Aliyah

A customer admired my Am Yisrael Chai papercut and asked me to make a card with the same message on it for her daughter who was making aliyah. The Hebrew word aliyah literally means ascent or rise, but for generations it has been used to mean "moving to Israel". My customer wanted a nice card for her daughter to find when she arrived at her new home here.

Jewish tradition views travelling to the Land of Israel as an ascent, both geographically and metaphysically. The opposite action - emigration by Jews from Israel - is referred to in the Hebrew language as yerida (descent). The Law of Return that was passed by the Knesset (the legislative branch of the government of Israel) in 1950 gives all diaspora Jews, as well as their children and grandchildren, the right to relocate to Israel and acquire Israeli citizenship on the basis of connecting to their Jewish identity. 

I created a card with the blue and white flag of Israel on it. The flag consists of a white background with a blue Star of David in the centre and two horizontal blue stripes at the top and bottom. The Star of David is a widely acknowledged symbol of the Jewish people and of Judaism. The stripes recall the design of the tallit, the traditional Jewish prayer shawl. A white dove with an olive branch in its beak, a symbol of peace from the biblical story of Noah's ark, is hovering in front of the flag. Noah released the dove to find dry land after The Flood, and the dove returned carrying an olive branch, signaling that the flood had receded. I added a bright red pomegranate, one of Israel's Seven Species. In Jewish tradition, pomegranates are, among other things, a symbol of love. Finally, I cut out the Hebrew letters spelling out the words Am Yisrael Chai, "The people of Israel live". The slogan is used as a patriotic phrase, an equivalent of "Long Live Israel." The word "Chai" - meaning life, living, or alive - itself has a very special meaning and long history as a Jewish symbol, all explained in my Chai blog post.

My customer's daughter was delighted with her card. "Thank you for this gorgeous card!" she wrote to her mum. "I don’t know how you managed to get it posted here successfully!" she said. And that, dear readers, is a whole 'nother story...

* This post has been shared on Wonderful Wednesday Blog Hop

Dove of Peace

A customer asked me for a special card to send to a fellow professional in Australia. She wanted something "Israeli" but nothing religious or political. She had already thought about a white dove, the symbol of peace. After some thought, I suggested adding some Jerusalem-style buildings, in the creamy, gold colour of the ancient Jerusalem stone, along with some bright red pomegranates, one of the Seven Species mentioned in the Hebrew Bible as being native to the Land of Israel. Many Jewish families serve the fruit on Rosh Hashanah (the Jewish New Year) in the hope that the coming year will bring many blessings.

I created a card which was predominantly blue and white, the national colours of Israel. I cut out a white dove carrying an olive branch. The dove is a symbol of peace from the biblical story of Noah's ark. Noah released the dove to find dry land after a flood, and the dove returned carrying an olive branch, signaling that the flood had receded.

The Vilna Gaon, a scholar and one of the greatest Talmud experts (the Talmud is a record of the rabbinic debates in the 2nd-5th century on the teachings of the Torah), declares that a dove is a symbol of the human soul. The dove is also considered to be a symbol of the people of Israel.

I added the word "Shalom" in English. The word Shalom is a very important word. It has several meanings: it is a greeting word (like Hello, but also Goodbye), it means peace and health and stems from the root S.L.M. that means complete or perfect.

The green trees behind the Jerusalem stone buildings are cypress trees. For centuries, Middle Eastern culture has identified the cypress with the afterlife, prompted by its evergreen quality and the fact that it is roughly shaped like a candle, a symbol of the soul in both Judaism and Islam. It is commonly planted at cemeteries of both faiths throughout Israel - including the military cemetery at Mount Herzl.
Long ago the wood of the Mediterranean cypress was used for building the Temple, ships, and musical instruments. Locals believe potions and ointments made from the fruit of the Mediterranean cypress can treat diabetes, strengthen the immune system, heal gum infections and fungus, and alleviate toothaches.

In 1898 Theodor Herzl, the founder of modern political Zionism, planted a cypress tree to symbolize his dream for the future of the Land of Israel and the birth of a Jewish State. The cypress tree started to grow and with it, the hope of Israel to see a state. For several years the cypress was a symbol of hope for all the Jews who sat in its shade on the way to Jerusalem. Sadly it did not last long; in 1915 it was chopped down and burned!

I cannot finish this post without mentioning the Hamas war on Israel. Yesterday morning, 1st September, it was announced that Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Eden Yerushalmi, Carmel Gat, Almog Sarusi, Alex Lubnov and Ori Danino had been murdered whilst held in captivity in Gaza. Hamas kidnapped them on 7th October 2023. They kept them hostage for 330 days and then murdered them and left them in tunnels, to be found by Israeli soldiers. Their captors had fled. These young people were killed for no reason but hate.

May their memory be a blessing.

101 hostages remained in captivity in the Gaza Strip.

Bring them home now!

* This post has been shared on The Good. The Random. The Fun., Wordless Wednesday (on Tuesday) and Tuesday Turn About.

Pomegranates

I recently posted some photos on facebook which I took on a walk Mister Handmade in Israel and I went on in the Rosh HaAyin forest. One photo got much more attention than the others - a photo of some beautiful red pomegranates dangling from a laden tree in the remains of Mahtzevet HaShezafim, the Jujube Tree Quarry. So much interest in these pomegranates inspired me to create a papercut of them and this is the result.

My design is embellished with pomegranates and flowers. In the Jewish faith, pomegranates are traditionally eaten on Rosh Hashanah (Jewish New Year) because it has 613 seeds, which coincide with the 613 commandments of the Torah. Furthermore, the pomegranate represents fruitfulness. We use them in our Rosh Hashanah meals as a positive omen.
The word "Shalom", which appears in both English and Hebrew, like many Hebrew words has more than one meaning. Shalom means peace. However "peace" is only one small part of the meaning. "Shalom" is also used to both greet people and to say goodbye, but it means much more than "peace, hello or goodbye"...
Shalom is rooted in the word שלם (shaleim) which means wholeness, completion, wellness, perfection. When we are "at peace" we feel a sense of "wholeness."

With Rosh Hashanah approaching, this papercut would make a great gift for the holiday, or for a wedding, anniversary or birthday. It is drawn and cut entirely by hand from a single sheet of Textura Recycled Bright White Card. It measures 30x21cm and fits perfectly into an IKEA frame. The backing paper can be changed, if you prefer something other than red, though I picked red as a reminder of those shiny pomegranates.

If you would like to order a papercut or take a further look, it is available right here in my Etsy shop.

* This post has been shared on Inspire Me Monday, The Good. The Random. The Fun., Wordless Wednesday (on Tuesday), All About Home, Tuesdays with a Twist, Wonderful Wednesday Blog Hop, {wow me} wednesday, Keep In Touch and All Seasons.