An Eye for An Eye


It's Friday.

After a long, exhausting week, it's nice to have this day to sleep in late, not run errands. There are families that do make trips on Fridays during the summer. The new schedule is still a little confusing to us, that we find ourselves able to regroup by making Shabbat food, scrub the house and sponja the floors (Israel's way of cleaning tile).

One of my WhatsApp groups alerted women in the area to pray for a teen girl murdered in an attack.  In our attempts to overall not listen to the news, it's hard not to be tempted to check the story. Times of Israel had a large display of the developing situation, a photograph recording the violence. What some visiting the page may not notice is that right below it, was a photograph of a young Palestinian child who was injured in the head sometime around July 19th.

Both families in pain. 

Ask any Israeli how they manage to live like this and they'll answer that there is no choice. That if Israel were to put down arms, we'd lose the country. And if the Palestinians let down their arms, we'd have peace. 

Thinking back to my 19 year old self, I didn't have sympathy for casualties innocent or for various reasons stuck in cross fire thanks to terrorists. Looking at these two scenes, however, breaks your heart. 

It just does.

Regardless of the propaganda, religion, as I had told a friend earlier in the week is to blame for so much hatred. Not Israel's existence or any other. The Bible itself in Genesis describes יצר האדם רע מנעוריו. It is built within us all, in a variety of ways, even as much as we train ourselves not to be. To welcome the Arab construction worker for coffee or give him a glass of water. For a moment to look a Charedi gentleman in the face and smile. To be human. Why is this so hard?

This morning I read of a Brandeis professor, Jonathan Sarna in the line of antisemitic fire. My alma matter. Where I worked. This is not OK. 

Today, we need to sadly pray for peace all over the world.

Wishing all a healthy, safe, shabbat full of love and to think about how we can bridge the gaps. It starts from the home and hopefully, creates a better future.

Until then, there's chocolate for sweet wishes (just 9ish shekel)...and ice cream, when all else fails. 

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