“I Want to Go Home” ~ The Deep Longing of an Old Woman

Sunset ~ Jaffa
Photo Credit: Dawn

“I want to go home!” This is her constant refrain. She has dementia and memory is not easily accessible these days. But one thing she does remember is her beloved home in Jaffa ~ so close and yet so far. She remembers the smell of the sea and the taste of the oranges. And she knows that the place she is currently living is not really home. The refrain breaks the heart of her son, who is her primary caregiver.

I know her as “Joseph’s mom.” I only met her briefly last fall as she was wheeled into the restaurant to celebrate the wedding of her granddaughter. But I feel as if I do know her because my friend Joseph has told me her story ~ how he feels helpless to grant her most basic desire ~ the desire for home. As the evening shadows lengthen, she expresses her desire to go home. With a heavy heart, Joseph wheels her the 50 meters up the cobblestone street from his restaurant in East Jerusalem’s Old City to their modest apartment. But it is not home. They both know this. He knows the object of her longing, but he is powerless.

She was born in the ancient city of Jaffa, just south of the modern city of Tel Aviv. In 1948 she lost her home and everything she had, forced to flee the invading Israeli army. She locked the door and took the key. As with most Palestinian refugees, she thought of her departure as “temporary.” Surely the unrest would die down and she would be able to return home. But that was 65 years ago. And she is still homeless, although she has lived in many places since that fateful day.

The family lived for a time in Jordan but ultimately returned to Palestine, taking up residence in the Old City of East Jerusalem, then under Jordanian rule. When Joseph was 2 years old, his parents and their young children were again forced to flee from the invading Israeli army. The year was 1967, and once again his parents found themselves with no place to live and nowhere to go. As faithful Christians, they turned to the only place they knew for help ~ the church ~ which provided them with the small apartment where Joseph now lives with his mother. The home where he was born is but a few cobbled lanes and twisted alleys away, but his childhood home is now an Israeli-run youth hostel.

Joseph Caters Event Marking 10th Anniversary of EAPPI
Photo Credit: Dawn

Joseph has adjusted ~ somewhat. For him, his beloved city of Jerusalem is his home. His church is a few cobbled blocks from the apartment. I joined him one Sunday for mass to hear his band lead the singing. This city is the center of his life. He has established a successful restaurant where he serves the best of gourmet cuisine, having prepared meals for many visiting dignitaries, including his beloved Pope. It was my desire for good food that first took me to Rossini’s Restaurant in 2008. This was the beginning of my friendship with Joseph, and his restaurant is simply the best place to enjoy an amazing meal, lovingly and creatively prepared. Last fall I spent many an evening in the warm embrace of this place, enjoying the delights that emerged from the kitchen as “compliments of Chef Joseph”!

Joseph’s Creation
Chocolate Soufflé to Die For ~ Almost
Photo Credit: Dawn

Joseph is one of 1.5 million Palestinians who are citizens of Israel. They are “second class citizens” in a Jewish state, but they enjoy many privileges that Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza only dream about. Freedom of movement is one of those basic human rights that allows Joseph to obtain a passport and travel the world. He is part of “Chefs for Peace,” a group of Christian, Muslim, and Jewish chefs who use their art to advocate for peace. He is an amazingly resilient man who has made the best of a tragic situation. He tells me, “This is my city ~ my birthplace ~ I will never leave ~ But my mother is not at home here ~ It breaks my heart ~ She is my mother, and she wants desperately to go home ~ What can I do?”

Remembering the Nakba
Photo Credit: Public Domain

Violence once again marked Nakba commemorations yesterday, May 15 ~ It has been 65 years since the Nakba ~ the “catastrophe” ~ when 750,000 Palestinians were forced to flee the advancing Israeli army ~ over 500 Palestinian villages were destroyed ~ there were massacres and forced evictions ~ For many Palestinians the Nakba was relived in 1967 ~ For many Palestinians, the Nakba is ongoing ~ Palestinian land is confiscated for expanding Israeli settlements ~ Palestinian homes are demolished ~ East Jerusalem families are evicted onto the streets, their homes given to Jewish settlers. In 2011 the Israeli government passed a bill to deny funding to any organization, institution or municipality that commemorates the Nakba ~ But how can you legislate a people’s history? How can you control collective memory? This historic and ongoing catastrophe is engraved on the hearts and minds of three generations of Palestinians! ~ Would not the creation of peace with justice help to ease these painful memories and do more for Israel’s “security” than the passing of draconian laws? Why is acknowledging another’s pain such a difficult thing to do? When will this catastrophe end?

