Life in the Sukkah!

I flew to Israel just in time for the Jewish holiday of Sukkot. Some families celebrate this holiday by continuing the tradition of building a sukkah - a hut reminiscent of the dwellings the Hebrews built when wandering the desert after the Exodus from Egypt. The majority of people - however - use this time to take a break from their normally hectic lives and skip the building.

I was invited by my first cousin up north to spend the holiday with her in the city of Ma'alot. Ten years ago, my cousin and her husband were up and coming film directors in Tel Aviv's happening art scene, but traded in their potential success for domestic, religious life. I have to admit it was strange to see someone transform from one extreme to the other, but after spending a couple days with her and her family, my opinion of her choice has changed for the better.

Life in my cousin's sukkah was a wonderful and an unexpected experience. Time becomes obsolete when inside the hut and the objective is to relax and enjoy your self. And I did exactly that!

I slept when I wanted, which helped my jetlagged mind and body cope with the time difference. Between moving in and out consciousness, I listened to her husband play guitar with a friend and murmur prayers both for the holiday and everyday life. I read my book, 'The Elegance of the Hedgehog', while enjoying warm bursts of wind fill the hut with life. At night, we - "adults" - stayed up reminiscing about the good old days in Tel Aviv and various family members; in particular, our tyrannical grandmother and our late cousin, Nir katz, which helped to further ease the pain of losing him.

I taught her two boys how to fold origami paper cranes and in exchange, they taught me how to play some street fighting video game. There is nothing like having two little religious boys with payot (sidecurls) and kippot (skullcaps) telling you that you suck at playing! What can I say? I'm a Nintendo veteran, not PS2!

There were many moments that fascinated me, but one had a profound impact on me. We were all in the sukkah: the eldest boy was eating at the table, I was in the corner taking photographs from my cot, my cousin was cooking a delicious Moroccan feast for later that evening, and the youngest boy was playing with his father on another cot.

Life was bliss.

After the youngest boy had finished exhausting himself by showing off his latest acrobatic ability, his more-than-doting and loving father began gently twisting his son's payot with both index fingers before tucking them in behind the boy's ears - sealing the deal with a kiss on the forehead. It was a beautiful and touching moment all-to-familiar for them, but for me, it was one of many insights into a life of religious orthodoxy that I didn't know much about before and will never forget.

By the end of my visit, I felt energized and ready for all my adventures still-to-come and concluded that my cousin and her family have found, in their own way, their peace in this world - something I have still yet to figure out myself.

Here are some more photos from my visit:

My closely related cousins - can't you tell?


A gust of wind rushing into the sukkah!


Palm branches were used to protect us
from sunrays and keep us warm at night.


In my opinion, one of the cutest kids ever!


A total poser and he knows it too!


A plant randomly growing out from a stonewall...


A stunning view of the galil...


And a close-up of a pomegranate fruit tree!