This year we celebrated this festival in a special way. On the granary we built a Sukkah decorated with date palms. On the last day of the Harvest Festival there was a celebration. In the Sukkah fruits of Israel were prepared: bananas, dates, pomegranates, figs and sweetmeats. In the afternoon the children came out (children from the area were also invited to the celebration) to the granary, to the Sukkah, and started singing. All the members of Ein Harod came out to see the festival. Above the

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Sukkah the Ushpizin appeared (the fathers of the nation who according to tradition come to visit the Sukkah): these were children in fancy dress – and they blessed the coming year. After we tasted the fruit, the first part of the festival was over. The main part started only in the evening. The Ein Harod bell rang out, and everyone gathered near the children’s house. The children came out with colourful torches, with lulavs, and the girls held jugs in their hands. The procession passed singing until it reached the cave, from which the Ein Harod spring springs forth. The children entered the cave and lit candles, which were stuck to the rocks in every corner in the cave – the cave became fantastical with its lights. Singing: “And you drew water in joy from the springs of salvation” the jugs were filled. From there they left for the square and lit a bonfire.

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They encircled the bonfire and sang: “For a blessing and not a curse etc”. They spilt the water on the fire, and danced and sang “Rain, Rain” and other songs – and the lines of the dancers became crowded. All the people came together in the sticky lines.

 

When the bonfire was extinguished some of the people left and went to continue dancing in the dining room. Next to the dining room there was also a bonfire. The internal flame was also ignited. Hand in hand a Hora was started. Some of the people returned again to the cave illuminated with its lights – and standing closely together in the cave, near to the slowly trickling spring – they slowly murmured forgotten tunes: dreams of the past, dreams of the present, the dances continued, continued....