where did three years go?

Ooops, I turned my head for a minute and another year passed by.

I actually did sit down and contemplate the past year on the third anniversary of my Aliyah, thought a lot about it, such as what I did and what happened to me, my decisions, the decisions that other people made that affected me, and so on. This was another year of very diverse experiences, and another year that ended in a way that I could not have predicted at its outset.

In explaining it, I think Year Three is best split into two half-years.

At the beginning of my third year in Israel, I was in a tough situation. I knew almost no one in Tel Aviv, my position at work was very awkward – and I was working for a company that I despised. I was sad to see the door closed on a personal relationship that had meant a lot to me, and I felt a lot of regret for many aspects of that whole fiasco.

So, I did what I could to turn the situation around. I let my former friend go, once and for all, without airing grievances childishly, while doing my best not to burn bridges and to leave the door open for any potential future contact. I quit my awful job in the shitty, unethical company and came to work in a company that is not perfect, but really treats people decently. In many ways, my new job was a step down for me. The work was somewhat less interesting and demanded far less from me creatively. The pay was far lower. The commute was twice as long. But the people were friendly, and I’m happy to be working in the same company now.

I took that specific job because I planned to go back to university, and I needed a flexible schedule with shifts. I indeed started at the IDC in October and for a while worked and went to school like crazy – four days a week on campus, five days a week in the office. At the end of my first semester, I decided not to continue at IDC, and this is where my first half-year ends: another turning point.

I then went to visit America for about a week, and when I returned to Israel, I could have decided to start over again with another new job and another new whatever. But I stayed and began working a lot – around 220 hours per month. After a few months, I adopted the dog and have really enjoyed being a pet owner. I also started dating more frequently.

Good things have happened for me at the job. I no longer feel like I have to work wildly insane hours just to make ends meet at the end of the month. I’m slowly beginning to do some more interesting things. I know some people in and around Tel Aviv – and some of them are my friends.

I miss Jerusalem and the life I left behind there a lot. It’s a shame that visiting Jerusalem has been very difficult (because of my hectic schedule and also because bringing the dog wouldn’t be easy) and that friends from the Jerusalem area almost never visit Tel Aviv. These are things that I would like to change, but I am basically comfortable and satisfied here. I am a bit surprised that I am where I am at the end of my third year, but it’s a fact that I’m already dashing into Year Four without even a thought to where it will lead me.