Author: unbiddengrace

The Valley of Tears

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Photos taken on my Minolta XG-1 using Ilford monochromatic film, 2022.

On October 6, 1973 Syrian and Egyptian forces launched a surprise attack on the State of Israel. It was Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. Syria’s invasion force comprised of 700 tanks (against Israel’s 175) and they carried state-of-the-art missiles and night vision (which Israeli tanks did not possess). The Syrian tanks invaded Israel in the Golan Heights through this valley.

On day 4 of the battle, Commander Avigdor Kahalani rallied his outgunned and outnumbered tanks in a desperate and almost suicidal final attempt to stop the invasion. Amazingly, the Israeli forces prevailed and defeated the invasion force. Over 500 destroyed Syrian tanks and armored personnel carriers were left behind from the battle. Following their defeat at the Valley of Tears, the Syrian offensive was effectively stopped.

After the Yom Kippur War, the battleground became known as the Valley of Tears (in Hebrew, Emek Habaha). Today, a Jewish National Fund memorial site stands for fallen members of the armored corps from the 77th Brigade. The memorial is called Oz 77, from the Hebrew word for “strength.”

Part of the monument consists of a T62 Syrian tank, one of the tanks that spearheaded the Syrian attack. Look for the gaping hole in the front where it was hit in battle.

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Pesach 2022

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Somehow, and I do know exactly how, I didn’t end up with hardly any photos of our Seder(s) for 2022. Largely because I was too busy soaking it in. By it, I mean a Seder- not virtual, not cancelled– just an in-person, sharing food and wine, reading the Haggadah together, Seder.

Our family Seder was slightly delayed this year due to Covid. I don’t mean Covid in the abstract sense, I mean Scott and I were isolated for being Covid positive on the original date… so it ended up a little later and smaller than planned, but that’s ok. There was no way we were going to cancel altogether, not after the last 2 years.

One photo I did nab was this snapshot of the candles Mom bought in Safat especially for Passover. If you don’t know, safat candles are a *thing* and these were not only gorgeous, they literally did not drip. Contrast with the regular ol’ Shabbat candles I usually get from Kroger (which I used for my Aunt Cheryl’s Seder) which drip allllll over my candlesticks every time and inevitably lead to me standing over the sink with ice cubes and a butter knife trying to scrape the dried wax off the sticks, and, because I forgot to put down a plate or tin foil… the tablecloth.

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Israel Trip 2022: One Second at a Time

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Tour overview (and places you might see in the video!): Valley of Elah, Tel Aviv-Yafo, Tel Megiddo (Armageddon), Mt Precipice in Nazareth, Mt Carmel, Haifa, Ohalei Rachamim, Rosh Hanikra, Safat, Sea of Galilee, Tabgha, Mount of Beatitudes, Tiberius, Capernaum, the Golan Heights, Valley of Tears, Magdala, Banias (Caesarea Philippi), the Yardenit (Jordan River), Bet She’an, Qumran, the Dead Sea, Masada, Ein Gedi, Jerusalem, the Mount of Olives, the Israel Museum, the hills outside Bethlehem, Hezekiah’s tunnel, the Pool of Siloam, the Burnt House, Western Wall (kotel) and Southern Steps, Yad Vashem, the Herzl Museum, Emek Tzurim Sifting Project, the Pool of Bethesda, Church of the Holy Sepulchre, Ammunition Hill, the Garden Tomb, the Elvis Cafe.

Video was created using the 1SE app. Music is from SoundStripe.

Altoid Tin Watercolors

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Watercolor was never my favorite paint. When I was young I fell in love with the slow blending work of oil, but turpentine and work space limitations being what they are, I later transitioned to the beautiful imperfection of acrylics – usually with an element of mixed medium (metal foil, glue, papers, etc).

My Grandmother, however, prefers watercolors as her first choice. I once took a water color class with her as a child and I remember disliking the opaque nature of the paint (and ultimately, painting a grey cat far too thickly so it looked terribly muddy).

March 2, 2022

But now, time is of the essence. And quickly adding a bit of art to my day- in ten minutes, or even 5- is a highly desirable concept. Enter: the homemade Altoid tin watercolor studio.

My first painting “out and about” while getting sushi for lunch.

How to make a pocket-size watercolor studio: Buy an Altoids tin, a $1-2 watercolor palette and some cheap brushes. Glue the paints into the bottom of the tin, trim down the paintbrushes to also fit (I suggest using garden shears!), and cut watercolor paper into small rectangles. Voila! An art studio in your pocket.