Bonfire and (maybe ) Rockets Abound

Lag B'Omer. A minor holiday overseas, but here in Israel, it is celebrated in full force, fire force that is. Kids have a day off of school, and they eagerly anticipate the city-wide bonfires and BBQs.

According to previous generations, preparation for the holiday used to be a much bigger deal. It started immediately after Passover when kids gathered wood to build the biggest and baddest fires of the year. Imagine unencumbered firepower at the hands of children, dangerous at best, and memories to last a lifetime. Today, personal bonfires have been banned, except those lit by authorities. Although the holiday buildup has dimmed over the years, along with the number of personal fires, the air is still filled with smoke smells, and it is best to keep your windows shut starting the day before.

It is not just bonfires that happen on this holiday. BBQs with friends and family kick off the holiday or the next day. Similar to the United States, during holidays, the stores are filled with must-have items, i.e., candy canes for Christmas and cards for Valentine's Day. It is no different in Israel except for the holidays and items sold. For Lag B'Omer, the front of the stores is stacked with mangals (single-use BBQ) and charcoal briquettes - everything you need to enjoy a holiday meal. Mangals are perfect for one-off BBQs. They are small enough to fit in your car and come in handy for a BBQ anywhere in Israel - beach, forest, or backyard. They are also sturdy and easy to use.

As for the meaning of Lag B'Omer, it is a break in counting the Omer, a time of restrictions for observant Jews. For some Jews, this is a one-day reprieve from restrictions between Pesach and Shavuot to do things like shave and get a haircut. But for others, it marks the end of the Omer or restriction period. The day also marks the death of a famous rabbi, Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai, and his gravesite is flooded with visitors. I am not doing the holiday description and history any justice, so if you want more information, check out here and here.

This year in Israel, the Lag B'Omer holiday celebrations were dimmed by the anticipation of rocket fire from Gaza. For those not in the know, there has been an uptick in activities lately, including a death from a hunger strike, rocket fire into Israel, and targeted assassinations. Now we are waiting for reprisal. The situation didn't stop anyone from celebrating, but the atmosphere, at least south of Tel Aviv, was much more subdued. For some southern towns, people evacuated to safer places, train service was halted, and hospitals moved patients out of the line of potential fire. We prepared our bomb shelter and talked to kids about what to do and who would grab which dog if and when the siren went off.

As for me, I spent hours checking and rechecking my sources to see if I could gather any information on when the kassems would fall. I saw that rockets generally fall at 6 PM. 9 PM. Midnight. 2 AM. 4 AM. 6 AM. But so far, nothing. We are planning our every move in consideration of a potential evacuation to our bomb shelter. Instead of walking the dogs together, my husband and I are walking them in rotation so someone is home to manage if the siren goes off. Surreal, to say the least. So far, things are calm, and I am learning firsthand, the meaning of psychological warfare.

Until next time,

The Tribe Guide