November in Israel - Missiles and Aikido

Situation in Israel is not very clear now. Well, it is never really clear here, but when we have visitors from overseas, they are always surprised that it is so peaceful and beautiful. But now it is not quiet.
Now there is war.
Missiled fly above us and on us.
Smoke rises following an Israeli air strike on a house in Gaza City. Picture: AFP

Israelis suffer, Palestinians suffer, and we all pray for its quick end.

Our town is so far ok, but we hear missiles land and explode south, north, east and west of us. Our military has a new weapon that shoots a rocket against a rocket and they hit each other in the air and explode. It saves here many many lives.

a woman protecting her daughter in the south
of Israel - November 2012
Photo from: http://www.facebook.com/News213
Everywhere people keep training as usual. We worry, we are prepared to run to shelter, we are trained to do that, but once our aikido class begins, we forget everything and there is peace. 

Even children come as usual to Aikido class. Today we celebrated birthday to one of them (Adi).

We try to keep good mood, there are many jokes here about the situation, but we never forget the suffering and the grief.

Our dojo: Training during hard times with even more people than usual on the tatami
The Arab-Jewish conflict is old. Very old, and a solution is not in sight.

What my friends and I try to do, is to find positive places, give them strong encouragement and we try to enlarge them.
There are two aikido/budo peace organizations here. Budo For Peace, and Aikido Without Borders. Both work very very hard to bring arabs and jews on the mats and train together while building friendship and trust. Please find ways to support these organizations.
image source

I wish our political leaders had deep knowledge in Aikido. I wish very very wise people will find a way to finish the bloodshed. Because brutality probably will sooner or later just bring more brutality. 

Thank you my dear friends for your heart warming messages from so many countries. You are really dear friends.

Thank you for your kind worry and care.

Yours,

Ze'ev Erlich
Masatake Dojo
ISRAEL

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