Jaffa ~ Photo Credit: Dawn

As I watched Joseph, with a heavy heart, wheel his mother up the cobblestone street of East Jerusalem’s Old City that night, I reflected on the meaning and place of home in our lives as human creatures ~ The connection to place is deep and primal ~ What does it mean to long for home? Is an old woman’s deep longing too much to ask?

An Occupied Childhood ~ A Reality for Palestinian Children

I love my 6-year-old friend, Ben. It was spring break here this past week, and Thursday night I had the opportunity for a “sleep-over” at Ben’s house. The evening was spent playing together ~ a fun, carefree time of board games and “dress-up” ~ complete with all of the wonderful imagination that only a 6-year-old boy can muster! Ben told stories of going to the dinosaur museum. He introduced his favourite new dinosaurs one by one ~ But Ben also loves school, and he is looking forward to returning to class this week.

Child & Soldier ~ Al Masara Village
Photo Credit: Dawn

My time with Ben transported me back to last fall in Bethlehem. It was September. My young Palestinian friends were also looking forward to the beginning of school. But their reality is vastly different. A few I know by name, but most remain nameless to me. What I do remember are their faces. What I do know is that a fun, carefree childhood is a concept foreign to them. Their childhood is occupied ~ not occupied with being children, but occupied with Occupation!

Children Walk to Tuqu’ School
Photo Credit: Dawn

I remember monitoring the schools in Tuqu’ village, where children were forced to walk past armed soldiers and army hummers in order to get to school. I remember the day the school closed because youth were protesting the invasion of Gaza, and the army had responded to their non-violent protest with tear gas.

Tear Gas ~ Tuqu’ School
Photo Credit: Dawn

I remember the Bedouin children who feared that the Israeli government would come and demolish their school. I remember the children who returned from school only to find that their home was in ruins ~ flattened by the bulldozers.

I remember Qusai who loves soccer but who lives in Al-Azza refugee camp and has no place to play ~ only small, dirty, narrow alleys. I remember young Dena who broke her leg because she doesn’t get enough calcium to be able to form strong bones. I remember the 8-year-old boy who was literally speechless ~ traumatized by the 16 soldiers who had invaded his home in the middle of the night. I remember the children in Aida refugee camp who, when asked to write about their lives, chose to write about the wall, about their father who was killed by the army, about their brother who was in prison, about their life ~ which is occupation.

Ali ~ Bethlehem
Photo Credit: Sophie

And I remember 10-year-old Ali who seemed to live on the street and was grateful for the cookie and sandwich I offered ~ as I sat with him on the curb in front of my house and tried to dissuade him from antagonizing the soldiers who for him are the enemy, the occupiers ~ These are not isolated stories ~ They are representative of the evils of occupation.

On and on it goes … This past week I read the March 28 posting of my Canadian colleague, Jan, who is currently serving with EAPPI in East Jerusalem. Jan writes poignantly about the violence done to Palestinian children who are arrested and detained in Israeli military prisons. She references the recent UNICEF report “Children in Israeli Military Detention” (February 2013) and states that according to Defence for Children International (DCI), in the month of February alone, 236 Palestinian children were imprisoned and prosecuted in the Israeli military court system, the highest monthly total since October 2010. Of that number, 39 were between the ages of 12 and 15 ~ Another example of the evil of occupation.

School Children Detained by Israeli Army
Hebron ~ March 20, 2013
Photo Credit: EAPPI

An incident on Wednesday, March 20, brings this all home! At 7:30 AM, 22 Israeli soldiers arrived at the Hebron Public Elementary School and apprehended 27 minors, ages 7-15. Two of the children were released on the side of a road shortly after being detained, but the remaining 25 were taken to the police station, where they were photographed and had their fingerprints taken. Teachers from the school went to the police station but were not allowed to enter. At 2:00 PM the soldiers released the 8 youngest children but continued to detain the remaining 17, all between the ages of 13 and 15. This incident is in clear violation of international law! And yet we hear nothing of this in our media. (Click here to view a video of the incident as recorded by the Israeli Human Rights Organization, B’Tselem.)

Now in its 46^th year, this occupation has gone on far too long. It must end! ~ No child should have to live with the realities of an occupation that steals their childhood and occupies their young lives! ~ Children deserve to be occupied with being children! ~ The memories haunt me still ~ My heart aches ~ Will we stand up and speak out? ~ For the sake of the children?

