"When God brought us back to Zion, we were like dreamers." - Psalm 126:1
We were like dreamers, waking to the sound of birds singing in the hills of Jerusalem.
Like dreamers, wandering the quiet streets of Jerusalem as the morning unfolded.
We were like dreamers, enjoying the most beautiful weather, mid-70s with just enough breeze to keep our spirits alert and awake.
Like dreamers, visiting King David's tomb and the room of the Last Supper, surrounded by pilgrims from India and Sweden and Germany and The Philippines and everywhere in between.
We were like dreamers, enjoying freshly baked Jerusalem bagels smothered in zatar, surrounded by ancient Roman columns, feral cats, and observant Jews celebrating Shabbat.
Like dreamers, standing at the foot of the Kotel, offering thoughts and prayers known only to us and God.
We were like dreamers, wandering through the Arab Shuk and the Christian Quarter inspired by the devotion of those who came to walk in Jesus' footsteps.
Like dreamers, eating a simple lunch in a beautiful park on a perfect day.
Like dreamers, frolicking to and fro on a playground the likes of which, due to the overabundance of potential liability and building code issues, could never exist back home.
Like dreamers, befriending the children at the playground, remembering what it feels like to play without a care in the world.
Like dreamers, standing at the famous menorah, symbol of Israel and Jewish self-determination restored, that faces the Knesset, a perpetual reminder of how we got here and all that we carry with us.
Like dreamers, visiting the Israel Museum and understanding that ours is more than a religion, but a way of life, embedded in art and culture and stories and artifacts.
Like dreamers, seeing a big brother embrace his little sister after 4 months of living across the ocean from one another.
Literally, like dreamers, taking a few minutes to honor the timeless tradition of the Shabbos schluf (nap).
Like dreamers, awakening again to a table set just for us, surrounded by friends, people who truly know and see us just as we are.
Like dreamers, finding a quiet area beneath an olive tree to sing with childlike joy and abandon the songs of our childhood, to say goodbye to Shabbat with just the right mixture of joy and sadness.
Like dreamers, waiting for a Jerusalem Light Rail train that never came, only to find that the schedule had been delayed by an hour.
Like dreamers, quickly letting go of our plans to take over Ben Yehuda Street (don't worry, we're going back tomorrow anyway!) in favor of hanging out just a bit more back at the hotel without any pressure to do anything but just be.
Like dreamers, returning to a place that only some of us have been, but that all of us somehow know in the ageless places of our soul.
We were like dreamers.
P.S.: Because of Shabbat we couldn't take as many pictures today. Instead, we invite you to paint a picture in your mind of one or more of the moments described here. Paint that picture humbly, knowing that the reality of what we did today is far more dreamlike and also far more real than the picture you're painting in your mind as you read these words.
P.P.S.: Good news. In just a short while you'll be hearing all about it from your child. If you're wise, you'll listen closely and honor their stories. Chances are, it'll feel like a dream come true.
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