Nani Haim Tibi

6 Days War

    Dad got a special gift for his birthday, "a baby".

    It all started about a year before, late spring of 1967, we just returned from the town's public swimming pool. The 6th grade teacher led us to the gym for an assembly.
 "What is it all about?" Someone asked. "It's probably about our swimming lessons, you saw how Uri pushed Tanya into the deep water and she didn't know how to swim."

    I looked forward those lessons. I loved the water, but I didn't know how to swim in deep water. Mom promised me that when I know how to swim well, she'll let me go with my friend to the beach unsupervised.

    "Quiet! Quiet everyone!" The principal yelled, "Quiet!"
The whole school was there even the little kids from the special 1st grade.
 "We gathered here today for a very important reason, so I want everybody to cooperate and pay attention. There is a possibility that Israel will be going to war. As you, know the Arab nations are surrounding us..."
 "This time they won't escape!" I whispered to Sarah Markovich.
 "Is there something you want to share with us, young boy?" Said the principal, looking directly at me.
 "Who me?" I said (how did he hear me?) "No sorry".
 "There is a possibility that the Arabs will penetrate our borders and send planes to bomb our towns. For such occasions we must be prepared. We have to practice emergency drills. For now, you will hear the school's bell ringing intermittently. This will be the sign for you to - quietly - get up and - nicely - without talking, young boy!" Again, he was looking at me, I hate it when people call me young boy.
 "You will walk" The principal continued, to the underground shelter. We designated a spot for each class, so I expect every class to walk to their area, sit quietly and wait for instructions. In case of a real emergency, you will hear a siren going up and down and, in this case, you’ll do just the same and - quietly - walk to your assigned places. If this happened to be on your break between classes please don't run, just walk to your regular assigned places as if your teacher was with you."

 Nobody expected this kind of talk. Back at the classrooms our teacher explained again what it all meant and what we should do at home. "You should tape the windows like we did in class and at night dim all the lights. I'm sure that your neighbors will get together to dig trenches. Offer your help because most of the men are enlisted in the army and the women wouldn't be able to do much without your help."
 "How are we going to see in the dark?" asked Sarah Markovich. Sarah and I shared the desk for the last two years. She kept me in line most of the time.
 "Well," said the teacher, "the idea is to dim the light so 'planes will not see us at night. Even car lights will have to be painted, leaving only a thin opening for the light to show. We will all just have to be more careful."
 "And what about the swimming lessons?" Asked Bully - Israel the big boy who had to repeat this year.
 "Yes, what about those swimming lessons?" Asked Sarah Mimon.
 "You see children," said the teacher, your swimming teachers had to go to serve the army just like all the other men in Israel. I'm sure that after all this is over, they'll be back, and you'll have the opportunity to swim again."

    That afternoon, when I got home, Mom was waiting for me with a shovel. "Your brother is already helping the neighbors dig the trench.
             Roni Halali brought bags from his dad's store, your job is to fill the sandbags with the dirt that the older boys are digging," Mom said, "so hurry up, finish your lunch and go to help them."

    All the young men were drafted to serve on the border, the middle age men were in the local defense with my dad, he became medic with my help. It was all up to us boys to defend our neighborhood. We will dig the best trench so everyone can fit in and be safe. You see, not every building had a shelter or a basement, only the brand-new ones were designed with a big basement. Our neighborhood was built long ago, and they didn't anticipate aerial attack. By evening we were all done. Mrs. Halali brought raspberry juice and a radio. We all sat outside our new shelter / trench and listened to the radio for updates and instructions.

    Next morning, as usual, Sarah Mimon was waiting for me at the corner next to her house to walk to school together.
 "Say, my dad had to go to the army today," she said, "how about your dad? Did he get drafted?
 "Yes" I replied, "but he is in HAGA the local forces. He doesn't have to fight this time. He is a medic, and he will be at the Red Magen David station. But I'm worried because my Uncle Claude, was drafted yesterday morning and his wife entered the hospital to have a baby last night. I don't want to think about what will happened if he never comes back."
 "He'll be back," she said. "The war didn't even start yet and we don't know if there will be war."
 "You're right, we don't know. Oh, guess who was drafted today?" I continued.
 "I don't know, who?"
 "Moshe Kotler"
 "Our teacher?"
 "No, our mother!" I teased her. "I saw him this morning in uniforms, entering a bus."
 "You're kidding. What will they do with us now? They sent us home early yesterday because of the gym teacher."
 "I don't know. I kind of like this war stuff maybe they'll cancel school altogether."
 "Yes, don't you wish," she said when we entered the classroom.
I went to my chair next to Sarah Markovich, Sarah Mimon went to her place at the back of the class and waited quietly for the bell to ring.

