Oh the Good Life

"Finally, all of you, have unity of spirit, sympathy, love for one another, a tender heart, and a humble mind." 1 Peter 3:8

You will have to forgive the chronological jumping of this blog - but I can't help that the Lectionary texts do not necessarily jive with the chronology of the trip.

Our second and third nights in Israel were in a place called Ein Gev, a kibbutz on the shores of the Sea of Galilee. It was kind of resort-y, which turned out to be quite handy. But I get ahead of myself.

A kibbutz is an intentional community based on equality and being "together", which is what the word is defined as. In Israel there are about 260 kibbutzim, and no two are alike. The members of the community all have equal say in terms of decision making (quite democratic). Everything is shared among the members, no one has personal belongings. Whatever work needs to get done in the kibbutz is rotated so that everyone has a hand. Though some of the original structure and intent for kibbutz life has changed since the conceptional idea in 1937, much does remain the same. It is a place for families, single people - and members can join pretty much at any time (though some age and health restrictions may apply).

Members in a kibbutz are part of committees that help with the overall functioning. Every Saturday there is a meeting/gathering for every member in order to discuss and decide things - and once a decision is made at the Saturday meeting, it is finalized. Though I believe these groups were initially a sort of separatist thing, nowadays members are encouraged to seek outside education and have more choice in their work. The kibbutz will pay for a person's education as long as that person returns to the kibbutz upon completion. They share medical costs, food, even clothing - in fact, the woman who explained to us very briefly what life in a kibbutz is like mentioned that, because there are no personal possessions, every day clothing is gathered and redistributed so that one day you may wear things that fit, the next day they might be too big or too little. It doesn't matter.

I have to admit that I may be a little fuzzy at what kibbutz life is like today vs. the historical aspect (and let's face it, this was the second day of being in Israel - we were all way exhausted.)

But it was quite fitting that this was our first stop because in a sense, our group became a mini-kibbutz that very evening. As I have said before, there was a "little" saga of missing luggage. This night, five people's were returned. That left nine of us without. After wearing the same clothes for over 48 hours, I was smelly, crabby, and somewhat frustrated. When our group gathered and were informed that nine of us were still missing our luggage, it was an overwhelming response from those blessed with their things. People were offering up extra clothes, toiletries, anything! for those of us in need.

It was such a blessing to not feel ashamed to ask for something I needed - like socks and underwear even. Even just having one extra shirt so I wasn't always wearing this striped shirt and my sweater was life-giving. For the rest of the trip, especially as the days went on and still no luggage, there continued to be care in this way and I felt able to really enjoy the trip instead of being burdened with this unexpected hitch. And I don't think it can ever be said enough - but thank you to everyone in our group who offered and gave of your things, gave of your hearts to those of us who really needed it. [and stay tuned, for there is certainly more to the Saga of the Luggage]


Scripture for Today: Psalm 77, Job 5:8-27, 1 Peter 3:8-18a