Page 25 - Issue 24

that thrown out casually at a family wedding; here,
it's jarring but not particularly shocking.

I hope we can continue to enjoy the unique miracle of
our survival. Both my secular Israeli friends who
were born here and my Jewish friends abroad
sometimes struggle to relate to this miracle, to find
joy and pride in what has happened here in spite of
our many flaws and shortcomings.

And while I hope more will recognize the power of
the miracle we've built with our own hands, I also
hope that we as a country will not be content. As my
friend Barak Sella wrote, we are much better at
surviving than at thriving. If anything good comes out
of Covid-19, I hope it's that we rediscover our
empathy. We have to take better care of Holocaust
survivors, of children in poverty and of those living
with post trauma. We have to do better for Arab
Israelis and for women, who are both facing waves of
violence. We have to relearn how to speak with those
who think differently than us.

We have to seek peace with our neighbors. We have
to fight terror but we also have to dream of living
without it. The Palestinians have yet to decide
whether it is Israel's occupation or Israel's existence
that they oppose; we Israelis have yet to decide
whether we think Palestinians deserve the same
basic rights that we enjoy. We have to offer them our
hand in peace, whether they accept it or not. We have
to want something better, for us and for them.
We have to confront our many challenges with
commitment, with courage, with bigger hearts and
bolder dreams. יהי ול.