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HORESHA
A serpentine paved road winds up the steep side of a mountain leading to the quiet and beautiful community of Horesha in the central Binyamin Hills. From this summit you can see the view of the Mediterranean coast, including the cities of Ashkelon, Ashdod, Tel Aviv, Netanya and Naharia. To the east, it's difficult to ignore the encroachment of Ramallah with its illegal neighborhoods being built. Only outer frames make up the structures which remain unoccupied. In reality, this is the real illegal expansion Israel is facing as Arabs continue to build massive structures to lay claim to the Land which is not theirs.
Yet, the plight of the residents at Horesha is the recent notification from the court that within the next month it is possible that Jewish homes will be destroyed, EVEN THOUGH, the infrastructure of Horesha was paid for and built by the government when they encouraged Jews to settle there; and EVEN THOUGH, the residents acquired the proper permits to start building when they were encouraged to start building on the premises some ten years ago. They have just learned the last signature needed to secure the hilltop is that of the Defense Minister, Ehud Barak, who refuses to sign on the dotted line.
B'NEI ADAM
The outpost of B'nei Adam is located east of Yishuv Adam in the southern Binyamin hills. The difficulty of arriving to the location makes anyone wonder why even the military would bother to destroy it unless they are just desparately bored and need to run a training maneuver. The few sparse houses stand on rocky, barren land, yet the young residents are digging and tilling the soil by hand. With tenacity, hope and faith, they are planting new saplings for the future in odedience to Hashem's instructions in the Torah that when you come into the Land He has given, you are to plant fruit-bearing trees. As with so many other outposts, a shadow lingers over their daily lives, the uncertainty of tomorrow as they are scheduled for destruction.
RONEN FARM
After a visit at Mtzpeh Yosef, we had picnic lunch at the Ronen Farm. The residents were warm and hopitable, but the children were somewhat perplexed and fearful of strangers since they have been harrassed so much by the Left and anxious about rumors of loosing their homes. Yes, even the children from the best of homes live with daily fear and anxiety. One youngster was home alone and folded over from an anxiety attack that we too were here to invade her home and she was helpless since Abba and Ima were gone at the time. She could not be consoled as strangers invaded her home, until Abba soon arrived and she could be safe in his loving arms. Children have a unique ability to internalize and process everything before them, whether its threats of being uprooted or someone bearing gifts of peace. Lately, fear of outsiders has manifested because of the incitement of Arabs by the Left and the remiss security of our Israeli government.
GILAD FARM
The air was still full of the nauseous smell of smoke as our two full buses pulled up to Havat Gilad. There was absolutely no fresh air to breathe for the ashes. Erev Rosh Hashanah residents ran out of synagogue to the alarm of fire. The Arabs had taken advantage of the time, knowing the worshippers would be in service for the Holy Day. They threw molitov cocktails onto the hills and the caravans. One family caravan was totally wiped out and another is not livable due to the damage. While visiting we observed another catastrophe: the shoddy rooms used for a children's house with the most minimal bare necessities for children's care. Although the children were laughing and playing with the meager swing someone had donated, it breaks the heart to know they are so deprived compared to the average child in our society today.
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