Over 100 new and veteran olim (immigrants) packed into buses Tuesday to plant Tu B'Shvat trees in Gush Katif. For some, it was their first visit to Gush Katif - and their exuberance showed.
Two buses, organized by Arutz-7, brought the English-speaking volunteers to plant saplings in the new neighborhood of Tiferet Yisrael (‘Splendor of Israel’), just outside N’vei Dekalim. After the young trees were planted outside a wooden house that serves as a synagogue, study hall and Sabbath gathering place for local youth, spontaneous dancing broke out. “It is just so exciting for us to have the privilege of planting a tree in the soil of the Land of Israel,” exclaimed one of the participants.
Eucalyptus, olive, and pomegranate trees were among the trees planted there yesterday. Though fruit trees were available at the site, many brought saplings with them from home. One young couple brought a three-year-old avocado sapling that they had raised from a seed. “It just didn’t fit into its cramped Jerusalem pot anymore," said one of the planters. "Gush Katif seemed like the perfect place for it to spread its roots and shade generations to come."
The group then enjoyed a festive Tu B’Shvat meal in Gush Katif’s beach-side field school. As they enjoyed various fruits of the Land of Israel, the attendees heard about the mystical symbolism of the various fruits. They were also greeted by IDT telephone company CEO and philanthropist Howard Jonas and Rabbi Shmuley Boteach, who were also on a Tu B'Shvat visit to the area. Jonas said, "I am honored to be here... Any gathering for the sake of Heaven will result in something good... It is obvious that this is a gathering for the sake of Torah."
"In addition to celebrating Tu B'Shvat and being part of Gush Katif, we came here today with the purpose of fostering the spirit of continued Aliyah consciousness," said organizer Yishai Fleisher of Israel National Radio. "When English-speaking immigrants get together and do something important and fun in the Land of Israel - that makes waves across the Jewish world."
The participants also toured the nursery in Atzmona, the second largest in the Middle East. “We started this nursery in Yamit," manager David Banjo told the group, referring to the Sinai area that Israel evacuated and handed over to Egypt in 1982, "and after the expulsion we began planting here. We now serve hundreds of clients throughout Israel, from Eilat to Rosh Pina.”
Asked if anything has changed since Prime Minister Sharon’s announcement of his plan to expel the Jews of Gush Katif from their homes and businesses, Banjo said that there had indeed been some changes: “We used to plant 5,000 seedlings a day. We stopped. Now we plant 8,000! We aren’t just talking when we say that we are staying here – we are putting our money where our mouth is. Plants we plant today will only be ready for sale two years from now.”
Banjo ended his tour by inviting all those present to move to Gush Katif, “and be my neighbors.”
Florence, a tour guide who moved directly to Jewish Gaza from France 19 years ago, echoed Banjo, extending invitations to the volunteers to come live in Gush Katif. “We still have a few houses left for rent,” Florence told the group.
The visit ended at the trailer-home neighborhood of Shirat HaYam (lit., Song of the Sea), located literally on the beach. The group watched the sun set, waded in the ocean and collected the unique sea-shells found on the shores of Gush Katif. Some even took a swim, enjoying the comparatively mild Gaza evening before heading back to Jerusalem.
Resistance News, 2005_01_26
See note at article's end.
Today's edition of Resistance News brings one item only, but an item that encapsulates the situation in its entirety.
Roni Afriaat, a Neveh Dekalim child injured by mortar six months ago, planting a tree on Tu Bishvat
The foregoing photograph was sent to me together with the letter cited below. What the letter tells me is that the Zionist pioneers of Yesha have not given up, that like their predecessor-pioneers during the British Mandate, they too, continue to build and plant. I can hardly imagine a more constructive act of defiance and of demonstrating faith in one's cause.
May their efforts be rewarded; may Rabin II be defeated.
Letter from Yesha's pioneers:
Note: "Resistance News" is a daily column devoted to news about the Jewish resistance to Sharon's expulsion and resettlement plan. Let it not be said that IsraPundit observed the ethnic-cleansing of Jews in Yesha and reacted with indifference.
Posted by Joseph Alexander Norland at January 26, 2005 05:29 PM