In Exile

עריכה
In Exile
מאת ‏‎Ilan Sheinfeld‎‏ בתאריך ‏יום ‏שישי 16 נובמבר 2012‏ בשעה ‏22:10‏ ·‏

This post is a translation of my last post in hebrew, for my friends abroad.

Five minutes after we got back from visiting Einat's twins, at Givat Shmuel, straight from the kindergarten, when Michael was crying for food, and I was in the middle of preparing him a bottle, I heard the alarm. It took me a second to realize that this is it, and to remember what I heard on the news few days ago – that I have about a minute until the fall.

I grabbed the kids, who lay on their blanket, each with one hand, moved the chairs under the dining table, a wooden table with a plate of marble, and lay down under it with both babies on my chest, Michael crying from hunger, and Daniel does not understand what we were doing there.

Less than a minute passed before I heard the crash.

I waited a few more minutes. I thought I will hear a calming siren. But I did not. Michael was crying from hunger, so I left Daniel on the ground, and took Michael in my hands, to feed him.

Immediately after feeding I started packing. I told myself that if the bastards have already passed that threshold, they may try to gain another achievement before the news edition of eight in the evening or during the night. And I, a single parent of two kids aged seven months, can not take any chances.

I packed my clothes, diapers, food, the baby's inhaler, toys, pacifiers, I added a bag of food for Luna, our old dog, a bag of clothes and toiletries and I made it at the door.

Mitchell, my friend who has visited us, was with us. We planned this meeting for tonight, but none of us could have anticipated what it going to happen.

While he was with us, I finished packing, washed the children and dressed them in pajamas, so as not to break their routine and put them in an unnecessary strain.

I told myself I would wait a little longer and see what will be announced in the news.

Meanwhile telephone calls were coming in. First my nephew called from the army. He heard what he heard and wanted to know if everything is okay. He said to me at once "pick up and do to our house at Sde Isaac.

But his parents,Yair and Michal, went to a premiere of Michal at Petach Tikva.

Than my father and two brothers, Tal and Aviv, rang, and invited us to their houses in Nitsaney Oz.

While considering whether I should leave Tel Aviv or not, two ex-journalist friends called, Gil and Tammy. They had heard were the missile fall from theirs sources, and wanted to know is everything all right.

I told myself that I'm going to see if the public shelter at the nearest Gutman Museum is open. If it is open, maybe I'll stay at home. I do not need more than a minute to get there with the babies in their cart.

But, to my amazement, the shelter was closed, and the IDF spokesman appeared on TV and said no missile fall in Tel Aviv.

"I'm going to my brothers," I told Mitchell, "I do not think I will be able to sleep tonight, if I stay at home with them."

I sent an email to members of tomorrow's writing workshop, to cancel our meeting, I dressed the kids in another set of clothes, because the chill of night on the road, I put them and Luna in my car, said goodbye to Mitchell and started driving.

Driving at night from Tel Aviv to Nitsaney Oz, with GPS, and an old dog, who insist to stumble on the gearshift all the way north is no fun.

But after forty-five minutes or so, we at Nitsaney Oz.

Osi and Tal, and their children Ophir and Ziv, were ready for us. Tal, my brother, went to buy another pack of formula for the babies, because I just finished one, my second brother, Aviv, who lives across the street, brought me a bottle of vitamin D three, and helped me unload the bags from the car.

Osi and Tal arranged for us a nice room on the second floor, where Michael and Daniel have been sleeping on a bed on the floor.

I do not know what will happen tonight in Tel Aviv. That is so strange to me. During the first Gulf War, and the second, I stayed home, I refused to move.

But my situation is different now. I am a single father of two babies, and I can not take the risk, and gamble on their health or their lives, God forbid.

So I have deserted my house. I will See what happens during the night, and only than I'll know if we will return home tomorrow, or stay at my brother's.

Have a good night everyone.