A view and a point of view

In today's world everyone has a point of view, basically on everything, especially the things they know very little about. I wish to share my two cents with you and it won't even cost you a penny for my thoughts.

When I have my morning cup of coffee in hand I look out the window to the world. If the air is clear I can see every furrow in the fields below, near the neighboring village of our cousins. If that's the case I look across the way to the ridge on the north by northwest horizon, at the city of Ariel. If I can see not only the buildings of the university, but also the red-tile roofs of the nearby apartment buildings – then I know there's a chance. Quickly I will turn my gaze rightwards along the ridge, pass Yitzhar, pass Beracha, to count the antennae on Mt. Eyval. If I can count all of them – then I know to try and look for the Hermon Mountains. On a clear day like today I can even look out the window as I wash the dairy dishes and clearly see the snow-covered majestic Hermon, almost  two hundred kilometers away from Eli, the village where I live.

That's the view from my house. However, if I walk through the streets to the top of the hill where my neighborhood, Neot Chen (all of the streets are named for flowers), was built, I get another view. In the very center of the neighborhood, that started to be built about thirty years ago, there is an empty lot. Not the kind we played baseball in as kids, not really empty, but rather you can see the oldest house in the area. But this house is no longer lived in, the roof has collapsed, only the cellars, the winepress and the foundations remain. This house was built about 2800 years ago, during the time of the Kingdom of Israel

So you see: the view from where I live is such that the air is so clear - you can see from the center of the country all the way to the end, to the roof, so to speak, and all the way back in time to the foundations, if you get my meaning. This clarity of view gives rise to a different point of view, because in this clear air you may be able to see forward to the future. This is the view I hope to share with you.

Peace to you all. Chodesh Tov! From Eli in the area of Benjamin.