Israel experiences

For me one of most glaring differences in Israel is the brashness of people. Not everyone of course but enough to make it distinctive. And Jews still are very emotional about rules. (Hey I do resemble some of this, children take note.)

The way I saw it most starkly was in the kibbutz cafeteria dishwashing area. We ate in a cafeteria for lunch and supper. Lunch is the main meal. We were required to buss our own dishes. To do that you took your stuff into a hot steamy room where an automatic dishwasher with a conveyor line operated. There was usually a man watching the process (from mostly out of sight) to make sure things went well.

But it you did something wrong he became very present in your life. Sort of like the proverbial Jewish mother. You would get a tongue lashing. Really.

My first day I was tired and sort of on auto-pilot. I think I placed my soup bowl in a way that he thought wrong. His response: "What are you doing there? Those dishes will never get clean like that!" Seeing my confusion he came over and changed them.

Other times a different man said: "Can't you read the sign? It tells you how to do it." Fortunately that was only addressed to me once. But I also heard it said to another person.

These comments were said with .slightly raised volume and a tone of exasperation. Usually a response was required from you before you were dismissed. You needed to tell them you would do better, apologize for your mistake. Then the man would be slightly mollified. It was as if, even though I had only been there a few days I was required to automatically know all the rules and read all the signs. There were several.

One day I ate late and the dishwashing area was mostly closed down. I did not see where to place my trash so I moved a top off the normal place and placed it there. When the man came in and saw what I had done I was in trouble. "Can't you that the cover was there. Do you not understand that the cover means not to put anything there? It was covered for a reason. Why did you do that?" Then I saw the one remaining trash basket set out for we late eaters. It was on the other side of a big room. Yes I was wrong. And yes I got my deserved tongue lashing.