Not your average homework assignment...

The land of Israel is beautiful, breathtaking, and bountiful – and the first sight beyond the glass doors. Presumably, as we make our exodus like so many that were unable to before us – from death to deliverance – we are to feel relieved as we rejoice in our redemption.

In our collective identity and universal memory that we share in this entity we call – Am Yisrael – we are always looking behind us to make sure we’ve left footsteps in which others can follow. We are always looking ahead to see what paths have been laid for us. Sometimes, it seems we forget to make sure the footsteps we’ve left for others to follow are actually worth pursuing.

It seems easy for us to declare daily “Remember the Holocaust” and then to deny asylum to others seeking refuge from genocide.

We refuse to acknowledge the cries from others seeking autonomy and we condemn their attacks on our people, easily forgetting that only sixty years ago, we also blew ourselves up on the road to independence.

We create a special verb dedicated to walking down a particular street and sit in cafes drinking coffee and talking about how cosmopolitan we are. This sophistication we can only will for longingly, but never, even in our dreams, truly achieve.

And as our Naots, unmade for American feet on the hilly Jerusalem street, give us painful blisters, we pray that the bus driver will agree to drop us off close to home. Maybe so we do not feel the weight of leaving our own footprints. Or maybe our feet just hurt.

Or maybe we wonder - does anyone here even care if we leave a trace?

***
This was written for a required reflection about the Israel seminar we attend every week - exploring issues of Israeli identity, history, and culture. After traveling on a non-HUC trip for future clergy to Bethlehem in the West Bank last week, spending the night in the home of a Palestinian family and crossing through the check-point, this is all I could come up with. Probably not exactly what my professors expected...

Comments

  1. beautiful, thank you.
    shabat shalom

    ReplyDelete
  2. Jen,
    I have read it two times before Shabbat. Then I have read it again. I am not sure I agree (wow, I'm polite) but is really food for thought. Hope we'll have time to share our thoughts. Shavua tov.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Jen,
    Thanks for your insights. There are many seeking peace who seek individuals to cross boundaries as you have to discover a deeper truth in which the path to peace lies.

    Peace...Amer (Ron's friend from HHC)

    ReplyDelete

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