#kfar

[thelodgesquadau]

The revival of Kiss from a Rose - Part 1

A self-indulgent AU in which my self-insert makes a home in the woods within her own dreams, to spend time with her numerous fictional lovers. Sitcom-style shenanigans ensue. Well, okay, not in this part. But later. Also sometimes heavier topics will be discussed. But also not in this part.

Everything’s just been getting so out of hand lately. The world’s a mess, people are cruel, and I can’t seem to find a place to belong. Sometimes, there’s little elsewhere to go besides into my own mind. I don’t want to bury myself away forever, or escape the world completely, but a temporary refuge, just for when I’m asleep…that would be nice. I think I’d be content if I could just have that little slice of heaven for myself. 

So one night, when I went to sleep, I filled my head with thoughts of building the perfect hideaway. A place for me and anyone else I wanted to invite. I knew I wanted to build it in the woods, a deciduous forest to be precise. I’ve never lived as close to woodlands as I would have liked, but I’ve been on enough camping trips and woodland retreats to know that a deciduous forest is the kind of environment I’d want to have surrounding my dream house. I pictured a gorgeous forest dotted with evergreens and trees bare with the current winter season that would turn all sorts of beautiful warm colors in the fall. And when I opened my eyes, I found myself in that forest, right in the middle of a large clearing. 

For a moment, I listened in, breathing in the crisp winter night air. It was quiet and still. No animals would be out and about for some time, besides maybe a few deer and small birds in the daylight. I imagined the sounds of people living in this clearing. Laughing, talking amongst themselves, a few voices singing in the distance. Then, I opened my eyes again. Yes, I thought. This was the place.

I began with the image of a large wood-and-stone ski lodge. It would have to be a home and living space for much more than just myself, so I wanted to make it large to begin with, to minimize how much I’d have to alter it later on. I added a special feature to the doors, which I kept at a standard height for now--they would automatically adjust to the height of anyone that tried to enter. I made sure the ceilings were all quite high, knowing I’d want to invite at least a few individuals who far exceeded natural human height. I made sure the main living area had plenty of seating. I placed a large fireplace at the leftmost side of the space.

No one would really need to eat in the dream world, but large gatherings just weren’t the same without food. So I added a kitchen and a dining hall which matched the overall ski lodge aesthetic of the place. Everyone would need a place to sleep, but I figured I’d handle those living arrangements as the place gained residents, not before. I figured it would be easier to ask the guests what they wanted directly rather than guess for them. And I didn’t like the idea of conjuring up a full set of spaces right away if they weren’t going to be used immediately. So for the time being I just built a large blank room, intending to gradually fill it with doors that would act as warp points to the residents’ homes. Rooms for other activities and purposes could be added later. Now, it was time to start sending out invitations.

But before I could start drafting them up, something pulled my attention away. A voice, a deep baritone, was echoing throughout the trees that surrounded my refuge. It was singing, an operatic tune whose words were too muffled by the walls of the lodge to make out. I walked outside, listening in to pinpoint the direction of the sound. I knew the voice well, but it seemed to be coming from all directions at once. I couldn’t figure out which direction to choose in order to follow it. But at least I could make out the words, now. 

“Come, wayward souls, that wander through the darkness, there is a light for the lost and the meek…Sorrow and fear are easily forgotten, when you submit to the soil of the earth…”

If I couldn’t follow the voice to find him, I’d lead him to me, instead. So, I took a deep breath and tried to make my voice as loud and proud as possible…which wasn’t easy, after going several years without choir practice.

“Grow, tiny seed,” I began at a soprano pitch. “You are gone to the tree…” Another breath, and then an ascending scale. “Rise, ‘til your leaves fill the sky, until your sighs fill the air in the night!” Another breath, and I made my voice echo as much as it could. “Lift your mighty limbs, and give praise to the fire!”

Silence for a moment, and then, from the trees directly ahead of me, a sound like hands made of wood clapping. From the darkness of night appeared two round lights like radiant eyes. “Well done,” the same baritone from the song spoke up. “You are a bit out of practice, but I knew you still remembered the song.”

