In the midst of American political craziness, planting trees in Israel should give us hope.
Israeli citizens are nearly as much interested in the outcome of the 2020 presidential elections as Americans. For years, Israel’s policies have been greatly influenced by who sits in the White House. After eight years of Obama, Israelis are grateful for all of the incredible things that the Trump Administration did for Israel. From moving the US Embassy to Jerusalem, recognizing the Golan Heights, declaring Israel’s settlements to not be illegal under international law, to brokering the Abraham Accords and normalizing relations with Gulf Arab states, Israelis could not be more grateful for all that the last four years have brought to their relationship with the United States.
Should Israel be concerned about who will sit in the White House for the next four years? Will a not-so-friendly American president to Israel reverse policies that President Trump has enacted?
For years, Israel has cared too much about international relations. Don’t get me wrong. They need allies, especially when surrounded by so many hostile countries. However, there is no other country in the world who allows their national policies to be as affected by their international relations as Israel. During the Obama Administration, if someone began construction on a shed in their backyard in Israel, an aerial photo would land on the desk of the American government and Israel’s government would get a phone call. Israeli settlements were demolished by their own government. Jews couldn’t live normal lives in Judea because Israel was worried about the international damage it would create.
Today, Israel is getting stronger. Even though the application of Israeli sovereignty has been put off (if not completely canceled), Israel is building homes in Judea and Samaria. Several weeks ago, the committee for building in Judea and Samaria approved the construction of thousands of new homes to be built in the near future. Peace Now (a leftist organization who calls themselves the “settlement watchdog”), has reported that 2020 is already a record setting year for how many new homes have been approved to be built. This is even though there was a seven-month de facto freeze and the committee did not meet at all to approve new permits. Peace Now has reported that there could be even more housing units approved to build before the year is out. May it be so.
In the meantime, the rain has started. If you live in a country where it rains all year long, that may not mean very much to you. Here in Israel, it has not rained since May. That’s six months without any rain! So even though the rain has brought cold, wind, and mud, we could not be more excited.
Speaking of rain, we have been planting trees whilst eagerly waiting for the rain. With more than 2,000 trees in the ground, we are now dependent on the rain to give them a good start, ensuring a forest that will reverse thousands of years of desolation.
The HaYovel “Greening Israel” project has been years in the making. By the time you read this article, we will have planted 2,300 indigenous trees on the mountains of Samaria. Indigenous trees have not been planted in these areas on a large scale for thousands of years!
Oak, pine, cypress, pomegranate, fig trees and more are all beautifying the landscape of these mountains. In a few years, there will be a beautiful forest where there was once only barren, rocky hillsides.
In true HaYovel style, we are putting in a massive effort to make sure these trees will not only survive, but thrive. Our teams have been clearing rocks, hand picking holes (yes, 2,300 of them), clearing sticker bushes, hauling mulch down a mountainside, building wire cages (to protect them from wildlife), and hand watering them while we’ve waited for the rain. Check out our Facebook page for photos and videos of the process.
We have a tree expert with us who has been overseeing the planting project. He said that we could not have done more to make sure that these trees survive and thrive.
So regardless of the outcome of the US presidential election, rest assured that there are thousands of trees being planted in Israel’s biblical heartland, fulfilling age-old prophecy and reversing the centuries of desolation. Long after the next US president is gone, and our grandchildren are carrying on our legacy, there will be a forest gracing the beautiful mountains of Israel.
“But you, O mountains of Israel, you shall shoot forth your branches and yield your fruit to My people Israel, for they are about to come.” (Ezekiel 36:8)
