The town of Afula in Northern Israel was founded in this date in 1925. It is located on the presumed site of the tower ("Ophel") mentioned in the Biblical account of an Aramean general's visit to the Prophet Elisha (II Kings 5:24).
Afula's central location in the Jezreel Valley makes it the market center of the region; it is often referred to as "the Capital of the Valley."
Because of the town's proximity to Judea and Samaria, it has repeatedly been a target of terrorist attacks following the Oslo "peace process" and during the second Intifada.
In today's "Nasi" reading (see "Nasi of the Day" in Nissan 1), we read of the gift bought by the nasi of the tribe of Gad, Elyasaf ben De'uel, for the inauguration of the Mishkan.
The Rebbe describes the following as a core teaching of the Baal Shem Tov:
Not only are the pirouettes of a leaf as it falls off a tree,
the quivering of a blade of grass in the wind,
and all the details of the world around you
all brought into being, given life and directed every moment from Above—
but beyond that:
Every nuance is an essential component of a grand and G‑dly scheme, the gestalt of all those vital minutiae.
Every moment burns with the pulse of G‑d’s desire.
Meditate on this. And then think:
How much more so the details of my daily life.