The singer stepped forth from the treeline. A tall, vaguely humanoid figure cloaked in shadow and wrapped in a cape of fallen leaves. They, too, were drenched in impenetrable darkness. Thin, curving branches grew from his head like a set of grand antlers. In one hand, he held the handle of a lantern made of dark, dull metal, which housed a light that was almost blinding when gazed into.

My heart fluttered out of both trepidation and admiration as he approached. I can’t say that I’ve ever felt completely safe around him, but that was one of the things I found so enticing about him. The Beast, a creature as mysterious, intimidating, and beautiful as the depth of a starless night. The very epitome of a literary devil figure, whose silver tongue he used to trick grieving and lonesome souls into doing his bidding. His bidding was horrid, sinister work, trapping the lost and the weary within Edelwood trees and using their oily sap and wood to fuel his ever-hungry soul--the burning light within his lantern. He had a passion for song, and his haunting operatic vibrato carried unnaturally far. He was a monster straight out of a dark fairytale, one whose voice and devilish charms I’d never been able to resist.

“Couldn’t resist being the first one here, huh?” I jested with a smile.

“For you, no distance could ever be too great,” the Beast replied smoothly. “Though I found it quite convenient that you decided to build your refuge within my forest.”

I glanced around at the trees for a moment, realization dawning upon me. “Right…,” I began. “Probably should have expected you to show up first. Deep, dark, wintery woods are pretty much your entire aesthetic.”

The Beast moved closer, looking up at the lodge itself. “Hm…,” he pondered. “I don’t intend to spend much time within it,” he said, glancing back down towards me from his position directly to the right. “But it is quite striking.” 

His presence had the uncanny ability to drop the temperature surrounding him by quite a few degrees. Enough that I still noticed while standing outside in the already-frigid winter night. Up close, his eyes were like the visible spectrum of light given off by a candle’s flame. They really were quite beautiful, in a haunting, mesmerizing sort of way.

“So you’ll stick around?” I asked hopefully. 

The Beast chuckled, though his eyes showed no hint of emotion. He reached for my head with his free hand--the one not holding his lantern--and affectionately petted my hair. “Of course,” he replied in a tone that sounded unusually friendly.

“And you’ll play nice with the others?” I added, raising an eyebrow. 

He bent down towards my level and moved his hand from my hair to my chin, tilting my head further upward. “My dear…I will not make a promise to you that I cannot keep.” He leaned in and pressed the lower part of his face--where a mouth would have been--to my forehead. When he pulled away, he left a small smudge of Edelwood oil there.

I smiled knowingly and let out a little sigh. “Fine,” I replied. “Just don’t turn any of them into trees.”

[girlactionfigure]

[kropotkindersurprise]

July 12, 2024 - Israel targets residential areas in the town of Kfar Kila in Lebanon with white phosphorus, another war crime in a long list of war crimes committed by the genocidal Israeli state. [video]

[proudzionist]

[queer-talmid]

Flood

There is water running 

down the streets

of Jerusalem. 

I remember in summer

we marched these streets–

to end the war,

to bring everyone home,

to bring water to Kfar Aqab.

Now there is a ceasefire

and so many

have no home to return to

and there is water running

down all the streets

of Jerusalem.

I do not know 

if there is enough water

in kfar Aqab.

All I know 

is the wet 

and the cold

and how much I want

to be home.

[eretzyisrael]

By RICHARD FERRER IN KFAR AZA

Eight months before Machmud arrived at Batia Holin’s home to kill her, the two had jointly launched an exhibition aimed at promoting peace and unity between Israelis and Palestinians.

After connecting through a Facebook group for residents on the Israel-Gaza border, the pair spent months sharing pictures on WhatsApp of daily life from both sides of the fence. This seemingly heartfelt exchange blossomed into a poignant exhibition entitled Between Us, dedicated to bridging the divide. Due to the dire risks involved, they never spoke directly. ‘Normalisation’ (interacting with Jews) is the most serious crime a Gazan can commit.

“We didn’t discuss politics,” Batia tells me as we walk along the Gaza barrier fence on the outskirts of Kibbutz Kfar Aza, where Machmud – who told her he was a 28-year-old photographer from the Gazan town of Shuja’iyya – was one of 300 Hamas terrorists who breached the border on the morning of October 7 and entered her kibbutz.

