The flowers and leaves here in Khirbet Urva connect us with our ancestors who lived on this hilltop here millennia ago. Notice the rows of stones, the remainders of Urva’s walls. Under that unnatural-looking mound in the center left lies an ancient house or something. These are strange times in Israel. Israel the People are perhaps in more trouble than anytime since the Holocaust. Our nation is in pain, alone and afraid. Yet Israel the Land is healthier than ever, because this year’s winter rains are falling hard and steady, balanced and healthy.
Throughout the Torah, the Land of Israel’s state of health is expressed by the winter rain cycle. When they come on time, nurturing the year’s new life, Israel is healthy and thriving, and supports its children with bountiful harvests. When they don’t arrive, or if they come at the wrong time, Israel falls ill, and its children suffer from drought.
To which the Ramban (Nachmanides) commented: “He began with the rains, because when they come on time, as is proper, the air will be pure and good, and the springs and rivers good. This will bring health to physical bodies, and all the fruits will be plentiful and blessed by them [the rains].”
Healthy rain, like we’re experiencing this year, is spread out evenly along the winter months. Every week or two, there’s a few days of rain, then a break to allow Natural Israel to absorb the blessing and grow its plants. The ground isn’t parched nor a muddy morass. When we’re out on foraging walks these days, Israel shouts its vibrant health from the countless leaves, flowers, and shrubs in every corner of the countryside.
Last week, we were foraging on Khirbet Urva, a lovely hilltop village near Bet Shemesh that dates back at least to the Second Temple Period. Khirbet Urva isn’t particularly well known; I doubt it receives more than a few dozen visitors a year. In places like Khirbet Urva, the verdant foliage between the rows of ancient stones bonds together the places and people of the past, present, and future. Foraging here makes Israel come alive; our heritage isn’t just half-buried buildings and walls, because local wild plants silently bear witness to the march of time.
Land of Health is available now on Amazon, in bookstores in Israel, and directly from me in Bet Shemesh, Israel. Would you like to join me on a foraging walk in Natural Israel? Contact me today to book your private walk. I’m also guiding a discounted open walk in Ramat Bet Shemesh on Election Day (Tuesday, February 27). Shmuel Chaim Naiman is a health teacher and foraging guide in Ramat Bet Shemesh. He writes about healthy Jewish living and Israel’s natural world, teaches the nightly Healthy Jew class at Yeshivas Lev Hatorah, guides popular foraging walks, and offers personalized health coaching. He recently published a book, Land of Health: Israel’s War for Wellness, which is available on Amazon and in bookstores (in Israel). Visit healthyjew.org, and contact him at [email protected]
