“How did I get myself into this?” Amy Adelman asked, sighing into the phone.

“You know it always happens when you have everything in your life together. I love my life, my friends, my job. I just finished working on my house, and poof, I fall in love with an Israeli.”

Adelman met Lior when he was working for Intel in Arizona for a few months. Adelman, an Ohio native, moved to Arizona six years ago to start a new adventure in her life.

“I didn’t have any friends when I got here, and while I was looking for a job, I waited tables at Marie Callender’s [Restaurant and Bakery],” she said.

Eventually Adelman, a teacher, found a position. A bubbly friendly woman, she developed many friendships in Arizona. She also started a Jewish soccer league and Shabbatluck, a monthly Shabbat potluck for young adults in Phoenix, which has hundreds of members.

 While it may seem like a fairy tale at times, life does not exactly go according to script. “I knew on the second date that I wanted to be with him, and it just complicated my life,” Adelman said. “It’s never easy to be in a long-distance relationship, add in different continents and time zones, and it makes it all the more ‘interesting’ to figure out.”

Modern technology made all the difference. Adelman and Lior stayed connected  with cellphones and with Internet and video chat on Skype. A few months after he left, Adelman flew to Israel to spend a few weeks with him. Then, by luck, Lior was able to get placed back in Arizona for a few more months.

“It was really a blessing – it made a huge difference.” Adelman said, smiling. “He flew in early and came and surprised me in my classroom in front of all my first graders. I was so excited.”  

Adelman and Lior solidified their relationship on his second stint in Arizona. But moving continents was no easy task for Adelman, who was perfectly settled into her comfortable life.

Also with house prices falling, Adelman decided to rent out her house so as not to lose on her investment. “It was no easy task finding a renter. In this case, falling in love is not just about emotions, but it’s about finances, responsibilities and the bigger picture of life” Adelman said.

Love is complicated, and even if Lior was not physically at her side, she included him in on all her decisions. “I felt that I was making such a huge effort, that Lior needed to know everything. If I was frustrated, he needed to be frustrated with me. It’s no easy task to change your entire world for someone, not to mention learning a new language.”

Adelman waited till the school year was over and then left her teaching job. She sold all her worldly belongings, handed over her responsibilities as soccer administrator, packed up the basics and drove to Ohio to spend some time with her family before making the big move to Israel.

Adelman was not alone in her move to Israel. Nefesh B’Nefesh made the transition smoother for her, by helping her with everything from flights to funding.

She was nervous, didn’t speak Hebrew and didn’t have any friends in Israel, “but it’s an adventure,” she said.

 Before leaving Arizona, Adelman was introduced to another woman who was moving to Israel to be with her Israeli husband, whom she had also met while he was in Arizona working for Intel.

“Having been in Israel now for just a few weeks, I am making friends with other women who have also made aliyah. We have become one another’s support system. I feel lucky to have people around me who have the same feelings and struggles,” Adelman said.

She said that it was tough leaving her family, her friends and her possessions behind, “but when you find the right person you are willing to make those sacrifices, ” she said.

When asked if she moved for love or because she loved Israel, Adelman grinned and said, “They really are one and the same aren’t they?”

Masada Siegel, otherwise known as the “Fun Girl Correspondent” is a freelance writer living in Scottsdale.  She can be reached at [email protected]