The 71-year-old, who has lived on the kibbutz for more than 50 years, has dedicated her life to coexistence. The idea of collaborating with a Palestinian across the border, someone who experienced the same sights and sounds yet lived a vastly different reality, deeply resonated with her sense of purpose.

“Machmud and I wanted to show the world that, despite the circumstances in which we live, we share the same hope for a brighter future. That despite the obstacles, most people on both sides of the fence just want to live in peace.”

Batia Holin beside a banner displaying pictures of hostages from Kibbutz Kfar Aza that remain in captivity.

Their exhibition opened in Israel on 4 February 2023 in nearby Kibbutz Nahal Oz (where 14 people were killed and seven abducted), with plans for it to tour the United States. One of its most striking exhibits was photographs of the Mediterranean Sea, showing the same beach border from opposite perspectives: one looking north, the other south.

Machmud was, of course, unable to be there in person, so he wrote Batia a touching email: “I hope this project will influence and improve understanding, quality of life and security on both sides of the fence. I hope that with the help of my photos, Israeli society and the whole world will know that the Gaza Strip is not only a place of rockets and missiles but a place worth living in. I hope that with the help of my photos, Israeli society will see that in Gaza the people are simple, love life and are not fighters and terrorists. This exhibition, for me, is hope for a peaceful life.”

Batia at her Between Us exhibition

Today, in the wake of such unimaginable brutality, Batia’s dreams seem heartbreakingly naïve. Her faith has been so profoundly shattered that she fears there may not be a single adult in Gaza who shares her vision of peace. “The hardest feeling is the sense of total betrayal,” she tells me.

“The sense that everyone in Gaza was involved, even those who claim to oppose Hamas. I realise how awful that sounds. It truly is awful. But I cannot think anything else today. The past 17 years since Hamas took over Gaza have been difficult and it’s got worse over time. Before the attack, people called life here 90 percent heaven, 10 percent hell. Now it just feels like hell.”

Batia heard Machmud’s voice for the very first time at 10am on October 7 when she received a phone call from an Israeli number she did not recognise. He told her he was inside the kibbutz and asked if Israeli soldiers were nearby.

Burned-out homes in the kibbutz. Sixty-four residents were murdered

“I was so confused,” recalls Batia with a shudder. “At first, I thought Machmud must have heard about the attack and was calling out of concern. It didn’t take long to realise he had a different reason. He wanted to cause me harm. I didn’t speak to him. I just hung up. I didn’t have time to think about the call until two days later. Terrorists were everywhere. My husband and I were just trying to survive. Later, I gave all the details I had about Machmud to the army. His phone number, personal information he’d shared, screenshots of our chats. I have no idea what happened to him.”

[the-garbanzo-annex-jr]

Families of Israelis being held hostage by Hamas were reprimanded by representatives of the Red Cross in a recent meeting, with the Red Cross telling one family they need to “think about the Palestinian side,” KAN has reported.

Roni and Simona, the parents of Doron Steinbrecher who was kidnapped by Hamas terrorists from Kfar Azza on October 7, were invited to a meeting with the Red Cross this past week.

Doron needs a medication she takes daily and her parents thought that the Red Cross was finally willing to transfer the medication to her, but instead, they were sat down and reprimanded by representatives of the Red Cross.

“Think about the Palestinian side,” the representatives of the Red Cross told Simona, according to KAN. “It’s hard for the Palestinians, they’re being bombed.”

Simona expressed shock at the Red Cross’s behavior. “We left there as we entered: without new information, without something new, and with disappointment,” said Simona.

[athena5898]

LEBANON (PrR)(RNN) — 55 martyrs and 160 wounded were reported as a result of the IOF's attacks on Lebanon, yesterday, Monday, in dozens of airstrikes. 3,823 martyrs and 15,859 wounded have been reported since October 8th, 2023.

As of dawn today, dozens of martyrs have ascended, including 50 martyrs in the Bekaa in numerous strikes, including on Al-Fikani, Baalbek, Kfar Dan, and Majdaloun. In Baalbek, 33 martyrs, 12 missing, and 40 wounded were reported in 30 airstrikes; work to remove rubble is ongoing. Elsewhere (https://t.me/PalestineResist/70110), 3 martyrs ascended in Barbour (Beirut), 7 martyrs in Nuweiri (Beirut), 2 martyrs in Rashidiyeh camp in Sour, and 6 martyrs in Shaqra.

