4 | JUNE 1 • 2023 

PURELY COMMENTARY

I

t has been said that many 
people get lost in thought 
because it is such unfamiliar 
territory. 
I am pleased, however, by the 
number of people who have 
shared with me 
their enjoyment at 
reading word play 
that needs to be 
thought about. In 
several instances 
recently, many of 
these same folks 
have sent me puns 
that they have come across and 
that they thought worthy of 
sharing. 
I would like to pay this 
forward by printing some of 
these delightful submissions that 
have been sent my way.
• Venison for dinner again? Oh, 
deer!
• England has no kidney bank, 
but it does have a Liverpool.
• I tried to catch some fog, but 

I mist.
• They told me that I had 
type-A blood, but it was a 
typo.
• I changed my iPod’s name to 
Titanic. It’s syncing now.
• (Disclaimer: In line with 
my lack of technological 
understanding, I had that 
last one explained to me by a 
12-year-old!)
• Jokes about German sausages 
are the wurst.

• I know someone who is 
addicted to brake fluid, but he 
claims he can stop at any time.
• I stayed up all night to see 
where the sun went; then it 
dawned on me.
• A girl claimed she recognized 
me from the vegetarian club, 
but I never met herbivore.
• I am reading a book about 
anti-gravity, and I just can’t 
put it down.
• (The next one is endearing to 

us who are otherwise follicle-
ly challenged.)
• I did not like my beard at first, 
but it grew on me.
• Yesterday, a clown held the 
door open for me, which was 
a nice jester.
• (Here is one for those who 
dine out a lot.)
• I ate too much Middle 
Eastern food, and now I 
falafel. 
• (Ready for a real groaner?)
• It was an emotional wedding; 
even the cake was in tiers.
• A friend tried to annoy 
me with bird puns when I 
realized that toucan play at 
that game.
• I hate insect puns; they really 
bug me.
• My math teacher called me 
average. How mean!
Well, as you ponder that 
fishermen are reel men, 
remember that Velcro is a rip 
off! 

Sy Manello 
Editorial 
Assistant

essay
Punny You Should Say That

W

hen the plane from 
America enters 
Israeli air space, 
when the first ribbon of Israeli 
coastline comes into view, my 
ritual begins. It’s time to listen 
to “Od Lo Tamu 
Kol P’layich” 
(Your Wonders 
Have Yet to 
Cease), a love 
song to Israel that 
stirs my heart 
in those final 
moments.
I did not visit Israel for the 
first time until I was 41 years 
old. There were many years of 
waiting and longing until, at 
last, I embarked with my family 
on our first trip. As the plane 

crossed the Mediterranean 
Sea, my eyes were glued to the 
horizon. When Israel’s coastline 
finally appeared below me, I 
was overcome with awe. That 
feeling has never dimmed in my 
many visits to Israel since. But 
that feeling needed an outlet, a 
means of expression. I found it 
years ago by creating my own 
“about to land in Israel” ritual.
I listen to a song that captures 
my belief that Israel is a place 
of wonder … and my gratitude 
that we are about to see each 
other again.
Our tiny land, our beautiful 
land 
 A homeland whose dress is 
simple, whose feet are bare, 
 Draw me into your songs, 

beautiful bride, 
 Open your gates to me, I will 
enter them and give thanks to 
God.
These words remind me to 
never take for granted the mir-
acle of Israel’s existence, along 
with the enormous blessing of 
being able to visit. To see first-
hand what the poet wrote of 
and what the composer set to 
music:
Your wonders have yet to 
cease….
The wonder of Jewish 
national rebirth and the way it 
changed the existential condi-
tion of the Jewish people. The 
wonder of a flourishing Hebrew 
culture — music, literature, the 
comedians on TV
, the street 

names, even the billboards.
Those wonders include the 
way a visit to Israel can be 
transformative for Jews who 
make the effort to encounter 
Israel in person. I recently 
returned from a 240-person 
Minneapolis community 
mission, celebrating Israel’s 
75th anniversary. One-third 
of the participants were first-
time visitors to Israel and many 
others had been to Israel just 
once, decades ago.
While all were dazzled by the 
historic sites they visited, the 
scenic beauty, the energy and 
vibrancy of the Israeli scene, 
what seemed to take many by 
surprise was how being in Israel 
made them feel. An 80-year-

Sally Abrams
Times of 
Israel

essay
The Song That Binds Me to Israel