Practicing Democracy

Today, in a contrast to my two previous posts, I won't be be diving into my past and present, but rather have a little self chat about my democratic duties, in view of today's coming elections in my mother land. No, I am not going to convince you in who is better: the left or the right. I wish I knew..., but rather reflect on the way these elections are felt for me this time around, from "Down under"

It is ,certainly, not the first time I am out of Israel on elections day. My first time was in 2006, when I was in Nigeria. We were living a flight distance away from Nigeria's capital city of Abuja, where Israeli citizens on governmental duties were allowed to practice their democratic duty and vote in an Israeli embassy. It seemed extremely important to me at the time to vote and make a difference, I was willing to pay any price and go through major obstacles to contribute my vote to what I believed should make a difference in Israeli reality, which is my home, and lives of people like myself. In Israel, in contrast to USSR, I was taught democratic values, that every vote counts and is important. I was also taught that not voting means giving away your vote to the opponent. Driven by all this motivation, accompanied by my 2 years old son, I have made it! I have made it despite all dangers and obstacles imposed on me by Nigerian reality! Oh boy...., only today I actually fully understand how genuinely potentially dangerous that trip was.  I felt proud to be able to make a difference...

Last Israeli elections have already found me in NZ and this time around I couldn't vote anymore, as I am just an immigrant, even though, holding Israeli citizenship. Despite being preoccupied with new immigrant's issues, such as settling down in a new country, I remember how "glued" I was to all Israeli media outlets and how well I knew all the details of the candidates and I have, indeed, had my solid opinion of whom I would vote for. The despair of not being able to make a difference (or so I believed) this time was huge...

Interestingly enough, this inability to vote for Israeli elections, provoked an urge in me to learn and connect to the basics of politics and Parliamentary system in my new home country of NZ. I have started satisfying this need by a visit to NZ Parliament in Wellington. I would really warmly recommend this to all you, new "Kiwis-to be". Their guided tours there are giving a very good start to understanding the system, which is quite different from Israeli one. Shortly followed NZ parliamentary elections....Yesss, I have the right to vote again!!!!!!! I have the right to contribute to a change in my new Home country!!! As absurd as it may sound to some of you, the realization of it made me feel a lot more at home in this wonderful place, which already had accredited me with the power to influence its reality. 

Today Israel is going to vote, going to decide for its future, going to make a choice.Optimists among us are those who still believe that a real choice is going to be made today, that there are actually alternatives to choose from...I, on the other side, feel myself very distanced and un-engaged today. I feel that the gap between me and my mother land is growing bigger, I even don't laugh that much anymore from Israeli pre- elections satiric shows, I feel more like crying...Judging by many posts and comments on social networks and media, I find myself being relieved that this time I don't need to make a choice. I also don't feel that I could significantly contribute or make a skilled decision this time. The reasons for that are mixed and my feelings about this are even more mixed. It is the lack of a real leader who would clearly show the way and make people go after him, it is the frustration of people and decisions driven by anger and hopelessness, but it is also me...I feel that I have no moral right to influence on the future of a country that I have chosen not to live in. This is not to say that I don't love Israel anymore or love it less. I ,absolutely, love it, but like every relationship is at times, ours is complicated at the moment...

P.S. Few days ago Israeli representatives of  the "Jewish agency" held pseudo Israeli elections here, in NZ, for the Jewish community. The results were quite shocking comparing to what is expected to really happen in Israel.

I know that one may argue that the sample wasn't representative of a community. Not many people, indeed, showed up, due to cyclone Pam fears, or maybe some of the people felt like me, that it is morally incorrect... Looking at the graph made me wonder: Isn't this one of the reasons why we have chosen to live away from Home? Don't we feel at times that the political situation there doesn't represent us?....

 

 

Another one on "My Firsts" list

Hello to all, you, people, out there, in the big world!

You have all probably heard of a famous saying : "Life starts at the end of your comfort zone."  Today, once again, I have decided to step out of MY comfort zone and start doing something that I was  curious about for quite a while , but never had the confidence to fulfil that curiosity.


Like in many other decisions I need to make in my life, my default thinking was: It's now or never!


So....here I am, writing my very first ever, blog post!!!! Yahooo! I really hope it's the beginning of a wonderful journey for me and I will do my best to keep it interesting for you too, my friends.


Just few short words about myself and I promise I will be very short ...and this is just to be able  to better understand where I am coming from in my views, opinions, mind-set, etc...


So who am I?????


 I am, basically, an ordinary Jewish girl who was taken by life circumstances to some very unordinary places and different realities. Born in late 70's in communist Ukraine, USSR, in a little town of Chernovtsi. I was growing up to be a perfect product of that environment , being a good pupil in school, dedicated pioneer of Youth communist movement and an excellent athlete. At this young age, my parents tried to wrap up my life in "cotton balls," creating an illusion of perfect childhood, which  still IS perfect in my memory. It wasn't until 1986, that I have first started hearing secret discussions at home about how it is time to "leave" to a place called "Haaretz" (Hebrew for Israel). The main reason they were using this particular word is because they didn't want me to understand. It was a top secret! So what had happened that year???  Chernobyl nuclear disaster! It had a great impact on my family's immediate and long term decisions.
Step by step, in February, 1990, we have landed in The Holy Land. It was a great shock to all systems, physically and mentally. I could possibly only compare it to an adjustment that astronauts are required to go through in space. Only they don't need to learn a new language or adjust to writing from right to left...and I needed to! Not only this, but from being a popular girl in school, I went to being an alien, at only 11.5 years old! But you all know what they say: Whatever doesn't kill you, makes you stronger! After 24 years of rubbing side by side with  the best and worst of my own people, fulfilling all of my civil duties, educational and personal goals, Israel is definitely a home, or should I say: THE home!!!  And that's where begins the story of my conscious mature life. I would have said "adult", but that sounds too old:-)
I'm fortunate to have someone to walk with along the challenging path of life, who is also "to blame" for many interesting challenges that have shaped up my life, and that's my dear hubby Mark. We have produced two little people, who are a "non-stop interactive entertainment" in our lives: My son Barr, 11 years old and my daughter, Maayan, 6 years old princess.
I'm in one of women's most classical professions..., and noooo, it is not prostitution!!!!!! It's Nursing:-) And Mark is a civil engineer. Specializing in infrastructure, roads and tunnels, his job took us extensively around the world, to not very developed places, where his services are most needed. That is how I found myself in Nigeria, living in a "golden cage" with my two years old son. This experience influenced heavily on my views about the world and changed my priorities in life significantly. I'm sure that you will feel that impact in between the lines in my future posts.


Years after, my daughter was born and we have decided that radical change is needed! We can't spend all our lives in "money race". Search for a better future for the children, security, life style, quality over quantity and mainly, new exciting opportunity, dominated our decision of moving yet again, to ,literally, "The End of the World".


Here I am, sitting in my new beautiful house in one of the central suburbs of Auckland, New Zealand, and writing these lines and reflecting on my on-going Kiwi dream!