How to receive your copy of Leaving Home Going Home Returning Home

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The first color workbook of natural techniques for ADHD published in Israel in 1999 stands the test of time.

After working for 10 years helping students with ADHD , test anxiety, and learning challenges with multi modality biofeedback , (this is not the neuro biofeedback protocol ) I found that biofeedback alone was not enough and either was ritalin the medication given at the time. Rather , you need to go to the source of the problem. That I found was the way the student was learning or the way they were being taught. In addition , I noticed that if a student was having learning issues for years before they came to me for help, the student had years of missed education they needed to catch up on. So in the 1990's , I found that if I could use biofeedback combined with accelerated learning techniques I could really help to student to improve. This combination was revolutionary at the time. Happily, it is now main stream. In addition to the relaxed concentration techniques and accelerated learning techniques, I had to adapt them to the student where they could use very short exercises that work, but could also be used in the class-room. thus, in the book being In Control, I developed under two minute exercises of seated yoga , and exercises that use all the senses. Another thing that was revolutionary at the time. These included using props like liquid timers , wood massage items, sea shells for listening to the " sea" , relaxing scenes, metronome , music, aromatic oils , Chinese balls, self massage , smooth stones, and toys that test relaxed concentration and much more. A sort of  "have it your own way" menu like the hamburger commercial at the time. In addition , I had shown that the galvanic skin response potential (GSR) device "Ultra- Mind" developed by an Israeli and lent to my lab at the Brill Day Mental Health Center in Ramat- Gan Israel,  was very good in testing relaxed concentration physiologically and objectively. It was what I called "The Rosetta Stone" because I was able to test all the techniques out there and found that youngsters with ADHD had a specific GSR signal. This baseline test and use of the GSR I published in a video " GSR Biofeedback Techniques for the Natural ADHD Practitioner" . Unfortunately , the allied health and medical world was busy looking at EEG biofeedback as a stand alone protocol , and missed this technique. This is in part because the GSR signal from Ultra Mind was very sensitive and others around the world did not have this device for years. At the time the company was using their GSR device mainly to help with anxiety disorders.
We see in this picture the normal GSR signal during relaxed concentration as compared to a GSR signal that is labile and worse the longer a student with ADHD tries to sit still and even worse when they close their eyes. Another problem I had was that when a patient with ADHD was sent to me for biofeedback at a mental health center or later at the other allied and complimentary health centers I worked at around Israel like in Hillel Yaffe medical center , Maccabi and so on, well they were sent for a half hour biofeedback session not relaxed concentration techniques or accelerated learning strategies. I was starting to include more and more accelerated learning into the biofeedback sessions because this combination was powerful in helping poor students suddenly achieve very high grades. It was what I called the small metal key that opened a large steel door. I also noticed that through the school and medical system, there was  a quickness to prescribe medications like Ritalin - calling them "harmless" without exploring other options like what I was doing. putting it straight, the client - the young student - had no say in the matter. Thus, I wanted to produce a self help book for students with ADHD "attention deficit hyperactive disorder" that they could use on their own and intuitively figure out what to do on their own. Of note , when I later returned to the USA in 2006, I began to re release a live video of the techniques (Being In Control : Natural Solutions for ADHD , Dyslexia , and Test Anxiety)". I gave a talk about this book and showed the video at the CALD (Connecticut Association of Learning Disabilities) in 2008 . I was clearly told by the over 20 people in the workshop that this is the first time they have seen these methods. With new technology amazon.com through their company CreateSpace I was able to offer the video as a streaming download through Amazon.com. The video and book as a CD set may also be purchased. A digital copy of the book Being In Control was made after I had to rework the small print and make it larger so as to be able to scan. As this was the first book I published, I had no concept that one day I would need to put it to digital copy.
The learning strategies that I placed in the book Being In Control I later began to make into separate videos for down load and purchase. These include the video " Anyone Can Improve Their Own Handwriting" , which turned out to be another first. There never was a video teaching students with messy handwriting how to correct theirs. Yes, there were a few videos on calligraphy instruction at the time and even teaching cursive handwriting - but nothing on handwriting correction especially for messy and sloppy handwriting that is seen in some students with ADHD.  Another video I just published using memory techniques I used for students is " Day to Day Memory Techniques for Adults and Senior Citizens". It turned out that the memory techniques I was using for ADHD students could be adapted to use for senior citizens as well as others suffering form memory issues like people with chemo brain or epilepsy .
An outcome of working with biofeedback in students with ADHD is that I also became a tutor and ADHD coach. Thus, I adapted some of the relax concentration stand alone tools for adults with ADHD and made a short video that can also be downloaded from Amazon.com " Zen for ADD ADHD. A synopsis is in the video below.
Another outcome of the book Being In Control is how to teach someone with dysgraphia and or ADHD how to become an artist. Thus, I published the book "Creative painting for the Young Artist" . An amazing outcome of my tutoring students with learning challenges was to learn how to teach people who think they can't paint- how to paint. The pictures and paintings from the book are both from the USA and Israel.




Right now I am working on a new video for speed reading and better reading comprehension . This is promised to be advanced and include the techniques for relaxed concentration developed. When I came back to the USA in 2006 I wanted to tell the story of my journey as a Hebrew American who lived in Israel and all the amazing things I was able to contribute as ween in the videos above. I was thinking - should I write one book about my life in Israel and another book about my work with ADHD? In the end I concluded that my developing natural techniques for ADHD was so intertwined with the " start up nation" that I put it all into the book memoir. Thus, " Leaving Home Going Home Returning Home " has a full 8 chapters dedicated to how in Israel I was able to create this way of helping learning challenged students as well as tell how I myself came to this topic with passion and empathy. In three chapters I discuss unique cases I solved. One case , a story about a tank mechanic in the IDF who had tank phobia; one case was a 17 year old student who never read a book , but wanted to know if he could now go to university; and in another case an orthodox girl in fourth grade who could pray well and who could get good grades, but could not read. Her parents and her teachers had no clue. Another reason I wanted to combine this all into my memoir on Israel is because I wanted the world to know that Israel was not just the country living in strife they see in the news but also an amazing country where miracles do happen. And after I finish the Speed Reading Video I want to try my hand at a video of Israeli Jewish, Arab Cooking that I so fell in love with and also describe in Leaving Home. Here is an example of a Hummus recipe that I created. ( I joke - I probably would have made more money selling Hummus but would not have been happier than I am now).

Finding Roots in the land of Israel

Having a lawn sale before moving to Israel in 1984 - Aliyah and the Lawn Sale.

Aliyah and the lawn sale 

A chapter from the book,

"Leaving Home , Going Home , Returning Home :

 A Hebrew American's Sojourn in the Land of Israel". 

Since I always considered living in Israel a viable option, I never 

really purchased long-term furniture and appliances. Still, being 28 

at the time of departure, I had accumulated a large collection of 

things that needed new owners. I put ads in the newspaper and held 

a lawn sale. I managed to sell off almost everything I owned. There 

was my bike, chairs, books, and Viking broadsword that I bought 

in a Renaissance fair. The things that sold the best were the kitchen 

utensils, oddly enough. I could never buy someone’s used kitchen 

utensils, yet apparently moms liked buying them for their away-

from-home college kids. My vinyl record albums sold well too. One 

of those was a Beatles 1964 original album. I sold it as a used item 

for fifty cents, which I now realize was a huge mistake. I can imagine 

the smiles on the faces of people who bought the record. They went 

right to it, as if they discovered an old coin in their grandpa’s attic. 

