2 — A Word of Caution from a Wondering Wanderer (Chicago: Feb 26, 2009)

A word of caution here before we progress.  I have been putting off writing this part of the story for the last 10 years.  The reason for this is that 10 years ago I walked away from a 30 year focus.

I have been hesitant to tell this story because I am sure that it will cause offense to many.  I was concerned that it could even have a negative impact on my family's relationships and especially my daughter as she navigated her teen years.  

But I am working on my 60th year and my wife and I have been on this journey together for 33 years.  My daughter is an adult with her own son to raise.  Both my wife and daughter have been encouraging me to get this into print for some time now.  And, if I don't tell this story, no one else will be able to explain it to my grandson!  

This is a pretty wild story that will take us from my childhood in the USA, to Africa, southeast Asia, Israel, and back. It includes my time as a soldier in an African army and my return to work side-by-side with my former enemies.  It is a pretty wild ride, but that is not what caused me to hesitate.

The Cause of Hesitation

The next few installments in this saga detail a course change that would cause me to "wander" for three decades.  Because I wondered as I wandered, I would end up completely overturning the life choices I made during my "Seven Days in May" (chap 5-11).  

This is not to say that 30 years were a total bust, but my conscious motivation for the entire period would be overthrown.  Because I always wondered as I wandered, I would eventually find an underlying motivation that would lead me to reject my conscious motivation.

Now does this seem confusing to you?  Let me make this plain.  Over the course of 7 days in May, I would wander away from my Jewish faith.  I had already rejected my Jewish upbringing as being inadequate.  

Now I began to take a course that was definitely not Jewish.  I would begin to become interested in Jesus--although this was a much different Jesus than the one in traditional Christianity.  I would start as a "Jesus Freak" on the outside of organized "churchianity," but eventually would find myself as a pastor, missionary, and even a seminary professor right smack in the middle of a well-established Christian denomination.  But, because I wondered and because I was always questioning everything (one element of my Jewish heritage that never abated), I was always in trouble with some religious "authority."  The more trouble I got in, the more I wondered.  At the end of 30 years progressing deeper and deeper into Christian religion, I walked away from it and returned to my Jewish faith.

So, in the next few segments I will detail how I wandered into Christianity.  Later we will document how I wondered my way back to Judaism.

My story will relate the challenges I faced, both theologically and experientially.  If you stick with me as I narrate this journey, you will probably be challenged too.  Whether you are Jewish or gentile, religious or irreligious, a faith adherent or an agnostic--you are likely to be frustrated with me.  But if I am to tell my story, I have to be open with you.  I hope you can remain open with me as you read. 

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July 4,2024 (Newnan, Georgia)

We returned from living in Israel two months ago.  Since then, we have been asked, “What is it like there?  Is it nice?  Weren’t you worried?  Of course, you came back because of the war--didn’t you?  What do you think of Netanyahu?  What do Israelis think of Netanyahu, the war with Hamas, Iran, what about the Haredi Jews, are you Orthodox?”, etc.

I think about these things all the time too, but I don’t have a good answer for any of these.  I can say that whatever opinion or answer is stated is…somehow wrong!  You just have to be there and then you still can’t give a good answer—neither can I.  Anything I say—I would say is somehow wrong!

To quote a lyric from a Groucho Marx routine, “Whatever it is — I’m against it!” www.youtu.be/3cKUppyjJuw

All I can tell you is what I experienced.  And when it comes to what I have experienced in life, all I can tell you is what happened to me and my perspective on that.  As the days go by, my perspective on what I experienced changes—so, I reserve the right to disagree with myself, whether it is what I have already written, or what I am about to write as I once again pick up my metaphorical pen and put it to paper.  

I share these things with you to give you a window into my experiences.  You will have your own thoughts about my rhyme, reason or resolution.

 I have been away from writing my story for almost a decade, and I fully intended to start writing again after making Aliyah (“to go up” — refers to Jews living in the Diaspora immigrating to Israel).  Then there was the medical emergency that overturned our lives in Israel and led to our return to the USA for treatment.  

It started with a simple trip and fall on the bumpy sidewalk in front of our Jerusalem apartment.  Pegi “simply” tripped and fell.  What should have been a run-of-the-mill treatment for two broken shoulders turned into a major metabolic crisis and the necessity to seek specialized treatment back in the USA.  The details are really unimportant.  The overall impact was not the shattering of a few bones which could be repaired, but the shattering of a shared dream of no longer wandering--finding our home in Israel after 48 years of marriage.  That dream was shattered. But Pegi is my dream and she is my home!

So, here we are in Newnan, Georgia—about 40 minutes south of Atlanta.  What does it all mean?  I don’t know, but it makes sense to me that if we go back and look at how we got here, we can begin to see what our future here may hold.  So, I plan to go back to describing my wanderings with the hope of discovering the questions that might illuminate some answers.  Whatever I discover—I reserve the right to disagree.  After all, “Whatever it is, I’m against it!”

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Tuesday, June 3, 2025

Well, it took another 11 months to actually get back to writing!  It isn’t so easy to get your life up and running when you are in your mid-70s!  There were a lot of doctors’ appointments and physical therapy sessions, but Pegi is making substantial progress in recovering from surgery on both shoulders.  And there has been a lot of activity wrapping up our lives in Israel and reestablishing ourselves in a Georgia near our daughter and grandson.

So, enough excuses, it is time to get back to the story!

And just as I wrote the last line, I got another the almost daily warnings of rocket and missile fire threatening our former residence in Jerusalem—probably the Houthis in Yemen again!