Seeing American immigrants arrive,
an oleh reflects on his year in Israel 

By Jonathan Udren 

Jerusalem, July 14 (JTA) Almost exactly a year ago today, 
I was one of 330 people aboard an aliyah flight sponsored by 
Nefesh B'Nefesh and the Jewish Agency for Israel. I was the 
one with butterflies in my stomach as the plane landed, dreading 
the bureaucracy and dreaming of my future in Israel. 

Am I crazy for moving here?? I asked myself as I stepped off 
the plane. That thought disappeared as suddenly "Haveinu shalom 
aleichem" started playing in the background. All I could focus 
on was the cheering and flag-waving that awaited me in the hangar 
as hundreds of people gathered to greet the new immigrants. 

As I approached the gate, I will never forget the older Sephardi 
woman with tears in her eyes who called out to me, "baruch habah, 
welcome home."

Today I stood on the other side of the fence as the first of 
three Nefesh B'Nefesh planes this summer arrived with new immigrants. 

Unlike last year, when I felt the anxiety of the question mark 
that was my future in Israel, today was a different story. 

As the nose of the plane pulled in and the flags flew and 
"Haveinu shalom aleichem" blared, I was filled with a comforting 
feeling: "Maybe I'm not crazy for making aliyah. I'm not alone 
in my dream of building a life in Israel."

After speaking with a few people in the crowd awaiting the plane, 
I noticed that some were there to greet family or friends, and 
some had made aliyah themselves with the help of Nefesh B'Nefesh. 

But I was surprised that many didn't know anyone on the flight 
at all. They had come just to be part of the festivities and 
welcome all their brothers and sisters home. 

Avichail Friedman, a former B'nei Akiva emissary who spent a 
year in the United States promoting aliyah, came from Jerusalem 
to show her support. 

"I lived in the U.S. and I know all the challenges of leaving 
and how hard it can be to uproot yourself and your family. 
I just have to say 'kol ha kavod' - 'lots of respect' - to all 
those who are coming to Israel now," Friedman said. 

Liz Bernstein, originally from Los Angeles, came to enjoy the 
atmosphere of the celebration as well as greet a friend making 
aliyah. Bernstein has lived in Jerusalem with her husband for 
nine months, and though aliyah is on their mind, they haven't 
yet made the commitment to take Israeli citizenship. 

"To see all these people here dealing with the same issues of 
making aliyah, and overcoming them, it's certainly inspiring. 
It gets the wheels turning thinking about if we're going to 
stay or not," Bernstein said. 

"It is a little bit crazy to make aliyah now you know," she added.

I agree: Standing there watching as hundreds of people schlep 
their bags down the runway and search frantically for their 
strollers, it does seem crazy. They've just moved halfway around 
the world to a country where they don't speak the language and 
aren't part of the culture, and where the government is in 
constant unrest.

But the Jewish people have never had a normal history. 

One young woman, a seminary student named Batia, took the 
morning off to attend the event. She was struck by the image 
of the families with their luggage on the runway, and said it 
reminded her of pictures of Jews being shipped off to 
concentration camps. 

"But this is exactly the opposite," she said. "It's amazing. 
They are all coming home to Israel."

The highlights of the welcoming ceremony were speeches by 
Prime Minster Ariel Sharon and Finance Minister Benjamin 
Netanyahu, focusing on the importance of aliyah for Israel's 
future. 

"Olim are the foundation of the future - of Israel, Sharon said. 
"I have faith in you, the State of Israel has faith in you, 
and we need you here more than ever. Welcome home. After 2,000 
years of wandering, it has finally come to an end."

Netanyahu told a story about how the co-founder of Nefesh 
B'Nefesh approached him with the idea for the program more 
than three years ago. 

"Tony Gelbart told me about an idea of appealing to young 
couples and young professionals before they set down roots,"
Netanyahu said. He said "I'm really going to do it," and I said, 
"You're crazy." And this meshuggeneh here, he went and did it."

Maybe Gelbart is a bit crazy. And maybe just as misery loves 
company, so does insanity. 

But that craziness connected all of the hundreds of cheering 
Jews in the hangar this morning, in the deepest places in our 
hearts. 

New oleh Michael Rosenfelt, 26, from Columbia, Mo., explained 
the feeling with a simple analogy. 

"Just like every type of plant has a certain region where it 
can grow the best, so too with the Jews. Eretz Yisrael is the 
place where we as Jews grow the best," Rosenfeld said, using 
a Hebrew expression for the Land of Israel.

If I try and see how I've grown through my first year of aliyah, 
I can't really get a handle on it. I know the best spot to 
overlook the Old City, and I've figured out how to complain to 
the bus driver when he closes the door on my foot as I try to 
hop on at the last second. 

But those are just the small details. Like those of a tree, 
a person's roots grow underground and out of sight. And I think 
that's the biggest difference from a year ago - those roots. 

In so many ways I feel more planted in Israel today than ever 
before. I don't feel crazy for uprooting myself and building 
my life here. I feel that all of us who have come are not only 
planning for the future, but that we will reap the benefits 
of our actions. 

Today, with the help of the State of Israel, Nefesh B'Nefesh 
and the Jewish Agency, we're digging our roots deeper into 
the illogical saga that is the Jewish people and their return 
home.