This morning I attended the bris for the baby of someone I’ve known for about eleven years now. We met when he was a guest of ours in Seattle, and he later moved to Israel, got married a year and a half ago, and now he is the father of an adorable baby boy!
It was so wonderful to be able to be there with him and his beautiful wife! It’s very special to be able to share joyous occasions with friends, especially nice to have the chance to further longstanding relationships after moving to Israel, and it was worth the four hours of traveling by bus (in one direction) to be able to be there this morning. 🙂
From there, I went to a Jerusalem bank to take care of some paperwork for a family member in the US. They’re moving to Israel soon, and have given me power of attorney to help them purchase a home here for them to move into when they arrive. I was really glad to get this done; there are so many hoops to jump through when buying a home in Israel, and I have a sense of relief every time one big piece like today is taken care of. I need to go to the lawyer yet again tomorrow to take care of the next step, but fortunately he’s here in my city so that makes is simpler!
I also took the opportunity while in Jerusalem to buy some maternity clothing, since I can’t find suitable items locally. I was hoping to do this before Passover, but wanted to combine this with other Jerusalem area errands, so I waited until now. I didn’t find all that I hoped for – I would have loved it if I found some summery skirts – but I did find a few tops, shells, and something suitable for Shabbos. This was really in the nick of time since my regular wardrobe really can’t stretch that much further (pun intended) to accommodate my 27 week size. 🙂
I was so gratified that I was able to do all of this and still make the last bus back (4:25 pm) to my city. When traveling on local buses, getting to and from each place takes so long, especially since I wasn’t familiar with any of the places I was going or the buses I needed to take to get there!
I’ve only been to Jerusalem three times since moving here, but every time I get back to my city, I think how nice it is to be home. Jerusalem is a very busy city, and I don’t really enjoy the hustle and bustle so much. We may lack some of the conveniences that are found in bigger cities, but it’s so nice to get back to the greenery and slower pace of a smaller city!
Avivah