We’ve all heard the story of the person who found a hidden treasure 

at the lawn sale. Well, that was my lawn sale. I kept a photo of the 

lawn sale and showed it to friends – it was sort of like an exhibit on 

“see the sacrifices we make when moving.” 

( book trailer video has picture of lawn sale)

The hardest thing for me to part with was my regal cat, Blackie. 

I had to give her to the next door neighbor. Blackie was one of the 

most aristocratic cats you could have ever met. I received her from 

one of my housemates, a medical student, who purchased her from 

an animal shelter. I wondered why anyone would purchase a cat from 

an animal shelter. It turned out that the shelter had put her photo 

Leaving Home, Going Home, Returning Home 

in the newspaper with a cute cat’s smile and red ribbon around her 

head. She was a shining example of the lovely animals you can find 

at that shelter seeking a new home. I was proud to be Blackie’s owner 

and wanted another good home for her. 

Last to go was my car – an amazing car at that, a classic. It was a 

green 1975 Volvo with leather seats and a tape deck. Even this came 

with a story. A big and burley guy from Newark came to my home 

to buy the car. Naturally, he asked me why I was selling it, and I told 

him truthfully about my plans to make aliyah. 

With a smirk, he said “yeah, sure, I bet there is something wrong 

with the car.” Then with a threatening voice, and in my own home, 

he said, “If I find anything wrong with the car, you are “dead meat.” 

I will throw a bomb through the window of this house if you lied to 

me.”Taken aback, I wondered if he was suspicious of being cheated 

because of Jewish stereotypes or if that was his way of trying to 

lower the price. 

Aviad, a close Israeli friend originally from Jerusalem, immediately 

came forward to back me up when hearing this. Aviad was a 

strikingly handsome James Bond type of guy whose parents immigrated 

to Israel from Turkey. Jerusalem, at that time, was a common 

target for terrorism attacks. Aviad was taller than I was, but still 

shorter than the buyer was. With his Israeli accent, he said, “Chey 

you, don’t talk to us about bombs. I am from Jerusalem and I know 

about bombs, you trow a bomb chere and I vill trow it wright back at 

you.” 

I was flabbergasted as much as I was proud that my friend stood 

up for me like that. This Israeli guy had experienced real-life danger 

by living in a war zone and knew that talk was cheap. To me, he exemplified 

a brave Israeli. 

The buyer backed down and said, “OK man, OK, I believe you, 

I’ll buy the car. If you really do get to Israel, send me a letter from 

there so I know you’re not telling me a story.” So I did. It was the first 

letter I sent back to the USA. I sent him a postcard of sunny Israel 

Aliyah and the lawn sale 

with a stamp of a Kfir (lion cub) Israeli jet fighter. The Kfir was an 

Israeli-made spread wing fighter plane that was designed something 

like a French Mirage. The Kfir stamp had a large blue Star of David 

on the wings. It was my way of saying to his face “don’t mess with 

the Jews,”- from miles away, all the while wishing him well in his new 

car that I really did enjoy. 

Some silly people actually comment that Israel and Hamas start off where they began after the cease fire

Leaving Home, Going Home, Returning Home (Israel US) with amazon.com Another newspaper comes close but misses the point in saying Hamas did not win but they came to the point where they started from. . Israel did win BIG TIME compared to other western countries, fighting against Islamic terrorism and Isis theology. It fought the war of the future that was extremely hard strategically to do. And lives on with it's military power to defend the borders of Israel with relatively little property , military or political damage compared to the Hamas, Iran ,Qatar , axis of evil. Israel also met its strategic goals which destroying Hamas was not one of them, as some Israelis would like to mouth off in disappointment, because then Israel would have to take over and rebuild Gaza. And to say there are no gains for Israel- poppycock. Israel defended herself and also showed the Arab world that after the dust settled it is very a dangerous and suicidal thing to attack Israel. Also , Israel is now a world military power , not just a local Middle East Power. Of course a benefit economically for Israel will be weapons and technology sales as the war with Isis grows ever larger. It is not by accident that two Israeli drones are now entering Iranian sphere of influence. That is , to fight Iran , Israel had to neutralize the Iranian threat in Hamas , Syria, Lebanon. It is now Iran's turn. 

Netanyahu - Gaza cease fire - opinion

As usual , many Israelis just don't get it and are critical of Netanyahu. What Netanyahu did was save Israeli lives, smash the Hamas military enough so it is not a serious national threat compared to what was before July , and keep the other Arab nations out of the conflict while keeping the USA as an ally. And this is the real point many Israeli do not understand - although the people  very close to Netanyahu do .
" I AND  MY ARMY ARE WELL". Unlike Hamas, Israel lost NO military equipment and that is compared to the thousands of planes and tanks destroyed in the Yom Kippur War where Israel was at the mercy of an American air lift, or the second Lebanon War where Israel won but was unprepared.. This  time, if needed , Israel could have finished any job on her own if needed.
And for Hamas to declare victory , well I am waiting how soon there will be an Arab Spring in Gaza . As for Qatar and Iran and Turkey , their treasuries will bleed fixing Gaza. And for Israelis that wanted an invasion of Gaza where many Israeli soldiers would have lost their lives for nothing- well they can always move to Europe or the USA and leave Israel to the people who understand what Israel is about.A Jewish homeland where the Jewish people have self determination,and a future  - even in war.

No matter what , Israel is a beautiful country and that is what I wanted to show in this video.

When I lived in Israel there was the Intifada one and two and the name of Israel as now is being thrown down by many. So I made these National Geographic style movies of Israel to show her secret beauty. Looking at Israel now from afar , with the present crisis in Gaza, I feel that my memoir of what life there is about is so important especially now. I am amazed how history does repeat itself, so the lessors from the book are still appropriate today. Support Israel and get a copy now of " Leaving Home , Going Home , Returning Home: A Hebrew American's Sojourn in the Land of Israel". Some of the lessons from the book that are relevant today. One : American Jews still move to Israel even though they have it easy in the USA. Two: It takes knowledge , study, and time, to understand the situation and see through the knee jerk propaganda leveled against Israel . My book brings some of that knowledge and does it well. Three ; under all is the land. Israel , with all the problems , is still in control of her tiny , but amazing piece of land, and when the dust blows over , Israel will still be there. not only that , there will be more tourism than ever. Four: Israel gains support from unexpected places every day. Close one door, and another window opens. Five: Israeli food , music, and humor is great and gets better. Six: The war against Israel, is a war against the Jews. We are not duped. Seven: Sometimes, Israelis are their own worst enemies. Eight : We are tested , not by the challenges we face, but how we deal with them. The Jewish people have been made the Chosen People and a Guiding Light . Although some Israelis and Jews, try to push off this distinction, they are held to it every day. So they might as well own up to the crown. Nine: Boycott is a two edged sword. Just as some world players want to boycott Israel, Israel will sell her economically stressed technology and battle tested weaponry at even higher prices. Ten: American's do " get it" , if not now later. That is because America is a free country and has the ability to investigate , learn, and make a free decision for themselves. That is why one of the best books on Israel was written by a Hebrew American, someone who integrated the best qualities of both America and Israel. One thing has changed for Israel, and this is important . Israelis use to say they wish they had the American president running for president in israel as they would vote for him. I can honestly say , that with Benjamin Netanyahu, someone who integrated Israeli and American culture, Israelis are finally happy with their own Prime Minister. I am happy that I had a chance to live in Israel when he was a Prime Minister too.

