It's a small world after all

There are many facts I could quote about the size of Israel and you might be impressed or you might think you’ve heard all of it before. But let me assure you...this country sometimes strikes me as miniscule. I’m sitting here at the airport getting ready to board my flight back to America. Across the seating area I see a guy I recognize. As is always the case in these situations, I begin trying to figure out where I’ve seen him before. Did I ride the #8 bus with him? Is he a sherut driver that I recognized from trips to the beach in Tel Aviv? Does he run the corner grocery that I occasionally bought milk from? Does he spend his days roaming Ben Yehuda or Jaffa Rd? And then it hits me. I recognize him from the news reports when his son was nearly killed in a terror attack a few years ago. What are the odds of seeing him in the airport? Actually...in Israel...the odds are pretty good.

Last night I was walking down a Jerusalem street and saw the guy that I sat next to on my flight to Israel last week. When we parted ways, I guess I could have said “See you soon”. It’s Israel after all.

I don’t think there was a single day that I walked down Jaffa Road that I didn’t see somebody I recognized. So in case the world (and President Obama) need further proof that Israel really is a tiny place, they should try living here and realizing just how many familiar faces one sees every single day.