Shalom all!

Today is Thanksgiving day. Though it is an American holiday, I want to take a few minutes and share with you what I, Alon – the guy who takes your prayers to the Western Wall – am thankful for this day.

First of all, I’m thankful for being given such an incredible gift. I was given the ability to give people hope, and giving hope is perhaps the greatest thing I’ll ever do. I know I helped people, I know I gave hope, belief, self-confidence, and I’m thankful I’m in a position to help people in a such a profound way.

I am thankful for your trust. Complete strangers trust me – a guy in a far away country they don’t know – with their most personal feelings, wishes, aspirations. Sometimes I can’t believe it myself. Thank you.

I am thankful I created something truly great (or at least I consider it to be truly great). Not many people are so lucky to create something that affects so many lives, and I am grateful I managed to help the thousands of people I did. I know I play a small role, but I also know it’s a meaningful role.

I am thankful I made a change. Many of you write in and tell me your prayer was answered, tell me your life is better now, and thank me for my help. I am the one saying thanks, because I’m happy to know I had a part in making small changes that make some people’s lives somewhat better. I only wish these people would “pay it forward” and help the people around them. If they would, the world will quickly become a slightly better place to live in. Think about it.

I am thankful for the people who came through for me and helped with this project: my brother, parents and beloved ones, old and new friends, including the many new friends on Twitter who pinched in and helped from where they are in the world. (Read, for instance, this)

I am thankful for the love I get from you. I feel that some of you really care about me, and I am thankful for that. Maybe it’s not right for me to feel this way, but the truth is that your love is truly important for me.

UPDATE: Just now I received this tweet:

This Thanksgiving, I count you as a gift for which I am thankful. Thank you, and you are appreciated!

That’s the love I’m talking about!

I am also thankful for the optimism, happiness, and self-confidence the success of this project had given me. (Read this, for example). I am thankful I learned that I can achieve whatever I set my mind to (read here).

I am thankful my life was saved. (read more here)

♦

Feel free to write in the comments what you gives thanks for – I’d love to know.

Shalom all!

A quick post to share with you a cool video recently uploaded to YouTube. Last Friday an organizations called Nefesh Be-Nefesh organized a flashmob in Jerusalem. This is what it looked like:

personally, I think it’s a really cool, unanticipated act, that brought something fun, young and joyful to a 3,000 year old city! Well done!

Yours with love from the Holy Land,

Alon

Shalom all,

Last Friday noon, I noticed an incredible spectacle in the sky. Not one, but TWO rainbows in the sky together – something very extraordinary.

I immediately felt the need to take pictures and share with you all. I took so many, and could decide which to upload.

Notice the NEXT and BACK buttons. Click on any of the pictures to enlarge. I hope you enjoy the pictures as much as I enjoyed looking at the rainbows. I hope you find meaning in them.

If you can, I’d appreciate a little help. Please donate:

Your friend in the Holy Land,

Alon

Shalom all!
A couple of weeks ago I took another box full of your prayers to the Kotel (the Western Wall) and stashed them in the crevices of the Wall. Along with me was a crew of the Japanese TV station NHK. If you send your prayer between the 1st and the 14th of October – than your prayer is in these photos!
Here are some of the pictures I took, you can click your mouse button on any of them to enlarge:

All your prayers in a nice wooden box:

I love the way the prayers form a ‘blue river’ of paper:

Here’s the camera man making sure he has a good shot of the ‘river’:

And finally, mission accomplished:

If you can help, please consider making a donation to help keep this service operational. Click on the button below:

Thank you for your generosity.

Blessings from the Holy Land,

Alon