Israel pulls smart one in leaving Gaza and toning down operation now

Israel pulled a smart one. She withdrew forces, but without tunnels there , she is free to go back in for raids whenever she needs, without having to take political responsibility for the Gazans. Also, the world will watch where their money will go to Gaza next time. it will cost a fortune re-building Gaza, and the Arab world + Iran, , that supported Hamas for the destruction of Israel - had their money go up in smoke literally. Netanyahu and cabinet , defended Israel from mass terrorism with relatively few casualties. This was a pre-emptive srtike on the magnitude of the Six Day War. http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4555199,00.html

Golda Meir on the origins of the Arab / Palestinian dispute- Jordan is Palestine she said.

The reason why Israel attacked Hamas now

http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Peace/2014/07/25/Reports-Massive-Terrorist-Invasion-of-Israel-Thwarted-by-Security-Forces/ Israel always waits till her enemies are almost ready to attack, and then does a pre-emptive. This way she gets the enemy to waste their money and it will cost a fortune to rebuild. Evidently, hamas was not prepared yet for this war and that is why she really already lost, although it is not over yet. Don't forget to order, "Leaving Home Going Home Returning Home : A Hebrew American's Sojourn in the Land of Israel."

AMB Ron Dermer shows on CNN that Freedom of the Press is not Freedom to Abuse

Freedom of the Press is not Freedom to Abuse as Ron Dermer proves
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lX2h-6yZTHk

Amb Ron Dermer on CNN

" Lone Soldier " American's in Israel - this is a book about you.

Leaving Home Going Home Returning Home : A Hebrew American's Sojourn In The Land of Israel is a story about American's who moved to Israel. Now with the spotlight on Israeli Lone Soldiers fighting for the Israel Defense Forces a spotlight has been shone on American Jews who went to Israel to live and build a family and even be drafted into the Israel Defense Forces as soldiers or reserves.
In my book I describe the stories of how I was a biofeedback therapist for the Israel Defense Forces as part of my reserve duty.
Now is the time to get this book - also on Kindle to get a better idea of life in Israel ( between the missiles falling) and the culture and that life that the enemies want to snuff out.

http://www.amazon.com/Leaving-Home-Going-Returning-Americans-ebook/dp/B005GEYMOK/ref
Leaving Home Going Home

Living in Israel - (Haifa , Zichron Yaacov, Kfar Sava) , - a memoir - by author jason Mark Alster MSc.

Leaving Home, Going Home, Returning Home: A Hebrew American’s Sojourn in the Land of Israel

Authored by Jason Alster

List Price: $18.99

6" x 9" (15.24 x 22.86 cm) 
Black & White on White paper
308 pages

ISBN-13: 978-1439258750 (CreateSpace-Assigned)
ISBN-10: 1439258759
LCCN: 2009911178
BISAC: Travel / Middle East / Israel

Whether you dream of moving across the country or to another continent, or you are returning home after a prolonged absence, Jason Alster’s Leaving Home, Going Home, Returning Home is an illuminating and inspiring read. Alster paints a picture of his move to Israel, his palette of words reflecting the tones and hues of this Mediterranean nation, but the message he conveys could be applied to any move, to any change from one place to another. Why? Because this book is about the courage to change, to take risks, and to trust oneself regarding that place we wish to call home. How does one adjust to a new language, to a culture decidedly different from the one left behind? What new lessons must we learn? Is there a sense of isolation and longing, or is it possible to become part of that new place and create a sense of community and belonging? According to the author, the answer is a definite yes! Page after page, readers will discover the keys—and occasionally the secrets—to fitting in.

CreateSpace eStore: https://www.createspace.com/1000252310

The chapter " I am not a Hero" about the Gulf War. Lessons to be learned about Gaza, Hamas, and Israel today.