(Credit for all children’s photos: Dawn)

In the Wake of the Bulldozers

Home Demolition
Haris Village ~ November 2012
Photo Credit: Dawn

It was in November that we attended a wake. We walked silently through the rubble of stones and twisted rebar. We paid our respects to the families. We watched as the children and youth collected the steel “rubber” (coated) bullets, empty shells of sound bombs and tear gas canisters, arranging them in patterns on a pink blanket. We sat in a circle with the people of Haris Village in the northern West Bank as tea was served to those gathered. Everyone spoke in whispers. Two houses had died and with them the hopes and dreams of two families. A father told us how he had nearly finished the “add-on” ~ a gift to his son who was to be married in two months. The shock, horror and grief were palpable ~ It was enough to break your heart.

Arranging Ammunition ~ Haris Village
Photo Credit: Dawn

The bulldozers had come the day before. Within a couple of hours the deed was done and the bulldozers had pulled out of town, leaving devastation and destruction in their wake. Not just devastation of homes, but of lives and hearts. They left, but not before there had been a clash with villagers who were non-violently protesting this inhumane act. Some were taken to hospital. A few suffered broken bones. All suffered broken hearts.

When a home is demolished, often families are given only minutes to rescue a mere few belongings from the jaws of the bulldozer. Sometimes there is no warning given. All of their possessions are buried in the rubble. We were told that the beginning of winter is often a time of increased demolitions as Israel needs to spend its “demolition budget” by year end. Thus amid the cold and rain, the dark and damp of winter, hundreds of men, women and children are left homeless. The International Committee for the Red Cross (ICRC) provides tents, blankets and basic necessities, but how does one tend to broken hearts?

Arabiya’s Home ~ Anata ~ November 2012
Photo Credit: ICAHD

Since 1967, over 27,000 Palestinian structures have been demolished by the State of Israel, many more than once. Also last November, Beit Arabiya in Anata, just northeast of Jerusalem, was demolished for the sixth time in 15 years ~ two of these occurring at the beginning and end of 2012. This home has become a symbol ~ an icon. It has been dedicated as a Centre for Peace. As an act of resistance, it has been repeatedly rebuilt by The Israeli Committee against House Demolitions, an organization that works tirelessly to stop this immoral, insane practice.

In 2012, there were 599 Palestinian structures demolished in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, displacing 886 people, 474 of whom were children (UNRWA). They were offered nothing ~ no alternative housing ~ no compensation (as if one could be compensated for the wanton destruction of one’s home) ~ often only given a bill for all costs associated with the demolition of their own home. It’s all part of Israel’s plan. They want the land without the people. The government rejects 94% of Palestinian applications for building permits, and then they knock their houses down for daring to resist. It’s a crime.

Home Demolition ~ Beit Hanina ~ February 2013
Photo Credit: Jan

Last week I read the February 11 and February 18 blog posts of my Canadian colleague, Jan, who is currently serving with EAPPI in East Jerusalem. As she shared the pain and heartbreak of the two home demolitions recently attended by her team, I was taken back to that November day in Haris village 3 months ago ~ The sun was shining but the universe wept and so did we, as our team of EAs sat with those Palestinian families in the wake of those bulldozers that had destroyed their homes and their hopes ~ I wonder … How can a human being ram a bulldozer into the home of another human being? ~ Unless of course they have come to see the other as less than human …

Rachel Corrie
Protesting a Home Demollition ~ Gaza
This photo was taken earlier in the day
16 March 2003
The day Rachel was brutally killed
Photo Credit: Joe Carr

Things have a way of happening. Yesterday I thought I had finished this blog, but then last night I had the privilege of hearing Cindy and Craig Corrie, parents of Rachel Corrie, as part of Israeli Apartheid Week at the University of Alberta. They spoke to a packed house of over 200 people from all walks of life, all religions, all ages and stages. Their daughter Rachel Corrie was a 23-year-old American peace activist from Olympia, Washington, who was crushed to death by an Israeli bulldozer on 16 March 2003, while undertaking nonviolent direct action to protect the home of a Palestinian family from demolition. On this 10^th anniversary of her death, as we listened to Rachel’s story and honoured her legacy, we heard her amazing parents speak passionately about the need for an end to the Israeli occupation of Palestinian lands and lives ~ about their hopes for a just peace in Palestine and Israel.