    Right after snack break, the siren sounded. The substitute teacher stood up. You could see the color in her face changing and her worried expression.
 "Let's all get up quietly and walk to the shelter," she said.
At the shelter that is our audio-visual auditorium, under the nature/biology center, all of us sat at our designated areas. Some girls were crying softly, some kids were whispering but it was extremely quiet. The principal didn't have to do his "quiet" routine.
 "We will wait here until the all-clear siren will sound and then we'll send you all home." The principal announced, "Meanwhile we'll watch a movie."
 We didn't have a chance to see the movie. The moment the light went off the all-clear siren went on.
    "School will be canceled for now. Please listen to the radio to find out when we'll resume," said the principal When the light went on. "Don't wander around on your way home and when you're there, stay at your neighborhood. We don't want anybody to get hurt."

    On the way home I walked with Sarah Mimon and Uri, the tall boy whose father is in jail for attempted murder of his wife's lover. Suddenly we heard a loud noise, and two jet fighter planes flew above us at a very low altitude. Uri started running and yelling something that sounded like "mom" or something. Sarah grabbed my arm while I looked up at the 'planes. They were very fast, but I had the chance to see their marking. They were blue and white. Those French made "Mirage" were my favorite Israeli plains because they looked just like the paper 'planes I made during English class.
 "Don't worry" I said to Sarah Mimon, "they're ours, but I think we should hurry home anyway."

    Again, Mom was waiting for me on the front lawn.
 "Dad was here earlier but he went back to his post," she said. " He said that there is nothing to worry about. But I can't help it, I always worry."
 Just as I walked home the sirens sounded again. We all rushed to the trenches and jumped right in a moment later the sirens sounded the "all clear".
 "What is going on?" asked Uri.
 "We didn't have a chance to get in the trenches and they sounded the all-clear" said Rita "Chita".
 "They don't let the Arabs' planes get in our country." said Bentzi.
 "Listen to this" said Gila Halali my mother's friend, while holding the transistor radio. " They said on the radio that we shot down 250 Arab war planes. Can you believe that?"
 "Unbelievable!" Said mom.

    Now another neighbor came out of her house. It was Hana Televisia. She got her nickname because of her odd habit of yelling every time she opened her window. She also held a transistor radio in her hand, but she was listening to an Arab station. Hana Televisia was yelling and crying.
 "Woo, woo, my God they are coming, they are in Tel Aviv. We are all going to die. The Arabs are going to throw us all into the sea. Woo Woo..."
 "Those chalalulus" said Uri's mother "When are they going to learn to speak Hebrew or at least listen to a Hebrew station?"
Lucky for us, her older son came home, and he comforted her and explained to her that that news was made-up propaganda by the Arabs countries to stir up chaos and panic in Israel.

    That night, following the radio's instructions, we dimmed all the lights and anywhere we went we had a transistor radio with us.

    “They are rolling barrels in the sky!” whispered Rita Chita as we heard the planes over head. We were all sitting in the trench, and I had to explain to Rita that you can’t actually roll barrels in the sky. It was a tactical move the Israelis where using to scare the Arabs during the war of independence.

    For five days we were all listening to the news every hour. The Radio played only Israeli music. New songs were written, and new jokes were composed all about the feat of the Israeli army.

     The most memorable moment was at one night when we all sat on the front lawn listening to the radio. The radio announcer sounded very excited. He was describing his steps and the soldiers' steps in the old city of Jerusalem. I felt a big lump in my throat, as he was approaching the Western Wall and, as soon as he touched the Wailing Wall, a new song was played on the radio -- a song that became one of the most famous Israeli songs in the world. It was "Jerusalem of gold" by Naomi Shemer.