“I Am Not A Hero!” - The Gulf War From the memoir " Leaving Home , Going Home , Returning Home : A Hebrew American's Sojourn in the Land of Israel". The Jews have an expression that we repeat every year while reading the Passover Haggadah, or the story of the exodus from Egypt: “In every generation someone arises to smite us, and we nonetheless prevail.” During the Gulf War of 1990-1991, we heard another expression from Nachman Shay, a radio announcer entrusted with keeping the Israeli home front population informed about Scud missile attacks in a relaxed and cool manner: “Na-avor gam et zeh,” which translated means “we will get over this too.”This became a huge catchphrase of the first Gulf War and it was repeated during many Israeli television shows of the time. It was Saddam Hussein’s threat that he was going to “burn half of Israel” that scared me the most. I think many Israelis who had become accustomed to hearing these threats from Arab nations took this one in stride or did not even pay attention at first. Yet early on, I felt that this threat was different and ominous. I felt that this threat was not like any other threat, for it was made by an Arab leader that had already used chemical weapons on his people. Saddam Hussein surely wanted vengeance for the Israeli Air Force attack on the Iraqi nuclear plant in Baghdad in 1981. Up until this point, living in Israel proper was relatively peaceful. We had a resolute Prime Minister, Yitzhak Shamir, who would protect us. In spite of this, Israel still had to be concerned with the buffered and fenced border of Lebanon to the north, the Palestinians in the volatile West Bank and Gaza, and the PLO exiled to Tunisia. Syria, Jordan, and Egypt, meanwhile, fortunately kept relatively Leaving Home, Going Home, Returning Home quiet thanks to various UN negotiations, peace treaties, agreements made behind closed doors, and an electric fence. We felt secure inside Israel proper except for the occasional terrorist attack. These, when foiled, gave Tza’hal (the Israeli Army) a good name, granting Israel confidence in that she would be able to dictate the terms of a lasting peace. With terrorist attacks down to an all-time low at the time after the first Lebanon War and before the first Intifada, Israel felt it had deterred Arab attacks on the whole. During this time period, there were fewer than two dozen casualties versus hundreds killed in an Arab war. For comparison, in 1948, a full one percent of the population was a casualty. When Saddam Hussein rose to power, though, he became the fly in the ointment. He called for Tel-Aviv to “burn,” not unlike the big mouth from Iran today. Note that Hussein used the word “burn.” In this context, “burn” is a code name for a chemical attack; chemicals burn the flesh down to the bone. We knew that he had chemical weapons and missiles; he used them in his ten-year war with Iran. Iraq also had battle experience. Israel asserted that she could beat Egypt, Syria, and Jordan independently or collectively in a war because Israel has “more real time battle experience” fighting terrorism. Here, however, was a vindictive Iraq with a motive, with battle experience, and with dangerous unconventional weapons, vying for leadership in the Arab world. Soon, a real fear grew in Israel – a fear that a reckless Iraq would join forces with Syria or Jordan to form a coalition of Arab armies poised to decimate Israel’s largest and quietest border to the east. By December 1990, six months passed since Iraq invaded Kuwait. Operation Desert Shield by the UN coalition had not begun as of yet. At this time, I had just begun working as a biofeedback practitioner for about two months in the Tel-Aviv Mental Day Care Clinic at Ramat Chen, a suburb outside Tel- Aviv. Living in Haifa in an apartment I purchased overlooking the coast, I traveled two hours every day to work in Ramat-Chen by public transportation. “I Am Not A Hero!” - The Gulf War I had just finished my master degree in medical sciences and neurophysiology at the Haifa Technion Technical Institute’s medical school. I took the job position at Ramat-Chen as an opportunity to move from medical diagnostics (sleep wake disorders and EEG) to something more behavioral and people oriented (biofeedback). I was drawn to biofeedback as a profession ever since I took a course in medical hypnosis. I always loved the study of psychology and started out in college majoring in psychology. However, my grades on exams did not reflect the effort I put in as well as I had hoped. In my opinion, the questions were too theoretical in nature; I needed more substance, so I switched my major to combined physiological psychology. In this more concrete and practical branch of psychology, the exam questions were more clear-cut and scientific rather than being open to interpretation. In retrospect, if I had known what I wanted out of life at the time that I was in college, I should have majored in clinical or research psychology. Instead, the change I made then ended up leading me astray, deeper into the medical diagnostics field instead of the behavioral field. Biofeedback would later lend me a chance to come full circle and work in what I initially wanted. Coming February 1991, all that stood between me and the completion of a thesis was the oral exam. Of course, living in Israel meant that you knew a war with an Arab state could happen at any time, without warning. Even as far back as my very first weeks of working at the Technion in December 1984, I overheard a staff secretary talking about the 1982 Lebanon War. Still fresh in her mind, she lamented aloud: “all the Technion students that had died…so many students.” Now that I was a student in Israel too and at the Technion, any new war that might arise would naturally be the last thing I could possibly want for obvious reasons, yet I could not hope to control the events to be. Iraq started a war and she invaded… Kuwait, at first. Six months later, Israel was next in Iraq’s sights. The Gulf War was on, and Iraq threatened to use Israel as a hostage. Leaving Home, Going Home, Returning Home If anyone attacked Iraq, she would burn Tel Aviv or Saudi Arabia– again, not bomb, but “burn.” Everyone, especially those in the pan-Arab society wondered why Iraq invaded Kuwait instead of attacking Israel. “Oh Saddam”, they wailed amongst themselves – “was it for power? Was it for money? Was it for leadership of the Arab world?” The attack on Kuwait was the Joker in the deck of cards for the design of pan Arabism. In the midst of all of this, Israel was merely a decoy. Whether she was a decoy or target made little difference, though – she was still between a rock and a hard place. Constant wonder and fear raced through everyone’s minds. Will Saddam deliver the chemicals by plane or by Scud missile? Are the Scuds accurate weapons? Do the Scuds have a long enough range to reach Israel without falling on Jordan first? How will the jets attack us? Would the Scud war heads be of chemical mustard gas, nerve agents, biological poisons or anthrax? The answers the public received were not entirely comforting, yet they offered some solace since they helped us understand the threat as best we could. We soon learned that the Scuds can hit large cities, but they are not accurate enough to hit smaller army targets. This meant that they also can’t hit you if they are aiming right at you, but if the Scuds are aiming away from you, there would still be a higher chance that they could end up swerving in your direction. OnTV and in the newspapers, we are shown photos of Israel moving anti-aircraft missiles out in the open to the eastern border, through a mountain rift in the desert between Jordan and Syria, of course. You would think we would feel secure from this display, but these are the same missiles used in theVietnamWar. These anti-aircraft missiles may be effective against fighter planes, but not for ballistic missiles and Scuds. The pessimists droned on about another holocaust or just left the country, yet everyone else worked remarkably hard together to “I Am Not A Hero!” - The Gulf War keep Israel’s spirit and conviction strong. Engineers became instant media experts talking about the latest in weapons technology to the point where you could have completed engineering school if you paid close enough attention. Psychologists discussed mental, emotional, and spiritual casualties of war in the average person’s mind and the need to “talk it out” to survive it all. Medical professionals panned over what chemical and biological weapons can do to the body, and politicians stressed being strong in the face of adversity. Rabbis recalled miracles of the past, happening again but Nachman Shay talked to us, the ordinary citizens, through our radios about getting over this bridge on stormy waters. Army officials, meanwhile, took every chance to reassure us about modern warfare by talking to every newspaper, news radio, and news TV station in Israel. The Israeli Army and the Civilian Guard worked hard to give the survivors of the Holocaust generation a sense of security and a sense that Israel can defend herself even against unconventional weapons. While all you could hear about was the war and its mass destruction, the Israeli Army and the Civilian Guard stressed that the only real defense we have if we are attacked is retaliation. The more of the population wiped out in a first strike, the stronger the retaliation. Israelis in the know understood this as code for “if the Scuds are conventional, Israel will destroy the Iraqi infrastructure”…but if the Scuds kill too many people, Israel will attack the higher echelon and even tell us which neighborhoods they live in so the other side understands Israel is serious. If the Scuds are unconventional, Israel will fight fire with fire, hinting it will go nuclear if pushed to the brink. The code word for that was “The lesson will be very, very painful and unexpected in its intensity.” Fortunately, Saddam waited. He flinched. Maybe Israel was just a diversion away from his invasion of oil-rich Kuwait. Maybe Israel did not have enough oil to bother with. Maybe he expected a weak world response and an American weakness indicative of a Leaving Home, Going Home, Returning Home post-Vietnam mentality. It could be that he never really cared about the Palestinians and their cause, just supplied lip service. In the end, Saddam did not foresee the coalition of forces that joined against him. The war was over before it started. Israel cleverly took the unexpected defensive, with the notion this time that a good defense makes for a good offense. Saddam failed to anticipate this strategy as well, and it actually foiled his plans to get other Arabs on his side to start another Arab-Israeli war with the focus away from his invasion of Kuwait. As part of their defensive strategy, Israel decided to supply the whole population with gas masks – Jews, Christians, Arabs, and even pro Hussein Intifada-prone Palestinians. This is a little known fact, that Israel supplied her then-enemy the Palestinians, with gas masks. Even though Yassir Arafat supported and visited with Saddam Hussein publically, the Palestinian people were just as scared as the rest of us. They knew that the wind could blow from Tel-Aviv to their cities only a few miles away. What if a chemi cal missile from Iraq missed and landed in the Palestinian territories, only a few minutes away by car from the Israeli green line? Layer’s of protection was the key to Israel’s defensive strategy. In addition to the gas masks, everyone was instructed to have a sealed room in the house. Plastic sheets were used to cover all the windows and openings and these were taped down. Everyone did it. It was a hardware store field day. Can you imagine the hottest item for sale in Israel was duct tape? We waited in lines to get gas masks fitted for the whole family, children included. It was the modern day family affair, like going to a science fair. My daughter Limor was only 3 months old at the time. Since she was just a baby and could not put on a gas mask, so she would have to be placed in a plastic chamber that looked like the incubators used in the neonatal ICU. The chamber was complete with holes for hands to enter without letting in contaminated air and had a battery operated fan ventilation system through charcoal filters. We then had to practice drills with air raid sirens that would go off “I Am Not A Hero!” - The Gulf War and give us about 10 minutes to enter our sealed rooms. During the last couple of years people of Sderot, Israel, given their proximity to missile launches from Gaza, found themselves in an even more dif ficult situation with half that time to seek protection. The air raid sirens were perched atop schools, and one was across the street from us. United States Navy missile cruisers began to enter Haifa port on their way to the gulf. As a volunteer for the American in Israel version of the USO Navy