Remembering Rachel
In Gratitude for Her Commitment to Justice
Photo Credit: Rachel Corrie Foundation

As we dispersed into the wintery night, I thought ~ “Never again” must not be reserved for Jews alone or any one group of people. Jews, yes, but never again should encompass every human being ~ Never again should a family be forced from their home and from their land ~ Never again should a bulldozer crush to death someone who is standing against brutality and for peace ~ Never again should uprooted trees, devastated homes, shattered dreams, broken bodies and broken hearts be left in the wake of a bulldozer.

I cannot “unsee” what I have seen. I can only choose to be silent or to speak ~ to be apathetic or to act ~ May we each find our voice ~ May we resolve to speak and act against injustice! ~ In so doing we honour Rachel’s legacy ~ How can we do less?

The A, B, Cs of Occupation

Sign on Road Entering Bethlehem
Photo Credit: Dawn

Some think the Oslo Agreements of 1993-1995 had promise. Many think Oslo was a disaster. All agree it has failed. Oslo II (1995) created 3 temporary administrative divisions in the West Bank ~ A, B, and C. It was designed as an interim agreement until a final status accord could be established ~ ideally within 5 years. But it has been an 18 year interim ~ it has clearly passed the “best before” date and needs to be discarded. In reality it has functioned as a facade for Israel to continue to build illegal Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank.

In this interim agreement, major population centers such as Bethlehem, Jericho, and Ramallah are in Area A and fall under full Palestinian control; however, this comprises only about 18% of the West Bank.

Villages and rural areas are deemed to be in Area B ~ approximately 21% of the land. Here the Palestinian Authority has responsibility for civil affairs, and shares security with Israel. In practice, however, security is for the most part controlled by the Israeli military which can come and go at will, and parts of Area B have been illegally confiscated by Jewish settlers.

Israeli Only Roads ~ Cars with Yellow Plates
Photo Credit: Dawn

The majority of the land ~ approximately 61% of the West Bank ~ is termed Area C and is under full Israeli control; 70% of this land has been designated for Israeli settlements (illegal under international law), military zones, nature reserves, the separation wall, and its “buffer zones.” As the only contiguous area in the West Bank, it includes most of the key infrastructure including roads, electricity, and water resources. It is almost impossible for Palestinians to build, expand or improve their homes in Area C even though they own the land. Applications for building permits are routinely denied. The process of applying is time consuming and expensive. After making numerous attempts, many Palestinians are forced to build without permits as this is their only option for housing their expanding families. They build and wait for the bulldozers which will come ~ the question is when.

Villagers Gather with Family
Home Demolition ~ Haris Village
Photo Credit: Dawn

The 150,000 Palestinians in Area C are under constant threat of home demolition or eviction ~ including over 27,000 Bedouin whose villages have been declared “unrecognized” even though they have lived on the land for centuries. In 2011, 560 structures in Area C were demolished including 200 homes and 46 water cisterns ~ 1,006 people were left homeless including 565 children, more than double the number for 2010. There are currently over 3,000 outstanding demolition orders, including 18 schools (UN Fact Sheet, Area C). It is estimated that 300,000 settlers live here illegally ~ Israeli citizens under Israeli civil law. Palestinians in the West Bank, however, are governed by Israeli military law.

Many think that Israel plans to annex this huge swath of the West Bank, all in contravention of international law and Article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention which states that an occupying power cannot transfer its own civilian population into the territory that it occupies, and resources in an occupied area must be used for the benefit of the occupied. However, Israel has a convenient way of wiggling out of this. They simply say that the land is not occupied. But this too flies in the face of international opinion. Many respected Israeli and Palestinian voices are saying that the two state solution is dying if not dead. Annexation would seal the deal as it would make a contiguous Palestinian state impossible.

Protest/Solidarity Tent
Om Kamel Family Evicted from Home in Sheikh Jarrah
Photo Credit: Dawn

But you don’t have to live in Area C to receive house demolition or eviction orders. Homes in Area B can also be declared to be in a “military sensitive area.” Palestinians in East Jerusalem can be evicted from their homes by Jewish settlers who allege that a particular house was owned by a Jewish family prior to 1948. Palestinians in the Sheikh Jarrah and Silwan neighborhoods of East Jerusalem are regularly evicted onto the streets only to see settlers pull up with their moving vans and take over their homes. And yet Palestinians are forbidden to return to the homes from which they were driven or fled in 1948, even though they still hold both the deeds and the keys.

