Friday, December 1st, 2023
Tragedy in Hotel Life
When I lived in Israel in the 1980s, I had regular work playing and singing at piano bars in three Tel Aviv hotels – the Plaza, the Grand Beach, and the (then) brand new Dan Panorama. At the time, they hosted an international assortment of tourists visiting the fabulous city of Tel Aviv. I would sit at the piano singing jazz standards, Broadway showtunes and, when I got really bored, commercial jingles for Juicy Fruit gum and Hershey bars (tunes unfamiliar to most of the hotel guests who thought they were part of cocktail music repertoire).
Today, however, many hotels in Israel are serving as temporary shelters for those who can not remain safely in their homes. The hotel doors are open to provide a haven and some comfort to evacuees from communities near the Gaza Strip and border towns affected by the war. When I think of hotels, I imagine a comfortable room with an ocean view and someone to provide me with clean bed linens and towels each day. All in all, a pretty nice experience.
The reality for displaced persons is tragically different, although we haven’t really heard much about that. The world is currently focused on the war, the bombing, soldiers’ wellbeing, citizens’ security, the return of the hostages, the trauma and healing of those released from captivity. In Toronto we have a significant share of displaced Israelis who are here either waiting out the war or considering a permanent re-location to Canada. But not too much has been shared about the lives of those at the hotels in Israel.
Until now. I just read of a tragedy at the Dan Panorama Hotel in Tel Aviv, the same hotel where I made music so long ago. Yesterday, a woman in her fifties took her own life, a heartbreaking indication of the overwhelming strain and emotional turmoil that she and the other displaced Israelis must be enduring. There is so much worry, and so much to pray for.
As we light our candles tonight, and as we offer our Shabbat prayers, let us remember to pray for those riding out the storm in foreign territory. Whether it be with friends in Toronto, relatives in other Israeli cities, or hotels throughout Eretz Yisrael, let us pray for the physical safety and mental well-being of all. Let us pray that soon – bimheyra b’yameynu, speedily and in our days – Shabbat will indeed be a day of peace the world over.
Am Yisrael Chai!