It is 4:55 PM on Thursday and I have made it through the security check points and am sitting at my gate. For those that have never traveled on El-Al before....it is quite an experience....and we havent even taken off yet!!!!! I found myself standing in front a very handsome young Israeli who informed me that he was simply going to ask me some questions having to do with security. Again, if you have never flown El-Al, they have been practicing profiling for years...they do it with no apology.....and there safety/security record speaks for itself. I was questioned about my background, my grandparents, my parents, who I know or dont know in Israel, whether I celebrate the Jewish holidays, what is my favorite Jewish Holiday - its Passover by the way ("Sir, do you celebrate Rosh Hashanah...yes I do......"what is your favorite Rosh Hashanah prayer?"....crap!!!!! Im blanking on the Rosh Hashanah prayer list.......well you see Mr. El-Al.....I just like the whole feeling of being in shul with my friends and family.....and...oh yeah!!!!!....I love the Mishaberach (The Prayer for Healing) on Shabbat. His eyes met mine for what seemed like hours......and then he moved on to the next question. "Tell me Mr. Greer, what kind of name is Greer?".......I dont think the guy was expecting me to launch into the lengthy and dramatic story of how my father's real family name was Goldman and my grandparents changed it due to antisemitism. And you all know me...I love that stuff....so the story was shared with great emotion and a sense of generational connection.!......including pulling out my pocket genogram and grabbing a few unsuspecting traveler to role play the other members of my family ! He gave me a "a thats a bit too much information" look and moved on to some last questions about my Hebrew name before wishing me well and waving me on.
We live in a country where what I experienced is viewed as completely politically incorrect and at least officially, would not be allowed. As I am about to step onto an airplane that will be in the air for 11 hours, most of it over a very big lake, I fought the urge to give my Israeli friend a big hug and thank him for doing whatever he needs to do to keep me safe. (Im thinking that the moment I moved toward him for the hug, I would have quickly found myself on the ground with my arms and legs tied up in a pretty bow).
I will be in touch when I land tomorrow.
Love you all
Keith
I've read about how Israel goes about profiling and security, specifically at airports. I remember reading about this particular line of questioning and they actually look you in the eyes and are trained to read deception in facial expressions and body language (we cover this stuff in Psych class). And we were hoping for a full-body scan image.
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