Your Truth
It is always hard to know, when there are two sides, which is the truth and which is not—especially if you are taught only one side for most of your life. This has been my situation regarding many aspects of daily world activities, especially the situation in Israel and Palestine. I never thought to question what I had been taught because the people teaching it to me have been my loved ones, my advisors, and my friends. Until finally, faith brought me to study conflict transformation for my Masters, and I learned the right questions to ask. What is the situation? Why is it happening? Who is benefiting from it and how?
Soon after starting my search on Palestine’s side of the story, I came across the website of Holy Land Trust. I saw them as the perfect opportunity to witness the lives of Palestinians and find my own truth. Today, only a week has passed, and I am at home here. Every day is an adventure through knowledge and experiences. Every day I am greeted with warm hugs and kisses from a Muslim family whom, from the beginning, I made aware of my Jewish heritage. In return, the Palestinian community is making me aware of their urgent want and need for peace and togetherness with ALL the people living in Israel and Palestine.
It is so touching to visit places like the Freedom Theatre in Jenin and see the youth of a community rise up to bring awareness to their issues: a place where their voices are not only heard, but they are taught how to put things it into action. Children have a chance to be children, yet most in these communities are forced to grow up so fast. One short film that was made, called Small Father, was about a boy taking care of his whole family at thirteen. It is so easy to hear it on TV, or read it in a book, but when it’s in front of you, it becomes real. Then you understand the lives of these people, you understand that for their survival peace is necessary, and it is possible.
The issue now is: how do we convince a government that values money and power over life? How do we convince the majority of people living in Israel that Palestinians can live in peace among them, not against them? What are the steps necessary to open people to see the other side next to their own? My first step was to come here, and I welcome everyone else who reads this to do the same. Your truth is waiting.
Submitted by: GR