Israel has managed to use portions of old Ottoman and British land laws to come up with a very complicated system which declares land to be property of the state if the owner was absent in 1948. This has created a bizarre category of Palestinians known as “present absentees” ~ they were absent but they are present! Further, if land is not cultivated for a period of 3 years, it is appropriated by the state and given to settlers. Yet the Separation Wall prevents many Palestinian farmers from accessing their land, and they are often refused permits. Thus Israel denies them access and then applies an antique law to steal their land.

Graffiti on Separation Wall ~ Bethlehem
Photo Credit: Dawn

These inhumane, immoral, illegal practices are all part of a plan ~ Israel wants as much land as possible with as few Palestinians as possible. And it doesn’t seem that they will stop until they succeed ~ Unless the international community can rally and mount an outcry against these flagrant violations of human rights ~ Unless the United States can change its course and stop providing Israel with a blank cheque to the tune of 3.3 billion dollars a year ~ Unless people of conscience wake up and speak out: “Enough is enough!” When will the international community stand up and hold Israel accountable to its responsibilities under international law?

Palestinian Child “Handala”
Artist Naji Al-Ali (http://www.handala.org/)
He Will Turn Around When the Occupation Ends
Al Walaja Village ~ Photo Credit: Dawn

The recent findings of the UN Human Rights Council’s six-month investigation into the effect of Jewish settlements on Palestinian rights indicate that Israel has committed multiple violations of international law, possibly including war crimes (New York Times, February 1). One can hope that this is a step in the right direction. However, Israel has chosen to boycott the HRC meeting to review the panel’s findings. This is not surprising, but it is certainly part of the problem. How is it that Israel sees itself as being above criticism? Why is it that Israel continues to ignore international law and the Fourth Geneva Convention with impunity? Isn’t it time to move beyond the A, B, Cs of occupation and commit to a just peace for all who live in this land?

Home by Another Way ~ A Wise Choice

Roni ~ At Her Home Near the Gaza Strip
Photo Credit: Dawn

It’s always an option ~ always a choice ~ to decide to go home by another way. Since it is an unknown path, it may evoke fear. But could it not also be a doorway to new horizons, new understandings, new possibilities?

It is midterm orientation in mid-October. All 33 EAs, together with visiting family, make the bus trip to Netiv HaAsara, a small cooperative agricultural community near Sderot in Israel, an area which has often been the target of rockets from Gaza. Here we meet Roni, an amazing woman and a member of Other Voice, a grassroots group promoting non-violence and new sustainable options for all in the region.

Roni’s Home ~ Moshav Netiv HaAsara
Photo Credit: Dawn

Roni welcomes us to her home and tells her story of being relocated from the northern Sinai 30 years ago when it was returned to Egypt. With help from the Israeli government, 70 families made their home here in this fertile coastal area less than a kilometer from Gaza. The Palestinians of Gaza were their nearest neighbors with whom they formed relationships, both economic and personal. But that was then. Before the wall.

Behind the Wall ~ Gaza ~ View from near Roni’s Home
Photo Credit: Dawn

Today the people of Gaza are still their closest neighbors, but they are imprisoned behind the wall. One would assume that all communication is now broken ~ all relationships severed. But Other Voice has chosen another path. They have found ways to keep the lines of communication open between residents of the Sderot region and their neighbors in the Gaza strip. They are devising creative avenues to “hear, see, and meet each other.” And they are outspoken. During the November assault on Gaza, Other Voice issued an open letter to the Israeli government and Hamas, condemning the violence. “Militarism and aggression have led to a dead end!” ~ They want more for their children than endless war. They want better lives for their neighbors than living in an open air prison. ~ They are not numerous, but they are strong and brave and visionary.

Rami and Moira ~ Parents’ Circle ~ Jerusalem
Photo Credit: Public Domain

The Parents Circle – Families Forum is another inspiring group of wise visionaries who have chosen another way. They always come in pairs ~ a Jew and a Palestinian ~ to tell their stories of heartbreak and grief. Rami relates how his beloved 13-year-old daughter was killed by a suicide bomber. Moira relates how her beloved husband was gunned down by Israeli police following a car accident. These amazing individuals and many like them have experienced the unspeakable, and in their common grief they have chosen to engage and befriend the “other,” the one labeled “enemy.” In their joint pain they have found joint hope and forged new friendships. And so they go about their work of spreading this message ~ “We can’t keep killing each other’s children. We have to find another way” ~ They are committed to reconciliation as an alternative to hatred and revenge ~ one person at a time ~ They believe that through dialogue with the other, understanding and empathy can pave the way to peace.

