I'm dreamin' of a sunny Hanukkah
I'm glad to be living in Israel, especially during Xmas time. No white Xmas, no snow to clean off the windshield, no more getting stuck in the snow, no slipping on the ice and breaking a wrist (as Naomi did). And no more annoying songs repeated ad nauseam, "Rudolf the red nosed reindeer," "I'm dreamin' of a white Christmas" and "Little drummer boy," etc. etc. From Thanksgiving to New Year's Day there is a constant barrage of buy, buy, buy. And the houses covered with lights, flashing on and off, and plastic Santas flying across the roofs.
But, I also remember America as I first encountered it in magazines growing up in England. "Moonlight in Vermont," and the husband arriving home in a big shiny car to a big house, lit inside with a Christmas tree, on the cover of "Life" magazine. Then my father won 100 pounds on the football pools and he went out and bought our first TV. And what do I remember from that time, the epic series "Victory at Sea," from which I learnt not only about WWII in the Pacific, but about the huge power and the generosity of the Americans. How they conquered many lands and then gave them back to their inhibitants. I remember two things especially, the hundreds of American bodies washing back and forth in the waves on Guadalcanal, and the music written for the series by Richard Rodgers. Somehow it epitomises for me the best of America, and today its one of my favorite pieces to play in my studio, so evocative of its time and place, and yet eternal ("no other love have I").
So this turned out to be a paean for America. Did the Japanese deserve the sacrifice that Americans suffered to make them free? I suppose they did, since they took advantage of that opportunity, they shed the myth of idolatry of the Emperor, they adopted democracy, and now they too can pursue happiness. And what of the Iraqis, do they deserve the sacrifices of the Americans to make them free? It seems not!
In any case, I'm happy to be here in Israel enjoying the sunny Hanukkah, and remembering the greatness of America, but glad that I don't have to suffer through another Christmas season.
But, I also remember America as I first encountered it in magazines growing up in England. "Moonlight in Vermont," and the husband arriving home in a big shiny car to a big house, lit inside with a Christmas tree, on the cover of "Life" magazine. Then my father won 100 pounds on the football pools and he went out and bought our first TV. And what do I remember from that time, the epic series "Victory at Sea," from which I learnt not only about WWII in the Pacific, but about the huge power and the generosity of the Americans. How they conquered many lands and then gave them back to their inhibitants. I remember two things especially, the hundreds of American bodies washing back and forth in the waves on Guadalcanal, and the music written for the series by Richard Rodgers. Somehow it epitomises for me the best of America, and today its one of my favorite pieces to play in my studio, so evocative of its time and place, and yet eternal ("no other love have I").
So this turned out to be a paean for America. Did the Japanese deserve the sacrifice that Americans suffered to make them free? I suppose they did, since they took advantage of that opportunity, they shed the myth of idolatry of the Emperor, they adopted democracy, and now they too can pursue happiness. And what of the Iraqis, do they deserve the sacrifices of the Americans to make them free? It seems not!
In any case, I'm happy to be here in Israel enjoying the sunny Hanukkah, and remembering the greatness of America, but glad that I don't have to suffer through another Christmas season.
posted by Jack Cohen at 3:17 PM
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