Author to Describe Hiking the Israel Trail

The Flemington Jewish Community Center will host a presentation by author Aryeh Green on Sunday, January 27, at noon.

Green will speak about the lessons he learned while hiking the Israel National Trail. His 48-day, 600-mile trek took him from the Red Sea to the border of Lebanon and helped him heal from a crisis in his life.

Green had just undergone a wrenching divorce and wanted an experience that would clear his head and help him move on with his life. So at age 51, with a 50-pound pack on his back, he set out alone on the hiking trail that zigzags through the Negev Desert, climbs the Jerusalem hills, skirts the shores of the Mediterranean and Sea of Galilee, and stops just short of the Golan Heights. Although the California native had lived in Israel for over 30 years, the Israel Trail took him to geographical and psychological places he had never visited before. He meditated on mountaintops, cried in dry creek beds, and looked up at the stars and down at the ants. He walked in the literal footsteps of prophets and patriarchs; he encountered shepherds, Bedouins, jackals, and diverse Jewish communities.

He says that hiking the trail taught him humility, a sense of our place in the universe. “I learned forgiveness: forgiveness of God, of myself, and of others.” He began each day with a prayer of gratitude, and every day he was grateful for the experience of being able to hike the Land of Israel. The trek also increased his appreciation for the beauty of Israel, for Israel’s history, and for the Jewish people’s connection to the land. His talk, accompanied by photos and videos, will invite participants to “join” him on the Trail, and to share the many insights and reflections provoked by the experience.

Books will be available for purchase, signed by the author. Read more about him at www.myisraeltrail.com. $10 suggested donation.