    The morale in Israel was very high, we felt invincible. We have the best pilots in the world and the best army, and no-one will ever defeat us. But then the real truth started to appear. Yes, we won the war, but at a very high price. Every family in Israel lost someone in this war, whether it was a father, brother, or an uncle.

    When the policeman knocked on our door, I knew who would never come back. Uncle Claude, Dad's youngest brother, the one that just had a baby, was in the first jeep that entered the city of Gaza. He was also in the first jeep that was hit.

    It was horrible. I had never seen Dad cry before. We all cried. At the "Sheva" at Meme's house, Mom promised that she was going to bring Uncle Claude back. For a while I didn't know what that meant or how she was going to do that, but when I saw mom’s belly growing, I understood, I am was going to have a new brother.

 

***

 

Woodstock

    “There is a new movie, everybody’s talking about,” I told Sarah Garon. “Would you like to go with me to see it?”
It took me a while to brave and otter those words without stumbling or stuttering. Yaakov her twin brother helped me. “You can’t worry about her that much, she is just like me,” he said. “You hear us arguing and fighting all the time. She is my sister; we have our moments. But she does like you, I know.”
 “She likes me?”
 “Yes, she said so.”
 “She said so? You asked her?”
 “Of course, I asked her, you asked me to!”
 “Oh yes, I did. What did she say?”
 “She said you should ask her yourself. By the way we had fun at school yesterday with your invention.”
 “How do you know it was me?”
 “What are you talking about? We slid together on the chairs down the stairs. You won twice. And I am sure everyone else loved the stairs bob sled you made out of the desks. Lucky for us no one got hurt and no broken tables and chairs.”
“Oh that, yes, that was furn. But when Moshe Kotler came up the stairs, he found a 6 mm bullet stuck in the 5th grade’s door.
 “You’re kidding!” said Yaakov, “How the hell did a built got to school. Who brings a gun to school?”
 “Do you remember the antenna tube I was walking around with yesterday?”
 “The one Sha’ul Mizrachi stall from you and broke it? What about it?
 “Well,” I said slowly, “My Uncle Rony brought me some used bullets from the war, He also gave me Uzi bullet shells – the ones I used for making the Hanukkiah. Anyway the 6 mm bullets fit perfectly inside the TV antenna tubes. I put one in and blew in the pipe. The bullet flew and got stuck in the door. Lucky no one was there, and no one got hurt.”
 “I always knew you are crazy…”

    Sarah was so pretty, shorter than me, and so cute. I can’t say about many girls being shorter than me, being the shortest kid in my class. Yes, it is given Sarah was a year younger than me, but her brother is taller than me and even Avi who is two years younger is growing taller.

    I saved enough money of my allowance for two movie tickets and a little snack. The movie was in the biggest and most famous theatre in the area. The “Sharon” theatre was named after the Sharon County where Netanya was located. It was a modern design with special lighting and a big balcony. A nice size stage and comfortable seats.

    Netanya had a few other movie theatres; The first one “Ester Theatre”, was built before the state of Israel was formed. We had two movie theatres with no roof and a small one under the ground. But the Sharon theatre was the big one where we had the most important shows and the most expensive.

    I was ready for Sarah1/2 hour before and now was waiting for her to get ready. It took her much longer than I expected. The “Who” were singing “love me, heal me …” or something like that when we finally walked in the theatre. Don’t forget, we lived about half hour walk from the theatre and walking with a pretty dolled up girl slowed me down. I wasn’t sure whether to walk behind her, next to her or in front of her. Meanwhile she was teasing me all the way to the theatre about my conversation with her brother.

    After disturbing everyone we finally found a place to sit in the middle of the theatre. All movies in Israel have subtitles. They don’t dub the film except for cartoons. I think it helped my dyslexia and helped a little bit me learn English. It was the first Documentary film I have ever seen. I must say, I kind of liked it. I was never introduced to that new hippy movement. The colorful cloths, the long hair and the music. I was not permitted to listen to much music at home. “It will interfere with your homework,” mom used to say. So, most of the songs were new for me. I didn’t connect with “The Who” but I loved Santana and his percussion section. What is still engraved in my memory is Joe Coker. The way he was all deformed in his appearance as if he was in pain. It was a long 3 hours film but what made it too short for me was our holding hands through the whole time. Yet, I think Sarah fell asleep during some of it.
 “I didn’t understand anything,” said Sarah as we walked out.
 “There was nothing to understand,” I said, “it is a documentary. But I had a good time with you,” I continued as I offered her a cone of ice cream.

