in response

Here's the letter I wrote to Haaretz in response to their article about aliyah.

re: The 40th anniversary of the Six-Day War / Rate of return

First of all, 1970 was not "tzena" time. Things weren't like in the states, but they were very similar to Europe. In 1975 we went on shlichut to London for two years and felt our simple Jerusalem life to have been on a higher "material level."

I also find your lumping pre and post 1967 aliyah into one time frame a distortion.

Nobody hung banners to welcome us, but we did feel welcome. We were newlyweds, having married just two months before boarding the boat. Yes, we came by boat, which was a great experience.

Within a year of aliyah we were apartment owners and parents. The idea of returning to the states was never a topic of conversation, never an option.

I can never imagine what my life would have been like if we hadn't made aliyah. This is the only life I've ever wanted.

Batya Medad