By Hanan Caspi

Dear Friends,

On July 18 2006, exactly 2 years ago, I started a Journal trying to describe our life and feelings here in the Yokneam-Megiddo region during what is now called "The Second War of Lebanon".

When I logged the journal's final entry, I had mentioned that 2 soldiers were still captive, and the people are still hurting. In the last 2 years, while life has resumed its normal course, there was an underlying feeling that the war is not over. Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev were still in captivity, their fate – unknown. Last week, the people of Israel, felt that at last that closure has been achieved.

The cruelty of Hezbollah, reached its peak as even until the very last moment, they viciously played with the tortured feelings of the families, not knowing what to expect. Until that moment on Wednesday morning when the 2 black coffins were displayed, which finally ended the question, were they still alive?

The whole country united in the mourning with the Goldwasser and Regev family.
Thousands of people came to light candles at their doorstep, as a symbol of their feelings. And then on Thursday – the funerals.

While the cruel heartless enemy paraded shamelessly the murderer of a family, a monster who bashed in the head of a 4 year old baby girl, at that same time the people of Israel – all of them – walked together to the final resting place of Udi and Eldad.

2 brave women, turned out to be the true women of valor, in this tragedy.
Udi's Mother Miky Goldwasser, and his wife – now widow – Karnit. Miky – who refused to cry for 2 whole years, refused to do so even now. She would not give our enemies that pleasure, and bravely called upon the people of Israel, to be proud in its soldiers, and proud in its achievement, of bringing the boys back home.
And Karnit – that noble wife – who had vowed not to leave a stone unturned until she brought her husband home , could finally share her personal grief with everyone , and could finally cry for all to see . And indeed we all cried with her.

And thus – in a rare moment of unity, the people of Israel – with mixed feelings of sorrow and anger, could finally bring the war to an end. Or could it? It seems that the war on Lebanon is finally over, but the campaign for our right to a peaceful existence in our land – a campaign which started over 60 years ago – a campaign which is part of an even bigger one which has been going on for over 2000 years, the campaign of the Jewish people – this one must still go on.

We continue to pray for Gilad Shalit, we continue to pray for peace. We continue to pray to HaShem, who in this Shabbat Hftorah sais to the prophet Elijah (Melachim I Chap. 19) "11. And He said: "Go out and stand in the mountain before the Lord, Behold! the Lord passes, and a great and strong wind splitting mountains and shattering boulders before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. And after the wind an earthquake-not in the earthquake was the Lord. 12. After the earthquake fire, not in the fire was the Lord, and after the fire a still small sound.

Let us hope and pray for the Kol Demama Daka – the still small sound of peace and tranquility. Amen

Hanan Caspi – Motsaei Shabbat – Parshat Pinchas – 19 July 2008