Atlantic City in Israel

When I was younger, I went to Atlantic City for a few hours (there, I admitted it...). I brought $100 with me and I was willing to lose it. I played craps despite the fact that I had no idea how to play. I won almost $400.

For the next few years a small, small part of me thought about that $400... often. I wondered if I should have gone back and tried again. I wondered if I had some kind of skill that made me successful at that sort of thing (whatever it was).

About 3 years after my first visit, I was at a conference in Foxwoods and.... I went back to the craps table. It was the best thing that ever happened to me. I lost $100 in about 15 minutes. And that was the last of my gambling aspirations.

I mention this because I just went back to the U.S. for a family simcha. Ever since my family and I made Aliyah this past summer, a small, small part of me thought about the States and how great it was for us there. We're happy here but, when things went a tad tough here, I'd think in the back of my mind about the States and if, maybe, perhaps, who knows.... should we go back??

Going there was great for me.

I still love my family in America and I still miss them tremendously. But the "going back to the States" bug was, to a large part, erased. It's probably still there somewhere, but it is no longer the quiet presence that it was until my trip.

It's easier to sleep now.