The kibbutz where I live has many beautiful old olive trees. Once a year they are picked by kibbutz kids from the 4th and 5th grade. This is a real happening. They beat the branches with sticks in order to make the olives fall. Everywhere they put large pieces of cloth on the ground to catch the olives. Then they collect them. The olives are then made into oil which they sell in the local store. The money raised this way will be used by the kids to visit the former concentration camps in Poland. It’s a study trip, where the children learn about what happened during those awful years and that they are aware of their roots. In this way past, present and future are being combined. This very special tradition already exists for many years in the kibbutz. 
Last weekend they started picking again. During the past weeks there were signs and posters everywhere announcing the start of the picking (and hoping adults will also help). This year the trees are full of fruit.
Last year when I made a new garden next to our house, I wasn’t aware of this tradition. All my plants were still small and I was afraid they’d be ruined by the olive pickers. In the end we put up a large net under the tree in order to catch the olives. Everything has grown now but I don’t take any risks and we’ll put the net back up again. 
Although the kids pick the olives, on every tree some fruit remains. Also olives are always to be found lying round on the ground. As soon as the picking is over, Arab women and children from nearby villages come and pick and collect the remaining fruit. And that’s also part of a beautiful tradition!
Remember the past, live the present and trust the future!
Joanne
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