Home Hospitality Program, I was invited with a group of other members to board a missile boat and visit. The captain of the ship gave a speech on how the USA was going to the gulf to protect world peace and stand by Israel…and that’s exactly what they did. Here I was, an American in Israel, on an American missile ship in an Israeli port, sending her off to war. I could never have imagined that! I understood then what it meant for America to have Israel as an ally, a friendly port halfway around the world from American shores. When the war began, the allies started their bombing raids on Iraq. I was happy that Saddam was going to get his. It was night in Israel and we all went to sleep in the designated plastic-covered window security room, not knowing what tomorrow would bring. I kept the radio on and it was now announced that a code word on the radio in addition to the outdoor sirens was Nahash Tzeffa (Viper snake). Lo and behold, at about 2 AM – not even the light of next day yet – we heard multiple alarms. Oh my G-d. It’s real! As Nena’s song “99 Red Balloons” says, “this is it boys, this is war!” Hurry! Get up! Put the cloth across the doorway airspace. Shut the shutters. Turn on the lights. Get out the boxes with the gas masks. Have them ready. Wait for the radio announcement to open the seals over the boxes with the gas masks. Call down to the neighbors and make sure they got out of bed. Ten minutes passed by, and I heard Leaving Home, Going Home, Returning Home two soft and distant thuds. It did not sound like anything I have ever heard before. Where did the thuds happen? I could not look out the shuttered window. The radio crackled: NahashTzeffa, NahashTzeffa, this is not a drill, open up your mask kits and put them on. Seven scuds just landed all over Israel including Haifa. Special armored vehicles just donated from Germany are checking the damage sites to determine if the missiles have chemical warheads. I open the seal on the mask kits and made sure my family did the same. My neighbor below was a little slow in closing the blinds. Since we lived on the Carmel Mountain above the Haifa Bay, we had a panoramic view all the way to the Lebanon border. He witnessed Scuds landing on a large shopping mall on the coast that was only just built and another two Scuds landed in the sea. He called us by phone from his downstairs apartment to notify us it’s for real. He didn’t dare leave his plastic security room either so we communicated by phone. The mall, Lev Hamifratz, Heart of the Haifa Bay, was later nicknamed “Scud Mall” and became a tourist destination with before and after photographs proudly displayed on the walls. Talk about the Israeli way to turn a negative into a positive! Saddam was aiming for the large Haifa oil refinery next to the mall. He missed, but only by a half mile or so. Not bad for an inaccurate Scud missile coming all the way from Iraq. It’s unsettling to imagine what damage he could have done even if the missile did hit the refinery grounds. On the news, the adults were told to put the gas masks on even before the children so that we could help them. Limor was a baby that had a very loud colicky scream, but as our first miracle of the Gulf War, Limor became suddenly quiet in the Mamat (the neonatal gas protection chamber). She quit crying and acted as if she liked the closed space. I took off a sealer used to keep the charcoal in the filters fresh then I put on the mask myself. Outside and above in the sky, I heard what must have been dozens and dozens of jet fighters fly overhead towards Jordan on the way to Iraq for retaliation. “I Am Not A Hero!” - The Gulf War Suddenly, I was hit by a strong stench of something that smelled like ammonia. Was it coming from inside the mask, or was it coming from the room? I was trapped, for I could not take off the mask to hunt down the source of the stench. Was I breathing in gas? Since I did not shave my beard, did I have a poor gas mask seal? Does poison gas have an ammonia smell? How did the gas get into the sealed room so fast? If this is real gas, I would have little time to act. Wearing my gas mask, I checked the windows and found them unbroken. Adrenaline pumping, I cursed the whole idea of the sealed room. Saddam could shoot two missiles at once – one to break the windows, and one to launch the poison gas. What a waste of time! I glanced at Limor, safe and sound in the closed-off mamat, and asked my wife and daughter Shanee if they smelled ammonia. You could talk with the mask on. They did not smell anything. I was the only one! What was I going to do? The smell was real and I was breathing it, and I use to have asthma. I began to worry that this would trigger an asthma attack while I am wearing the mask. I was supposed to be the leader of the sealed room. What if it really was poison gas? What else could it be? I had to survive, didn’t I? There was a syringe in the gas mask kit with epinephrine used to accelerate the body’s immune system in case of poison. Unfortunately, there was no attachment for testing room air. I rifled through the kit and found instructions on how to inject yourself but the instructions were written in Hebrew only with a few visuals. I spoke Hebrew well, but these were not common day-to-day Hebrew words, so I had to improvise. I looked at the syringe and it had one color on top and another on the bottom, one side green, and the other red. When you press on one of the sides, the needle is suppose to eject out into your thick thigh muscle. Leaving Home, Going Home, Returning Home It was a fifty-fifty shot, but I had to survive to help my family. I held the syringe up high, thumb on one end and brought it down briskly into my thigh. Fifty-fifty, green or red…and I got the wrong fifty. A sharp and serious needle shot right through my thumb, somehow missing the bone. Pain coursed through my hand as some of the epinephrine blasted through my thumb muscle, kicking my heartbeat into hyperactive mode for what would become a good few hours. I ripped off the mask and breathed the dreaded room air, it was better than choking to death. Israel was at war for less than 20 minutes, and I was already a casualty, a causality of self induced chemicals, and a statistic. The bright red blood dripping from my thumb was my red badge of courage. Unfortunately, there were about 20 deaths in the Gulf War, with only one as a result of a direct rocket hit. It was sadly from friendly fire from an exploding Patriot Missile that crashed into a house. The other casualties ended up being from stress and gas mask related injuries. People did not follow the instructions to take off the new mask sealer before wearing their masks and choked to death. Others died from the injections due to the shock to the body. I was lucky then that I muddled up the injection, sending a smaller dose into my body via my thumb instead of my thigh. Finally, years later, I would find out that the ammonia smell in the mask was a cleaning agent for sterilizing any masks that were used and not new. There was no warning about the smell. In my hose hold only my mask was previously used. The Israeli fighters were already over Jordan when they were called back to base. The Scuds then were fitted with conventional warheads. It turned out that Saddam did have chemical weapons with the ability to deliver them by Scuds, but he never did use them. He still kept us guessing the whole war, even up to the very last missile barrage. He saved that option in case he was going to be captured. The brave infamous Arab leader, found hiding in a rat hole after the second “I Am Not A Hero!” - The Gulf War Gulf War, never used his card to attack Israel, the so-called “Zionist Enemy”. In the end, we saw that Saddam was more interested in surviving than in “burning half of Israel”. Each Israeli family that strapped gas masks on that first night, was braver than he was. America eventually sent Patriot missiles to Israel so that Israel would feel secure and not retaliate, which would threaten the cohesion of the allied coalition. This maneuver would allow America to build a coalition against Iraq that included other Arab nations – even with Syria, which was technically at war with Israel. The Patriot missiles were set up on mountain tops and by the Tel-Aviv coast. One of these missile posts set up on the Carmel Mountain ridge outside Haifa University was a five minute ride from my home. Manned with joint American and Israeli crews, it was the first time Israel allowed foreign troops, American soldiers, in defense of Israel on her soil. I passed by a missile battery on my way to work in Tel-Aviv. By a twist of fate, my father worked for a company called Anderson Laboratories just outside Hartford, Connecticut that was involved in the manufacturing of the Patriot missile. My Dad told me by phone that the Patriot missile is a very good system that will lend us protection. That conversation gave me a sort of peace of mind and a false sense of security. The missiles were more effective against fighter jets than Scuds, but thankfully Saddam did not know that. I wondered how my father felt speaking to his son far off in a foreign land and at war, having a conversation like this. About 40 missiles in 19 different volleys fell only during the nights in a period of a month. That’s because the Iraqis were afraid the American air force would detect the missile launchers, so we were told. During the day, I traveled from Haifa to my workplace in Tel-Aviv. The war was still raging, and I had to take my master thesis oral. I completed a study comparing the sleep waves in the EEG of a comatose patient to normal sleep, which I entitled “Density Spectral Array, Evoked Potentials, and Temperature Rhythms in the Prognosis of The Comatose Patient.”The exam, by hospital neurosurgeons, Leaving Home, Going Home, Returning Home would be early in the morning at the Rambam Medical Centre in Haifa. Driving from my house in Nesher, and out in the open, was a very uncomfortable feeling. I had my traveling gas mask kit with me, and wore a long sleeve shirt and jacket in case of a chemical attack. It was 6: AM and the morning news came on. It always started with the well-known Jewish prayer: Shema Yisrael, Hashem Eloheynu, Hashem Ehchad. “Hear Oh Israel the Lord is our G-d, the Lord is one.” This prayer, brought down through the ages from the Bible, is said when awakening in the morning, before bed, and before death. I recited the Shema that morning driving to the medical center, praying that I would be able to complete my degree. When I arrived, I found it surreal that inside the labs, it was business as usual for the doctors. They did not even ask me how I was holding up; it was naturally expected that I would put on a face of doing just fine. In the midst of that bizarre calm, I passed the exam. The research I conducted on coma and sleep later won the International Carskadon Award for Excellence in Sleep Research by a technologist. I guess that good things do come out of hard places, if they only knew. At the biofeedback lab, we used relaxation techniques to help people suffering from anxiety to prepare to wear their masks when the alarms may sound. School-age children would bring in their parents to the clinic to have them instructed on how to put on the masks. One night, a Scud missile collided with Patriot right above Ramat-Chen, bringing about the friendly fire casualty mentioned earlier while damaging the biofeedback lab. A television news crew raced to the scene and also visited the biofeedback lab to report on the psychological terror and counter-psychology measures of the biofeedback lab! Sometimes, fate knocks when you least expect it. On site, the news crew filmed me using biofeedback relaxation machines for the Ramat-Chen anxiety patients. The news story came on late that same night. I was to be on Israeli television! Most people were now staying home nights and watching the high-quality programs Israeli TV was just now providing. The movie The Deep was to “I Am Not A Hero!” - The Gulf War follow the nightly news with the alluring, bikini-clad Jacqueline Bisset. Needless to say, a lot of people were looking forward to that night’s film. As fate would have it, my segment would end up having quite a large audience since it was the last news feature introduced just before the station screened The Deep. The Israeli anchorman boomed about a new psychological “secret weapon” being introduced to fight a psychological war: it was biofeedback. I was now using the “secret weapon” in a psychological war, teaching people to control their anxieties. The next day, every person I met, mentioned seeing my segment on the news. Once the war concluded, a documentary named Nahash Tzeffa (Viper Snake) was compiled of the news stories of the war, and my news segment made the final cut. Psychologists were considered the heroes of this psychological warfare, and I was the TV example used for a new secret weapon, biofeedback.

