Pablo Rosenberg and Gal Toren - Changes in the Weather

I thought of this clip recently which is taken from Pablo Rosenberg and Gal Toren's very successful show 'Trip after the Army'. In the first season they followed in the footsteps of young Israelis just out of the army who traveled to India, and in later seasons they went to South America and Japan, always combining their curiosity for new places with humor and their love for singing with people. In the 5th season they traveled throughout the country and this clip was filmed in Rehaniya, a Circassian town near the border of Lebanon. In the episode the mother explains that they are Muslims who make an effort to preserve their Circassian heritage - at school, the kids learn Circassian, Hebrew, Arabic, and English. While they preserve their Circassian culture they are also part of Israeli society and Pablo and Gal chose to sing this Shlomo Artzi classic after hearing from the mother how much she loves him, and also after she told them about her late husband who passed away three years earlier. I love everything about this clip but it's painful to realize that visiting Rehaniya is unthinkable today, a situation that needs to be changed though no one can guarantee that this new stage of escalation we're in will really bring life back to normal in Rehaniya and in other towns in the north.

An excellent translation of the full version by Moshe Kaye, taken from LyricsTranslate:

Changes in the weather have caused me to think

that in addition I am also sad about you

near the house that was my home, they have paved a road

I know, something here changes.

Here is a cloud,

similar to other clouds that already passed by and despite it all I still see shapes

Once I would come close

with all my body for your kisses,

I would come to you, to learn everything.

Once there were with me other people

I am left with only their names

the sea also wipes away names - written in the sand.

but now I know, 

that despite it all you are with me,

and together, the two of us together, were born.

Changes in the people have made me think

that besides you I don't have anyone to love

near the house that was my home, they have paved a road

I know something about good and evil.

Here is the sea

Similar to another sea, and another sea and thus it will continue.

There is always the sea, there is always a boat.

Once I would come close...

That which you said and which you didn't made me think

That our words are meeting.

Near the house that was my home, they have paved a road

They gave it a name, they always give names.

Here you are also

Sometimes you are similar to the sea, and sometimes no

Sometimes you are there, sometimes you are here

Once I would come close...

Uri Brauner Kinrot - As if nothing

I've been thinking of this song a lot in the past few weeks, especially as we're nearing the high holidays and the first anniversary since October 7th which is just around the corner and falls this year on the 'terrible days', the time of reflection and soul-searching between Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur. I went to the hairdresser yesterday and was surprised to hear Stevie Wonder from the speakers. The last time I was there, in early April, there was no music playing and my hairdresser said it would stay that way until all the hostages would return. I don't blame him for putting the music back on, but I still felt a pang in my heart. The last time I went it was a few weeks before Passover and we talked about how hard it was to wish a happy holiday. Indeed, it was a very sad Passover though there was some sense of hope when we read the line 'next year in Jerusalem', surely we would all be together next year, right? Now we're approaching Rosh Hashana and the thought that so many families will be marking the new year without their loved ones is devastating. There's some sense of comfort in the realization that no matter what life moves on and yet, at the same time, it emphasizes just how stuck we all are when we could have been in a different place by now.

The earth is shaking

The light is fading and disappearing

And the trees, and the flowers

As if nothing

Clouds are crying

Waves are crashing like drunks

And the boats and the fish

As if nothing

Also the moon, on her route

Looks from above and is infinitely far away

She will never change her way

Never

My heart is broken

Nothing is the same anymore

My dream is lost

My world is over

Autumn that has not passed

Time seems to have stopped

And life goes on

As if nothing

Also the moon, on her route

Looks from above and is infinitely far away

She will never change her way

Never

My heart is broken

Nothing is the same anymore

My dream is lost

I'm out of air

uribrauner.lnk.to/keilu

Aner - Dove

Heartbroken to hear of the tragic murder of six of our hostages: Hersh Goldberg-Polin, 23, Eden Yerushalmi, 24, Ori Danino, 25, Alex Lobanov, 32, Almog Sarusi, 27, and Carmel Gat, 40. Heartbroken and also furious, especially after hearing that they were killed by Hamas terrorists just a few days ago and that four of them were meant to be released in the first stage of the proposed hostage deal. For almost 11 months we have been told again and again that only force will bring the hostages back when it's clear that the remaining hostages are now more in danger than ever before. Getting them home alive as soon as possible should be the government's top priority but it clearly isn't and the risk of abandoning them again is too high, not just for them and their families but also for us as a society.

I thought of this chilling song when I heard Rachel Goldberg-Polin and Jon Polin's powerful speech at the DNC, when they recounted how Hersh and his best friend Aner went to the Nova music festival and found themselves at the Re'im death shelter where dozens were killed but at least seven were saved thanks to Aner's selfless heroism. Aner's parents wanted him to be remembered not just for his death but also for the life he led and the music he made, which he had dreamed of sharing with the world. After his death, Aner's parents and friends went through over 60 of his songs and chose six of them to release in an introductory E.P. Each one of them showcases his immense talent but this song especially reveals who Aner was and how he saw the world. I can't help but wonder if Hersh ever heard these songs back in Aner's room in Jerusalem. After all he had been through he was so close to getting his life back and Jon and Rachel were so close to finally getting their son back home.

People are being murdered on my street

Frightened

Can't you hear it in my voice?

Trying to concentrate on the half-full glass, shit

Again rockets in the air, going into the room

A stainless steel door I don't feel like I belong

But picking up a weapon won't make me feel that I do

For years I dream of seeing everything here quiet, there's no

Rest in my country for anyone

Kids in the Gaza envelope are sitting in a shelter 

In the West Bank they live in fear

I grew up like this, what's new?

A few more dead

Aren't you exhausted?