College
Last April vacation, my father took me on a trip to Israel to visit his friend. He said it would probably be the last time we could spend extended time together, just the two of us, seeing that college was only one year away. But to me, after a long cold New England winter, I was looking forward to kicking back at the Mediterranean Sea beach in Tel Aviv. But after I arrived in Israel, a series of events made this trip literally no day at the beach.
Being a country constantly under attack, Israel has seen its fair share of battles and war, unfortunately losing some soldiers. Much like the United States, Israel has a Memorial Day, in which the fallen soldiers are commemorated. My visit to Israel coincided on their Memorial Day. I figured it would be celebrated just like in the United States: stores would close and everyone will go to the beaches. However, on Memorial Day in Israel, a siren blared country-wide at 11 AM for one minute. It was an eerie siren, one Israelis far too often hear warning them of an attack on their country. But during the Memorial Day siren, there was no attack, and everyone in Israel stopped what they were doing and stood quietly for a moment of silence. Traffic stopped in the street and people got out of their cars. After witnessing this, I realized I never really thought about what Memorial Day means in America. I now understand Memorial Day should not be a day to celebrate and go swimming; this blatantly diminishes the true value of the holiday. Memorial Day in America should be somber, with the citizens reflecting on the brave soldiers who died for our nation and made it so we could go to the beach safely.
The very next day in Israel was their Independence Day: the Israeli 4th of July. It was a celebration with fireworks, planes flying overhead, and bands playing in the streets. Israel was only 65 years old that day and it made me think about the amazing accomplishments this country has made in only 65 years. Although the US
Being a country constantly under attack, Israel has seen its fair share of battles and war, unfortunately losing some soldiers. Much like the United States, Israel has a Memorial Day, in which the fallen soldiers are commemorated. My visit to Israel coincided on their Memorial Day. I figured it would be celebrated just like in the United States: stores would close and everyone will go to the beaches. However, on Memorial Day in Israel, a siren blared country-wide at 11 AM for one minute. It was an eerie siren, one Israelis far too often hear warning them of an attack on their country. But during the Memorial Day siren, there was no attack, and everyone in Israel stopped what they were doing and stood quietly for a moment of silence. Traffic stopped in the street and people got out of their cars. After witnessing this, I realized I never really thought about what Memorial Day means in America. I now understand Memorial Day should not be a day to celebrate and go swimming; this blatantly diminishes the true value of the holiday. Memorial Day in America should be somber, with the citizens reflecting on the brave soldiers who died for our nation and made it so we could go to the beach safely.
The very next day in Israel was their Independence Day: the Israeli 4th of July. It was a celebration with fireworks, planes flying overhead, and bands playing in the streets. Israel was only 65 years old that day and it made me think about the amazing accomplishments this country has made in only 65 years. Although the US