Leaving Home, Going Home, Returning Home: A Hebrew American’s Sojourn in the Land of Israel

Authored by Jason Alster

List Price: $18.99

6" x 9" (15.24 x 22.86 cm) 
Black & White on White paper
308 pages

ISBN-13: 978-1439258750 (CreateSpace-Assigned)
ISBN-10: 1439258759
LCCN: 2009911178
BISAC: Travel / Middle East / Israel

Whether you dream of moving across the country or to another continent, or you are returning home after a prolonged absence, Jason Alster’s Leaving Home, Going Home, Returning Home is an illuminating and inspiring read. Alster paints a picture of his move to Israel, his palette of words reflecting the tones and hues of this Mediterranean nation, but the message he conveys could be applied to any move, to any change from one place to another. Why? Because this book is about the courage to change, to take risks, and to trust oneself regarding that place we wish to call home. How does one adjust to a new language, to a culture decidedly different from the one left behind? What new lessons must we learn? Is there a sense of isolation and longing, or is it possible to become part of that new place and create a sense of community and belonging? According to the author, the answer is a definite yes! Page after page, readers will discover the keys—and occasionally the secrets—to fitting in.

CreateSpace eStore: https://www.createspace.com/1000252310

Prime Minister Netanyahu talks about Israel achievements.

Looking back, unfortunately , Bibi did not get a chance to mention the firsts developed by RainbowCloud in Israel The first long term EEG monitoring (LTM) in the Neuro Intensive ICU with spectral analysis. The first use of temperature circadian rhythms to be used in the prognosis of coma. The first break down of the least common denominator of the basis of life in humans - a circadian temperature rhythm. The first objective physiological measurement of relaxed concentration in ADHD using GSR skin resistance. The first video for handwriting correction. The classification of a non rem sleep disorder - tinnitus associated sleep disorder.

Jason Alster on Meet The Author WCTV14 - does readings from Leaving Home, Going Home ....

Arab countries selling Israeli books - will they buy mine ?.

My dream then would be that " Leaving Home , Going Home , Returning Home : A Hebrew American's Sojourn in the Land Of Israel" would be sold in Arab countries or even translated into Arabic Parsi. http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4529764,00.html

Leaving Home, Going Home, Returning Home: A Hebrew American’s Sojourn in the Land of Israel

Authored by Jason Alster

List Price: $18.99

6" x 9" (15.24 x 22.86 cm) 
Black & White on White paper
308 pages

ISBN-13: 978-1439258750 (CreateSpace-Assigned)
ISBN-10: 1439258759
LCCN: 2009911178
BISAC: Travel / Middle East / Israel

Whether you dream of moving across the country or to another continent, or you are returning home after a prolonged absence, Jason Alster’s Leaving Home, Going Home, Returning Home is an illuminating and inspiring read. Alster paints a picture of his move to Israel, his palette of words reflecting the tones and hues of this Mediterranean nation, but the message he conveys could be applied to any move, to any change from one place to another. Why? Because this book is about the courage to change, to take risks, and to trust oneself regarding that place we wish to call home. How does one adjust to a new language, to a culture decidedly different from the one left behind? What new lessons must we learn? Is there a sense of isolation and longing, or is it possible to become part of that new place and create a sense of community and belonging? According to the author, the answer is a definite yes! Page after page, readers will discover the keys—and occasionally the secrets—to fitting in.