In the Gaza Strip, 14 martyrs and 108 wounded were reported as a result of attacks in the last day. As of dawn today, over 24 martyrs have ascended in varied strikes.

Glory to the martyrs.

[vyorei]

[documenting-apartheid]

JUNE 25 2024- Longstanding Israeli NGO Ir Amim reports that despite extreme heat, Palestinians living in the neighborhood Kfar Aqab in Jerusalem only receive 12 hours of running water per week.

And there seems to be no concern from the Jerusalem municipality.

"Although people who live there are residents of Jerusalem, they receive no municipal services (no garbage collection, road pavement, or sewage collection). Even under normal circumstances, Kfar Aqab receives water only twice a week."

While Palestinians living in Kfar Aqab pay taxes to the Jerusalem municipality and Israel, they do not receive municipal services.

"Despite the enduring crisis, no Israeli authority or service provider - the [Jerusalem] Municipality, the Israeli water authority, the Gihon Company – has intervened to resolve the shortage," -Ir Amim

The Palestinian Authority has no jurisdiction over Kafr Aqab, which is part of municipal Jerusalem and is Israeli territory, and therefore cannot service the area, despite attempts to.

Israel and the Jerusalem Municipality has been previously criticized by the United Nations for it's lack of basic services to the Kafr Aqab area, and by Israeli media for refusing to police Kfar Aqab, while also denying the Palestinian Authority the sovereignty to police and service the area instead, as it would undermine the Israeli power and authority over the area.

(Ir Amim is one of over twenty Israeli human rights groups and NGOs that recognize and condemn Israel as being an apartheid state, and have extensively reported on various apartheid conditions of Palestinians living in Jerusalem.)

[girlactionfigure]

october7attack

💔 An entire family was murdered in Kfar Aza. 🕯 Aviv Kotz, his beloved wife Livnat, and their three children—Rotem, Yonatan, and Yiftach—were brutally murdered in their home on October 7th by Hamas terrorists. In the heart of Israel, entire families are being erased. Innocent lives are being stolen in a cold, calculated massacre. This isn’t just an attack on people; it’s an attack on our future, our identity, and our right to live in peace. But no matter the horror we face, they will never break our spirit. Our pain fuels our determination. We will endure, we will remember, and we will make sure the world knows the truth.

[frisrael]

Emily Damari: "I’m back 🤟🏽"

Emily Damari is a giant. A rock star. A Maccabee. Today (at least one of) Israel’s newspapers featured the image Emily posted on her Instagram account, which she titled: I’m back 🤟🏽 In the photo, she’s sitting on a couch outside her destroyed home in Kfar Azza. The contrast between Emily, alive and victorious, outside the evidence of the horror she survived (including the sign on the building…

[proudzionist]

[dimsilver]

💔

[eretzyisrael]

A senior medical official with Zaka, Israel’s volunteer civilian emergency service organization, has confirmed that he personally saw Israeli children and adults beheaded by Hamas terrorists in Kibbutz Kfar Aza.

“I saw a lot more that cannot be described for now, because it’s very hard to describe,” Yossi Landau, the head of operations for the southern region of Zaka, told CBS News. He then referred to parents and children found with their hands bound and clear signs of torture.

Israel Defense Forces (IDF) spokesperson Maj. Libby Weiss. further told CBS News that one of the first Israeli soldiers who reached Kfar Aza in southern Israel reported finding “beheaded children of varying ages, ranging from babies to slightly older children,” along with adults who had also been dismembered.

The confirmation came after reports from international media organizations, including CNN and the New York Times, on Tuesday describing horrific scenes at the kibbutz. Charred homes stood in the background as smoke wafted in the air and the bodies of dead civilians and terrorists still littered the ground.

Since then conspiracy theories have circulated across social media that the massacre was staged propaganda by Israel.

“The playbook, They make up a lie; there is no evidence for it,” tweeted Mohammed El-Kurd, a pro-Palestinian activist who has spoken at Harvard and Princeton universities.”

[al-kol-eleh]

Jason D Greenblatt