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When I told my friends and family I was going
to Israel to sing the blues, they all said I was crazy. They
were all convinced I would be killed in a suicide bombing. I'm
a professional musician and I tour all over the world. I have
been to Istanbul, Belfast, Madagascar, and East Germany. None
of these scared my parents as much as my trip to Israel.
The fear was infectious. People in my audiences here in San Diego,
Calif., gave me lingering "goodbyes" and said things
like, "Hope to see you again safe and sound" and "Be
very, very careful." My Jewish friends asked,
"Why aren't you terrified? Don't you read the newspapers?
Don't go anywhere alone." One friend even told me not to
wear my Star of David necklace in public! This seemed particularly
ominous. Still, I chose to ignore their well-intentioned prophesies
of doom.
I know there is rampant terrorism in the Middle East. I also
know that as an American, I had always felt safe and untouchable
here in the sanctity of my little home with the white picket
fence. Then airplanes were flown into the World Trade Center.
I know now that terrorism can happen right here. If the people
of Israel could live with the threat of terror every day, surely
I could go to Israel to play music and live with the fear for
a couple of weeks.
Sure, I was apprehensive. Before I left, I made certain my life
insurance policy and Last Will and Testament were complete and
in full force. I spoke to both my sons very seriously about my
trip. "This isn't like my normal tours to the Midwest,"
I explained. "This is a war zone." At the 11th hour,
my fiancee and manager, who was to accompany me, started to get
cold feet, too. His panicked, conservative Jewish relatives asked
him not to go. He was very close to canceling his reservation
and I can't say I blamed him: He's the father of two young children,
and it would have been irresponsible of me to insist he come
along for such a risky ride. But his love for me and for Israel
overpowered his fear, and together we boarded the flight for
Tel Aviv.
(continue
to part 2: "They checked our jackets, our pockets, our bodies.
")
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