CreateSpace eStore: https://www.createspace.com/1000252310

When the Hebrews left Egypt " Egypt " was in Canaan

This recent finding in Israel of a Pharaoh's signet ring in Israel is increasing evidence adding to the claim I made in my book Leaving Home ... that the story of how the Jews left Egypt does not jive with modern archaeology and science , but that there must be a different interpretation of the reading than what we were taught in school. http://www.haaretz.com/archaeology/.premium-1.584757 As an artist , I always was perturbed by the fact that if we " see" something we can copy it. If so, why did not the early Hebrews copy the art of Egypt? Unless they were not in that part of Egypt when they left , but rather in the other part -the contested part - " the Land of Canaan part " Looking at signet rings and burial coffins , and coins , it is clear the early Hebrews could not draw a straight line. A straight line is a human invention and not in nature. The Egyptians knew how to draw a straight line. The straight line on Israeli coins only appeared after the Greeks captured Israel. Add to this the fact that there are no findings of the Exodus story in the Sinai or Egypt - that is because the Exodus story might have well happened in Egyptian controlled territory - Canaan and it's large area including the eastern Sinai where Kadesh Barnea is. Crossing the Red Sea might have actually been real- and not the Reed Sea .

Yesterday I gave a talk on long term EEG monitoring in the Neuro ICU for the New England Neurodiagnostic Society. It turns out that a research I did for my master degree in Rambam Medical Center in Haifa Israel was the first case of Density Spectral Array EEG recordings in the prognosis of Coma. Density Spectral Array, Evoked Potentials , and Temperature Rhythms in the Prognosis of Coma Brain Inj. 1993 May-Jun;7(3):191-208. Density spectral array, evoked potentials, and temperature rhythms in the evaluation and prognosis of the comatose patient. Alster J1, Pratt H, Feinsod M. Author information Abstract Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS), density spectral array (DSA), EEG, BAEP and circadian temperature rhythm were studied in comatose patients in order to determine level of arousal and appraise the prognostic capability of these combined measures. Subjects were 29 comatose patients in the neurosurgical ICU at the Rambam Medical Center suffering from head trauma, vascular disorders or metastatic growth. Results show that best prognostic capabilities were for DSA, GCS and BAEP, in that order. As a single parameter physiological response to a sound stimulus (increase in EMG, change in EEG frequency and appearance of sharp waves or k-complex) was the single best predictor for outcome, with significant response rates for the good, deficit, vegetative and death outcomes at 83%, 57%, 37% and 18%, respectively. Rectal temperature was analysed for 24 h circadian periodicity. Daily acrophases were found to shift forward or backward on the level of about 2-7 h a day with fluctuations about a stable or unstable mean. The absence of 'free-running rhythms' associated with environmental isolation studies might reflect an ability to respond to environmental Zeitgerbers while unconscious. Temperature oscillations as well as 24 h rhythms were found even in the most severely brain-damaged patients, reflecting the resilience of the circadian oscillators in the brain to trauma. PMID: 8508176 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

The Passover Seder recap from the book Leaving Home Going Home Returning Home ( 2010)

SUNDAY, MARCH 24, 2013

Epilogue : The Passover Seder

In 2010 , When I released the historical and social studies memoir of my experiences in Israel "Leaving Home Going Home Returning Home : A Hebrew American's sojourn in the Land of Israel" , I ended the book with the Passover Seder and mentioning that the then new President Obama had brought the tradition of the Passover Seder to the White House. Now during the recent trip by President Obama to Israel , he mentioned as one of his achievements the bringing of the Passover Seder to the White House with it's common message of freedom and redemption. Thus I post the last chapter of Leaving Home Going Home... and marvel at how accurate and poignant the book is today in understanding Israel. i only hope that President Obama read the book before his trip to Israel. Epilogue: The Passover Seder When and how does an artist know when the painting they are painting is done? There are a couple of methods to making this call, and they happen to be very similar for completing a book. For one, your intuition may just tell you it’s done. Or, you no longer find yourself inspired by the work, and thus find yourself unmotivated or unwilling to continue adding content. You may take up the option to put the work down for awhile and come back to it later with new insight and knowledge for resolving snags. But, if you return and continue to feel the same way, perhaps it’s time to polish that project up and start another anew. I have debated much about when to end this book searching for just the right way to go about finding that proper ending. What I thought would take six months actually took three years. Most of this book was written in eight months, but then newer ideas would come and older memories that had to be retold resurfaced. I started telling people I had written a book on my life in Israel and it would be ready in a few months. I figured that if I made it a public announcement, it would be so, but as I write this epilogue, I have to admit that was over a year ago. I was still enjoying memories that this project conjured up, and I wanted to remember more and write more. To truly help bring the project to a close, I began to read chapters to friends. I really felt I accomplished something when a friend let me read the chapters to him for a second time. Leaving Home, Going Home, Returning Home 280 Epilogue: The Passover Seder 281 So at last, the time came. I laid out the ultimatum for myself that any more stories would have to wait for a sequel, and that’s that. The process of ending the book had begun, but how long it would take and how the process would turn out remained a mystery. I decided to meet with my nephew Jeremy Yanofsky, who by now graduated with an English major in college, and I asked him to help me to edit this book. I chose to ask Jeremy to help me in particular not just because of his expertise in writing and not just because he was my nephew, but also because I surmised that he may have some unique insight into the relationships I had between myself, Israel, and the USA, specifically because he had the opportunity to visit Israel via the Taglit-Birthright Israel program. According to their webpage, Birthright has provided gifts of first time educational trips to Israel so as to “strengthen the sense of solidarity among world Jewry” and to strengthen the “participant’s personal Jewish identity.” After partaking in this trip, Jeremy happened to take advantage and visit me when I still lived in Zichron Yacov, making him a bit more familiar with the subject at hand. The opportune moment for completing the story ironically arrived on the night of the Passover Seder, April 2009, during which Jews around the world spent the evening commemorating freedom and redemption from bondage. My sister Audrey, Jeremy’s Mom, invited me to her house for this Seder, where we all read passages from the Haggadah, retelling the story of how the Israelites were led from bondage and Egypt by Moses at the behest of the Lord. As the story goes, the Israelites leave havoc behind and wander in the Sinai wilderness on their way to entering the Promised Land. On my way to my sister’s home, I stop in a local wine and spirits store, and I find it stocked with kosher wines from Israel, Spain, Italy, France, New York and California. I picked up a few bottles, one of them containing dry white wine but in a green bottle. At the counter, a woman asks me if I was buying green wine, and I told her it was regular white wine in a green bottle shipped in from Israel. She asked me if it was any good, to which I replied of course – I lived in Israeli wine country for ten years, I should know. I felt like a good will ambassador for Israel. Audrey invited seventeen friends along to her house, most of which I had become acquainted with by this time. From the conversations around the Seder plate, I gathered that some of these people wanted their children to go to Israel like my nephew did. Some were planning to go, but did not yet. Others did not have any plans to ever go, but wished they did. Several said they are going to go when the time is right, but remorsefully settled on the idea that they probably won’t. One person even happened to be brought as a child from Israel to live here in America. This Seder was on the second night of Passover. In Israel, Jewish celebrations and observances like the Passover Seder last only one night, but out in the world of the Diaspora, the age-old custom of extending certain holidays with an added night to ensure that the timing of one’s observance of the holiday properly aligned with the timing of the holiday in the Promised Land was still in practice. While this practice may have been necessary in post-Biblical times, it just seems like an obsolete concept in the age of the Internet, especially to someone who has celebrated these occasions right in Israel just fine without adding that extra evening. The day began with frost on the ground. I mention this because Israel is sunny this time of year and the depictions of the stories of Passover in my sister’s Haggadah are all bright and sunny. There are palm trees and a warm, blue, Nile with people wading in the waters to extract the baby Moses from his reed basket. The pyramids and sand dunes bask in the sun. Egyptians and Israelites pose in light cotton clothes, wearing hats for shade, working in the fields to reap a hay harvest to use in making bricks for Egyptian buildings. Gazing at these pictures in the Haggadah, I wondered if I was drawn to that part of the world to get away from the cold New England winters. Leaving Home, Going Home, Returning Home 282 283 Glancing at the news that day, I read that President Barack Obama was having a Passover Seder in the White House, marking the first ever for an American president. Of course, editorials in the Jewish newspapers were ripe with “See, we told you so, Obama is good for the Jews.” Listening to the reading of the Haggadah around our Seder table of how the Hebrews were slaves in Egypt and how they longed to be free, I couldn’t help but wonder about the universality of the message of longing for freedom. What reaction would President Obama hold regarding the story? I would presume that he could not help but consider the parallels to black slavery, bondage, and redemption in America’s history and perhaps compare Moses to Abraham Lincoln. Was Obama now going to be a black Moses of sorts, redeeming America from her economic and social troubles? Are we going to a new promised future and a new promised land? Much remained uncertain about the future of America and Israel alike that night, but in reading the Haggadah with my family, I was certain of at least one truth in my life. I no longer felt like the son of a refugee, or a minority citizen, or a fish out of its aquarium, I felt free and content. I was able to follow my dream. This year, Jews were invited to a genuine kosher for Passover White House dinner through the front door. The Jewish people now had a homeland under an Israeli sun; and with it a thriving culture to be proud of, a strong army, strong allies, and a beautiful lady model on the front page of Sports Illustrated. As the traditional conclusion of the Haggadah meets its readers with the blessing “next year in Jerusalem,” so may this blessing come true for you someday.

