe old age of 27 my short term memory has really taken a hit.  Yesterday I did something that I haven't done since I was a kid, and I'm pretty sure that I only did it once before: ice skating (which is a shocker because there is the "Skatium" right in the middle of my hometown).  I must admit, at first I was only doing it for my lady, and I assumed that I would spend the entire time on my ass, but besides one very ungraceful fall I did ok and actually enjoyed myself.  Here's a pic below of our first ice skating adventure.  The place is called Iskate and it's right next to the Luna Park by the Yarkon Park in Tel Aviv for those of you interested in giving it a shot. 

Stop and Think About what you were Doing one year ago

Life moves so fast now it's sometimes difficult to stop and think where I was one year ago, and how much has changed since then.  I've gone from substitute teaching in Delaware county Pennsylvania, living at my mother's house to living with my girlfriend in an apartment in Tel Aviv.  It all seems natural, as I've adjusted to Israel, but when I have a chance to stop for a second and think about how different my life was a year ago I'm astounded. 

Sometimes when I think about the first 26 years of my life and then look at the last year it's almost like I've been stuck in a dream for ten months.  A small part of me is slightly paranoid that I am really dreaming and that sometime soon I'm going to wake up on the border of Havertown and Upper Darby, Pennsylvania to put on my shirt and tie on my way to babysit 25-30 kids for the day (the equivalent of substitute teaching). It's like I'm in a different world here; I mean sure I have connections to my past with talking to friends, watching sports, and keeping up with the news in the U.S, but my life now is so completely different from my life one year ago.

What's most shocking for me is how well I've handled so many transitions, one after the other.  I went from moving to Jerusalem, to Ulpan, left Ulpan and moved into my Aunt and Uncle's house, moved on to my cousin's house in Tel Aviv, and now I have my own place.  I almost wonder if I'm truly handling the transitions well, or if they're happening so fast that I don't have time to process the changes.  In any case, I'm just happy and thankful to roll with the changes, and to not get hung up on the bumps in the road. 

I know I'm not alone, as my recent revelation applies to most if not all new olim.  I hope and pray that everyone is dealing with the constant changes as well as I have, and that we'll all soon find a bit of stability.  Still, it's amazing to look back on how much one can accomplish in a year, if there's a will, and a strong desire to move forward and succeed. 

Always Important to Have Some 'Me' Time

Lately I've been slightly frustrated with my lack of "me" time.  Whether that's time for gymming, reading, writing, or some other personal leisure activity that time just hasn't been there.  Sure I've been working a lot, and whenever I haven't been working I've been trying to move forward with other aspects of my life such as gearing up to go back to school and apartment upkeep, but lately I've been trying hard to find time for fun things that I enjoy doing.

At the same time, at this point in my aliyah I have to take my most common piece of advice which is to focus on what I do have and not on what I don't.  I currently have a cozy apartment in the old north in Tel Aviv, five minutes from the beach with my girlfriend, who I couldn't be happier with.  In this apartment I have everything that I need and more.  I just finished watching the Philadelphia Eagles on my TV, in Israel.  How awesome is that? It's just amazing for me how if you work hard and try to find creative solutions to your problems, you can have nearly everything you desire.  I'm just so thankful for everything that I have, a great girl, a fully loaded apartment in the best part of Tel Aviv, enough income where I'm not sweating every month, and I'm in a place where I have a large and loving family who's always supporting me.  And most recently my mom moved to Israel, making my transition to living here even easier. 

It continues to be a great ride, and I'm sure that if I stay positive and focus on what I have as opposed to what I don't, I'll see that the "me" time for reading, writing, and exercise, will come.  Plus, I enjoy so many little things here, like my daily commutes on the Tel-o-fun bikes (Green bikes part of a bike share program in Tel Aviv for my non-Israeli readers).  I live on the beach, where I can wear shorts and flip-flops in November, in a city where I haven't yet felt cold.  I'd say I'm doing pretty well, and even that's putting it lightly.

My current main mode of transportation.  I love it because it's healthy and good for the environment! Probably buying my own bike soon, but still so thankful for the Tel-o-Fun service!

Doesn't get much better than a Tel Aviv sunset. 

My lady and I at a very fun birthday celebration.