Placing Mosaics on Netiv L’Shalom (Path to Peace)
Part of the Separation Barriers Erected between Gaza
and Roni’s Home in Netiv HaAsara
Photo Credit: Dawn

One looks at these shining examples of courage and deep intention, and one wonders why the country’s leaders cannot be as wise ~ In the stories of our tradition which give us this season of Epiphany, the “wise ones” were prompted to return home by another way ~ Will we be as wise? Will the upcoming elections in Israel result only in a determination to keep on walking down a dead end road, even though there are warning signs everywhere? ~ When the known way has reached a dead end, or is taking us nowhere, or has shown itself to be too dangerous to carry on, can we risk choosing the road less traveled, the “other way,” which just might lead us home?

Stories Still Waiting to Be Told

Graffiti ~ Separation Barrier ~ Bethlehem
Photo Credit: Dawn

As members of Group 45 packed our bags to leave our posts as Ecumenical Accompaniers (EAs) in Palestine and Israel, we were told by our Jerusalem staff that our job does not really end with the completion of our 3 months of service. We simply switch “hats” and become Ecumenical Advocates ~ still EAs …  It is true ~ Stories are swirling in my head and heart. They want a hearing. And I want to tell them ~ This means that I will keep writing ~ I hope that you will keep reading.

I look forward to continuing the “conversation” we have begun ~ here or perhaps in person. My first public presentation will be in Whitehorse (Yukon!) on January 18. If you are interested in providing an opportunity and venue to engage others in this ongoing work for justice and peace, please contact me by posting a comment on this blog.

Graffiti ~ Separation Barrier ~ Bethlehem
Photo Credit: Dawn

May this new year further the great turning ~ may it bring new beginnings, new opportunities, new openings, new ways to love and live together ~ Thank you for reading and responding, for caring and sharing, for your commitment to a just peace and to things that matter. Together we can make a difference.

The Longest Night ~ And Still We Wait

October’s Full Moon
Bethlehem ~ Separation Wall
Photo Credit: Dawn

It’s December 21 ~ the shortest day that ushers in the longest night of the year ~ and still we wait. According to one interpretation of the Mayan calendar, some were waiting for the world to end. But we woke, once again, to morning’s light ~ the gift of a new day we have never seen before.

Nonetheless, this talk of the end of the world has me pondering ~ Would it be such a bad thing if the world as we know it did end? We could certainly do with less violence, less greed, less hate, less corruption, less self-centeredness, less disregard for human rights, less abuse, less fear, less pain and suffering, less…  If December 21 could really signal the end of a tired, old, worn out, broken down, bankrupt era marked by all of these things ~ If December 21 could really usher in an new age of respect, faithfulness, honesty, peace, generosity, gratitude, love, and concern for all of creation and for the global community that we have become ~ This would be good news indeed ~ news worthy of the angels’ song!

Home Demolition ~ Haris Village ~ West Bank
Photo Credit: Dawn

In the context of Israel and Palestine, this would mean no more occupation: no more checkpoints and permit systems, no more home demolitions and evictions, no more settler violence and apartheid roads, no more second class citizens and denial of human rights, no more refugee camps and administrative detention, no more stones and teargas, no more rockets and bombs, no more war and bloodshed, no more us and them ~ All of the people in this ancient storied place would share this land and live together in peace, respecting the narrative of the other and valuing the differences that each brings to the whole. What a rich mosaic it could be!

Israeli Town Near Gaza ~ Mosaic Seeking to Transform
Separation Barrier into Netiv L’Shalom (Path to Peace)
Photo Credit: Nancy

And for us in North America, what would this great turning mean for us? What would die and what would come to birth? ~ We can sit by and say, “It is only a dream,” but John Lennon saw value in dreaming ~ Imagine all the people, living life in peace ~ Israel’s prophets too were dreamers. Surely the vision of Micah, one of Israel’s prophets 700 years before the common era, is a universal vision! ~ They shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore; but they shall all sit under their own vines and under their own fig trees, and no one shall make them afraid.

Bethlehem Team Lights ~ Handover Ceremony
Photo Credit: Dawn

How might we be instrumental in moving from dream to reality? ~ Lennon’s words come to mind again: You may say I’m a dreamer, but I’m not the only one ~ Imagine what it would be like if all the dreamers joined together ~ Your light could join with my light and our lights join with their lights until there is no more me and you and us and them, but we all burn as one flame ~ And the world will live as one! ~ What is the risk? Transformation? The end of the world as we know it? ~ It just might be an idea whose time has come!