Israel

The house my mother lived in as a child

Life in Israel

My mother has two brothers. They lived in Rehovot, Israel. Later, she pursued fashion in college. After marrying my father, they lived in an apartment.

While living in Israel, they had three children: my sister, Dana; Yotam (me); and my brother, Nimrod (a very Israeli name; he understandably goes by Rod in the US).

Hanukkah with my grandmother

For our family, life in Israel was very close-knit; every Friday, we would eat with our grandparents. This allowed for a familial support system; my mother, who worked in the busy fashion industry, could call her mom to take care of us if she was running late. Even physically, Israel is tighter. It is very walkable, and my grandmother would sometimes walk us to daycare, school, the grocery store, and the playground near our apartment.

Preparing to Immigrate

My father had accepted a job in Lubbock, Texas. For almost two years, he was working abroad. Every few months, he would return for about a week. During such weeks, he would have to work remotely throughout the night because the seven-hour time difference meant the American and Israeli work days weren’t lined up. Finally, in August of 2009, my parents abandoned the arrangement and took us to Texas.