THERE WAS an unexpected knock on our door in the middle of our Friday night dinner. Friends had been walking in the streets of Ra'anana, trying to find the best spot to watch the highly anticipated total eclipse, described by experts as the longest “blood moon” eclipse of the 21st century. Much had been published about this historic sighting, and the fact that the Middle East was one of the best parts of the world to be checking out the “blood moon” and, of course, the mysterious planet Mars. Our friends had been looking for an open space in which to track the eclipse, and had thought our roof garden might just work. (Personally, we just love the casual and impromptu social life in this city – the more spontaneous the surprise visitor, the happier we are.) And so, our guests at the Shabbat dinner table left their chopped herring and wine for a brief while to vacate the dining room and follow our friends up to our newfound gazing area. And there it was – the “blood moon,” looking more orange to the naked eye than the deep red in the many photographs we've seen on social media since. And glistening to the side was mesmerizing Mars. Our group of amateur sky-watchers chatted excitedly about the way the moon rose during this total eclipse, and how it turned a dark shade of red in the process. And we knew we weren't alone – part of the eclipse could also be seen from Europe, Africa, South America, Australia and parts of Asia. We were told by our star-loving visitors that in the days ahead, Mars would be at its closest point to earth in 15 years, and would look like a bright red star. The discussion about the shade of red made me smile. Shortly before our “blood moon” sojourn onto the roof, we'd been discussing the minor Jewish holiday of Tu B'av, or as some refer to it: the Jewish Valentine's Day, without Cupid's arrow. It was being marked on that same Friday – an ancient holiday that has been revitalized in modern Israel as the “holiday of love.” While red seems to be the universal color of love – be it in the form of chocolate hearts, long stemmed roses or oversized stuffed teddy bears, it seems when it comes to parties on this holiday in Israel, white is the color of choice for young single revelers. It's even said to be a popular time to tie the knot. But a very unofficial, impromptu snap survey found me battling to find people – both young and old – who were marking this lighter holiday of love. A teenager told me “no one really celebrates Tu B'av,” a young adult said it was just another excuse to go drinking with other young singles and a rather cynical-sounding, elderly man assured me it had been commercialized, just like Valentine's Day, to guilt men and women into spoiling their partners with unnecessary gifts! So, certainly within the social circles we've been enjoying in our time as new olim, it seems the excitement over the sighting of the rare, red “blood moon” was far greater than any romantic notions on this apparent holiday of love. Maybe next year, we'll find more love in the air.
