Page 21 - Issue 8
P. 21

Sounds Good




                                            by James Grant-Rosenhead, Kvutsat Yovel


           Friday night. Shabbat shalom. Outside
           it  is  dark,  but  our  machaneh  is  lit  up.
           The  moon  is  shining  bright  and  stars
           are  twinkling  in  the  clear  night  sky.
           The warm yellow light of the bonfire is
           reflected  in  the  faces  of  our  kvutsa
           members, who are sitting around it in a
           circle.  Uri’s  homemade  cable  of  light
           bulbs is hanging from a tree, powered
           by  the battery  of the  Renault Kangoo
           from our kibbutz car pool.

           I am lying on my back inside our tent,

           listening  to  the  sounds  of  our  tiyul   Kvutsat Yovel on Tiyul, October 2008. (Clockwise from left: Jon,
           campsite:                                        Emma, Kinneret, Inbal, Gil, Anton, Emily, Robin & Abe)

           Nearest, I can hear the music which Jon and Dawit are playing on their mobile phones in the
           adjacent  tent.  Our  adopted  boys  are  listening  to  music  from  Eritrea,  from  where  they  fled,
           leaving behind their friends and families, in order to avoid fifty years of compulsory military
           service.  After  walking  and  hitchhiking  across  Sudan  and  Egypt,  they  have  found  temporary
           refuge with us here in Israel;

           Behind them and to my left, I can hear the constant sound of running water – the trickling of
           the stream as it flows onwards into the Jordan river;

           To my  right, above the crackling  of  burning wood  on  the fire, I can  hear  my chevrai kvutsa,
           energetically  singing  songs  from  the  shiron,  accompanied  by  the  strumming  of  an  acoustic
           guitar;

           Jackals are howling in the near distance, but their cries are drowned out by the laughter of our
           children, the discussions of my wife and kvutsa mates, and the music around our medura;

           And it occurs to me, whilst lying here, that these are the sounds of my life.

           Sounds good.
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