What were a few bothersome appointments if they were the key to the Land of Israel?

Stage One: Work, Save, Wait

Jews are always counting. Minutes to sunset. Six days until Shabbos. Eight days to a bris. Six years until shemitta. And of course, Sefiras Ha’omer — seven weeks from Mitzrayim to Matan Torah.

My husband and I counted too, not down, but up. Six years of working and planning, then six crazy, intensive weeks until we were ready to fulfill a life-long dream… aliyah to Eretz Yisrael.

As a little girl I dreamt of being a shepherdess on a hill in Eretz Yisrael, guarding my sheep and playing my flute. I married someone a bit more practical, but he also intended to make his home in Eretz Yisrael, so there was never any talk about if we would make the move; the only question was when.

In 1964, six years after our wedding, with two little boys in tow, my husband’s semichah in hand, university degrees in our pockets, and the magnificent sum of $4,000 in the bank, we were finally ready to leave.