It’s Yom Ha’atzmaut, Israeli Indepence Day. As my favorite JTA columnist Leslie Susser points out, she’s come a long way, baby, in terms of economic growth and diplomatic stability, but after 58 years Israel is still dealing with the same issues it did as a toddler: “a lack of universal recognition, ongoing terrorism and the threat of physical destruction.” Check his analysis here. (Susser is most awesome at making sense of statistics and explaining the complexities of the ever-shifting Israeli government — his weekly column helps us slow learners keep up with the grown-ups at cocktail parties.)

According to MyJewishLearning.com, “there is not yet an accepted ‘tradition’ of how to celebrate this holiday, and only time will tell whether certain customs, foods, prayers, and melodies will be linked in the Jewish mind with this holiday, as with holidays that emerged many centuries before Yom Ha’atzmaut.”

Fantastic! That means that unlike most Jewish holidays and their specific edicts on what to eat and what to say, you can’t go wrong today! My plans are to eat falafel naked and sing “Hatikvah” accompanied by African drumming. How’s by you?