Efrat's Appeal

Almost five months ago we moved to Efrat, Israel from America. Surprisingly, the transition has been very easy. The people are very friendly and helpful and have welcomed us with open arms and open hearts. The fact that almost everyone here came from an English speaking country has also been helpful.


While much of Israel is beautiful, we find that Efrat and the surrounding Gush Etzion area are especially appealing to us, for a few reasons. One reason has to do with the physical beauty. The Judean hills are absolutely magnificent, reminiscent of my past homes in Pennsylvania and Colorado.

Another, more compelling, appeal to this place is its location. Efrat is built on a ridge encompassing seven hills. Looking off to the right (north and east), you can see Jerusalem, about six or eight miles as the crow flies.

Now, Abraham lived just about 10 miles South of here in Mamre (Hebron), and the story in the Torah about the sacrifice of Isaac (in present day Jerusalem) has Abraham traveling past here to dwell in Beer Sheva. Our forefathers, Isaac and Jacob lived in the neighborhood and travelled up and down these hills. In addition, there are many references in Tanach to Efrat (Efrata or Ephrata). King David spent time walking these hills, as did some of the prophets and Ruth (Book of Ruth). To the kids here in Israel, especially this area, the Torah is their local History book.

Irma, my wife, has been very busy with putting our new home in order. One of her favorite projects, with G-d’s help, has been the transformation of a small weed infested yard to a pretty garden outside our first floor apartment. In addition to garden herbs and tomatoes, squash and cantaloupes, Irma planted roses and other flowers, as well as a lemon tree, a pomegranate tree, jasmine vine, passion fruit vine and more.

This garden has been a task of love and a prayer. You see, a dear, sweet friend of ours has been ill, and Irma has dedicated this garden as a living, growing, expanding prayer to The Holy One, Blessed be He, for her quick recovery. It’s called Dorothy’s Garden, and we are looking forward to the day that Dorothy can make the trip to Israel with her loving husband to visit her garden.

Dorothy's Garden

Dorothy's Garden

View From Our Street

That's Jerusalem in the Distance

That's about all for this week. Feel free to comment or ask questions or not.

Love from Efrat,

Mel