Israeli Oil Lamp

Claimed Object #29

If that has already been taken, my second choice would be the oil lamp from Israel. Like you, I had really mixed feelings in Israel. We didn’t go until 2015. By then the glow of being the post-Holocaust new kid of a country was long since fading. It was definitely a complicated place to visit. While we were there, I started to hunt for the best halva around because I desperate wanted a non-political/non-ambivalent topic to write about. That was fun, but here’s a link to my story about the Competing Narratives tussling for space in my head. You might also enjoy my piece, Jerusalem: Reflections in Stone about my seriously mixed feelings at the various religious monuments. My favorite “spiritual” place in Israel was the desert. That’s where I connected with  our ancestors...

Ellen N., San Francisco