 

***

Chanukah Blessings

    “Hey, Haim!” I heard Nehamah Lerner as I was lifting my chair to place it on top of the table before leaving for home. “The new music teacher is looking for you.”
 “Me? Doesn’t he know what happened with Pnina, the old teacher? She practically had her heart broken.”

    Last year after winning the choral festival I stopped coming to rehearsals, every time finding another excuse. Until Pnina caught me playing “hands up” on her way home.
 “Your Mom is sick?” she asked.
 “Ahh …”
 “I don’t want to see you again!” She said disappointed.
I was banned from the choral for the rest of the time at our school.

    “Yes,” Said Nehamah Lerner, “but she is no longer here.”
The new music teacher, I think, was a long lost relative of mine. His name was Yitzchak Tov. Tov is the root of the word “good” in Hebrew. And so is my last name – at that time they pronounced it “Tubi” because of a clerical mistake who extended the letter Yod to a Vav and there for changed the sound of last name. He was also from Tunisia, where my parents came from. I liked him, he kept us singing a lot of new popular songs while playing his accordion. Now he wants me to rejoin the choral again. To be once more the only boy.
 “He likes your voice,” said Nehamah Lerner, “I think it was Ya’el Helbort who told him about you too.”
 “Ya’el,” I thought to myself almost out loud “I love that blond.” She is pretty, she is a good singer and I saw her play the guitar, my favorite instrument. I never even imagined she noticed me. She was in my classroom, but we never talked. She lived at the rich neighborhood on the way to Avihayil, those people don’t look at us “low class Sfaradim”. It is still puzzling me how a people who’ve been discriminated for all its history can be discriminating within its own people.

    “I heard a lot about you, young man,” said Yitzchak Tov. “You have a good voice and can carry a tune.”
 “I guess, I could.”
 “We need you to sing the blessing for the candles of Chanukah this year. Do you think you can manage it?
 “Sure!”
 “This year I am planning also to have an orchestra playing with us. It should turn out very well. We had some new budget for new instruments, and we have some kids who are good musician. I am very excited about it. Yitzchak was proudly smiling as he was telling us about the changes. We started rehearsals right away. Of course, I was feeling very proud of myself and through the corner of my eyes I could see Pretty Ya’el almost smiling.

    Two days before the Chanukah celebration I was woken up with the usual classical music at 6:00 Am and unlike every morning I heard an Aria from one of the Italian operas. I was so excited, I never heard that before. And the voice was so deep and strong I was trying very hard to imitate it. Avi my brother jumped in and joined me with his squeaky voice (Dad always made fun of his whining).
 “Can you sing like that”? He asked and changed the key (I had no idea what key was at that time) back and forth. “I hear, only professionals can do that.”
 “Of course, I can,” I answered proudly. And we both walked to school singing off and on key different songs.

   The next day, at the last period, our parents came to watch our Chanukah celebration. For the first time ever, Dad showed up and sat proudly in the first row. His son is about to sing the blessing in front of the whole school.

   First the kids with the instruments walked up to the stage and everybody was cheering them up. Next the choral kids walked up and yours truly was the first kid in the first row. Standing proudly, trying to look tall. “I have a surprise for Yitzchak today. I will sing like a professional.”
We sang a few Chanukah songs and then it was my turn to step up to the “Chanukkiah”. The orchestra gave us a few introduction cords and I started the blessings, holding the candle in my right hand and started to light the first candle. When I got to the second candle, I decided it was time to show my “professionalism”. I changed the key in the middle of the blessing. The gasp I heard that came from the audience scarred me so much I dropped the candle. Lucky it turned off. I quickly picked it up, relit it and continued the blessing with the original key. In the corner of my eye, I could see Yitzchak brushing his hair in amazement or maybe frustration.

   Once we finish and everyone clapped their hands, I heard Yitzchak tov yelling at me; “Tubi, remind me to talk to you about musical Keys!”

***

 

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