Pickled Watermelon: Beyond the Book!

Maybe Molly returns to Israel at sixteen, and volunteers on the kibbutz. She'd likely make wonderful friends while also waking up at 6 am to peel potatoes in the kibbutz kitchen or pick mangos in the fields. She'd walk barefoot everywhere that summer, just like the other young kibbutzniks. During college, she might spend a semester at Tel Aviv University, learning Hebrew and Arabic, eating chicken schnitzel sandwiches, and listening to music from all over the world.  She'd join Saba and Savta for Passover, celebrating their first seder together. 

In 2023, she'd be a grown-up, and might just have kids of her own! Let's imagine Molly taking those kids on their first visit to Israel. The country would be a lot different than it had been in 1986, even more modern and developed, but some things would be the same. Molly's kids would stroll the beach in Tel Aviv, leave a special message of their own at the Kotel in Jerusalem, and travel to the kibbutz to see Rivka and her family. Meir and Ma'ayan would take them on a walking tour, this time of Haifa. They would see an Israel that is diverse and complicated and ancient and new. Molly would remember and make new memories.

And if they shared their photos, this is what we might see:

Esty Schacter is the author of PJ Our Way selection Pickled Watermelon.

Which photo is your favorite? What do you think happens to Molly after the book ends? Let us know in the comments!