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It’s been a whirlwind — Sukkos preparations carried on with the hum of a possible hostage deal in the background. We shopped, cooked, built, and decorated our sukkah as usual, all while wondering where the negotiations would lead.

Reut* was thrilled when her husband Kobi* finally returned from Gaza after the ceasefire took effect. For the first time in months, she allowed herself to exhale. He had served in every single one of the unit’s seven rounds of reserve duty, never once missing a call-up. Now, at last, there was no next date looming. But it didn’t take long for her to realize something was terribly wrong.

Secular? Yes. Anti-religious? Some, I’m sure. But that would not describe any of the people my husband and I met over Yom Tov. And we met many. As empty-nesters for Simchas Torah, we decided to spend the holiday in the world of kiruv — outreach — in Tel Aviv. What an experience!

When Hillel Manne moved to Israel in 1996, the first thing he did was plant a vineyard. Having grown up in California, he had studied agriculture at the University of California, Davis, before bringing his expertise to Israel.

Carts are the latest craze here in Israel. First came the coffee carts. Israelis take their coffee very seriously. While they’ve existed for years, they became much more popular during COVID-19, when indoor dining was not an option. Now, these coffee carts on wheels can be found from the Golan in the north to the Negev in the south, and everywhere in between, many of them kosher. They serve coffee and pastries, and some offer a small menu of light food. Some are tucked away in forests and nurseries, while others pop up along highways.

The chasan broke the glass, and the guests screamed “Mazal Tov!” While the simchah was palpable, there was not a dry eye in the hall. This was no regular wedding. It was special in more ways than one. The chasan and kallah had special needs, and they were building a bayis ne’eman b’Yisrael!