https://www.createspace.com/1000252310Leaving Home Going Home Returning Home purchase

Relaxing Zen from Israel - a meditative video of Israel .

A relaxing meditative type video for Passover of  scenes I took while I lived in Israel.. It got the famous Amazon one star review, but people who live in Israel did not recognize where I got many of the beautiful relaxing scenes. Yes, Israel is one of the most beautiful countries in the world with amazing wildlife and I tried to capture this.
 http://www.amazon.com/Relaxing-Zen-Israel-Unavailable/dp/B0077FXXD2/

I wanted to show the world the Israel I saw through my eyes as a biofeedback practitioner and nature lover.

Passover 2014 , Great gift idea - memoir of life in Israel

Leaving Home Going Home Returning Home.

http://jasonalster.com/Resources.php

Sloppy Handwriting Responsible For 7,000 Deaths Per Year in medical

"Doctors' Sloppy Handwriting Responsible For 7,000 Deaths Per Year"

• by Melissa Gall
• on 10/10/2013 
• in Accountable Care
• Add comment

Physicians have infamously bad handwriting.  Tragically, The Institute of Medicine reports that doctors’ sloppy handwriting is responsible for 7,000 deaths each year.

But, modern technology aims to fix that problem and provide an electronic device to write prescriptions. “We’ve been using e-prescription for about two years,” said Shilpa Patel, a Clinical Pharmacist for Sierra Vista.  While it easier for staff when everything is recorded electronically, it actually benefits the patient.  The program cuts down on medication errors.

Does this lessen the doctor and patient relationship?  Is it therapeutic to see your prescribed treatment on paper in your hands or are you equally as content when your prescription is awaiting you at your pharmacy of choice."

Well did you know there should have been an Israeli connection. In 2006 I produced the first ever messy handwriting correction video " Anyone Can Improve Their Own Handwriting." I put much of the video on YouTube and it had over 60,000 hits. Now the video can be purchased at http://jasonalster.com/Handwriting_correction.php

or downloaded from Amazon.com as a streaming video. So if you are a physician and have poor handwriting-- get the video. 

There is even a legal firm defending people damaged by medical mistake due to poor handwriting. Well , guess what. I wrote them about my video. 

Ogg Murphy & Perkosky

The expat Blog is a good place for info about living in Israel today.

For a copy of the book Leaving Home Going Home Returning Home.

My review of the audio book Zealot : The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazereth as seen on Amazon.com

Review of Zealot

Customer Review

A new look at the life of Jesus for a new time., March 2, 2014 By  Jason Mark Alster M.Sc "Millenium man" This review is from: Zealot: The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth (Kindle Edition) First I must say I was born Jewish to a father who went through the Holocaust and grandparents who lived through pogroms in Russia ( today Ukraine) . I also lived in Israel and had visited many of the holy sites in Israel as well as throughout the Mediterranean Sea. I also partook in archaeological digs and visited many sites now being uncovered throughout Israel. I also have had many Christian friends throughout my life. What was apparent to me before I read this book ( actually listened to the audio version which was very well done) was that what I had learned , and what my friends had learned about the story of Jesus and the Jews of this time was to say the least - not fitting with what was being dug up from the ground and with the new political reality of Israel and the modern Jew. Thus, a revision of an ancient story in a more scientific way was wanting and I think Reza Aslan did this as well as anyone could have. The very first time I came to understand that what happened during the Jewish Revolt in ancient Judea and what was being told when I was growing up was when I had a look at the Arch of Titus in Rome. Here we have an arch of arches to what the Roman's in 80 AD thought was their greatest victory. However , one only has to look at what Hollywood considers the great battles of the Roman's and find out there was not one movie about the Jewish Revolt against Rome till recently. Thus, for me, the conclusion was that there was a great frame -up of the Jewish people and as Ariel Sharon use to like to say " facts on the ground" and the narrative were not matching up. On the other hand, the rabbinical Judaism total rejection of Jesus's life and story and what it means to so many people in the world ( even if they do not accept him as a messiah) seems like burying your head in the ground. Now, with a new alliance booming between many Christians and Jews and Israel - after all we are still in the same "movie", a new honest look has to be taken as to define our common modern goals and relationship. The fact that Reza Aslan is now of the faith of Islam only hopes he would write such a book for his faith too. Author- " Leaving Home, Going Home , Returning Home : A Hebrew American's Sojourn in the Land of Israel".