Taken Literally

B-day Gift from Mom & DadGiraffe

During a time of tremendous upheaval, the prophet Isaiah taught:

וְכִתְּתוּ חַרְבוֹתָם לְאִתִּים, וַחֲנִיתוֹתֵיהֶם לְמַזְמֵרוֹת–לֹא-יִשָּׂא גוֹי אֶל-גּוֹי חֶרֶב, וְלֹא-יִלְמְדוּ עוֹד מִלְחָמָה
…and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.

Was this meant to be taken literally? Israeli artist, Yaron Bob, seems to think so. Living near the Gaza Strip, Yaron Bob has seen firsthand the destruction caused by the more than twelve thousand Kassam rockets that have been fired onto the Israeli civilian population in southern Israel. Utilizing the rocket metal, Bob turns weapons meant for destruction into symbols of enduring faith and life.

Today I received a lovely necklace, made by Bob, from Mom-&-DadGiraffe for my birthday. [Actually, it arrived some weeks ago and has been sitting in the living room, waiting for my actual birthday to arrive. Don’t like to open gifts ahead of time…bad luck.] All day, I kept touching it and marveling at the chutzpah of creating something so lovely out of something so hateful.

For more information, see Rockets into Roses. And thanks, Mom and Dad, for a gift that is both lovely and meaningful.