HOW LONG?
It is difficult to truly understand the soul of a people that has a unique history in the book of Humanity: the Jews. Unlike any other people in the world, the Hebrews have three specific experiences that have molded their mind and burden their soul: first, a wandering - homeless - spread all over; then a genocide that claimed 6 millions of them and left the survivors again wandering, hurt and penniless; and the third, an endless war in their post II World War created home: Israel. It is a lineal history of constant pain for those who chose to return to the ancient land of their fathers: a nation created by the victors of the war and against the will of the then landowners. Since then, Israel people live between the dream and pride of their own cherish land, and a permanent, violent, bloody war. A never-ending nightmare.
As hostility in their surroundings was present from the beginning, prevention, fear and need of defense became the heart of Israel´s growing. Perhaps because the state was born in the aftermath of a tragic war, their approach to living in a region that delivered weak welcomes contained all the principles of war times. Service in the army became mandatory for youth - both, boys and girls -, budgets privileged weapons technology, and "defense" as a discipline became their expertise. The region got tangled in a net of confrontations held by strings of varied tensions, from difficult diplomacy to open terrorism, now for more that half a century. Seeing it as a whole, the fact - regardless of the analysis from the many parts involved - is that every generation of Israeli as well as Palestine’s, grow into the mold of war and, therefore, reproduce it as the main effort to be handled as a generation. A life filled with fear, destruction and delay in growing.
History has plenty of examples of communities obliged to settle among people of different definitions. The successful ones were those able to look and overlook; to ask and give respect; to see the lines that could not be crossed and the fields where something could be shared. There, frontiers became not physical walls or political demarcations but human understanding and respect for the ways of others. The result for them was peace. But not political, complicated, negotiable peace, but simple, real, life peace with a simple meaning: youth learning not to fire a gun but to use a lab; families creating strong households to build brilliant futures and not strong walls to stand bombs; people producing budgets to grow the land not to buy and produce guns. An optimistic life instead of and always-present dread every time they open their eyes. Life instead of death. The Jews, all over the world, need to cleanse their heart, part from the war mold, and put an end to their endless pain. Despite the many and complicated variables around this half century war, may new generations of Israel and Palestine people - fresh hearts - develop an approach that stands on a flat practical fact: neighbors are there and will not go away. The choice: co-existence or endless war. All parents do have bright dreams for their children. Perhaps it is time for Israel and Palestine parents to begin making dreams come true for them. There is a documentary about Yoni, a wonderful Jew boy, a courageous man who stood in the first line of fire and died there young although his heart - all his writings - longed for all that is good and beautiful in life. How many more? For how long? Israel and Palestine?/ Silvia Davila MM, April 29, 2014
