We Were the Lucky Ones
3 min read
Until all of our brothers and sisters are brought home, we cannot rest. Join the March for Israel this Tues. Nov. 14, in Washington, DC and show the world our strength.
It has been over a month since the atrocious attack on our people, and I am tired. We are all tired.
Of course, we are not as tired as our brothers and sisters in Israel, who are literally fighting for their lives, but we are tired nonetheless fighting our own battle here. It is hard waking up every day to our new reality. The reality that the world is not as we thought it was and as we think it should be.
It’s hard walking out the door these days, wondering what challenge is waiting on the other side. It’s not easy sending our children out into the unknown, hoping that they will return home with the same innocence with which they left. It’s exhausting explaining and arguing and advocating and posting for understanding, empathy, and truth. It’s heartbreaking praying and pleading for the return of our brothers and sisters, begging to BRING THEM HOME, and yet, they are not home. And so, we are tired.
When I was younger and life seemed insurmountable at times, my mother would say something to me that has been a constant refrain throughout my life. “Just keep putting one foot in front of the other,” she would say. It was a simple phrase from a strong woman of very few words. But buried within her message was a much deeper one to never lay down in the face of adversity, no matter how hard life may be.
So what is a tired American Jew to do? Should we just take a break and go back to being quiet? Should we just pretend that life is as it was and as it should be? Should we stop arguing and advocating and praying and posting and pleading, and just assume that it will all work out in the end? Perhaps we can all just lay down for a while because we are all just so tired. Surely, we have done enough, right?
The truth is that while we have all given so much of ourselves, perhaps more than we ever imagined possible, we are not yet done. Until every one of our brothers and sisters are brought home to their families, we are not yet done. Until the threat to our homeland and our people is eliminated, we are not yet done. Until we are safe again to proudly wear our Stars of David and hang our mezuzahs on our homes, we are not yet done. Until we can send our children safely to school and out into the world, we are not yet done. And until the Jewish people can live without fear and hate, we are not yet done.
Though we may be tired, we are not yet done.
And so, I will continue to heed the words of my mother, and just keep putting one foot in front of the other until I can walk no more. We are all soldiers, fighting our own battles each and every day.
On Tuesday, November 14th, on the National Mall in Washington, DC, we will show the world our strength and resilience as we come together for The March For Israel rally in this fight of our lives, because together we will illuminate the darkness with our light.
From one quiet, tired American Jew to another, I ask you to keep putting one foot in front of the other and join this rally so that the world will hear our collective voice!
Great article
I think the massacre of October 7 th has taught me to never rest on my laurels. There will always be opposition. There will always be deniers.
I think the answer is supporting the Jewish education of many young and remote Jews. Also for Jewish community to maintain relations and connections with the non Jewish communities. Educate the masses on the atrocities of the past; conduct Jewish outreach in non Jewish communities. Together we can stamp out anti Semitism wherever we find it and create the world as it needs to be. This will be a lifelong effort; we are allowed to get tired but we must persevere. I am a non Jew but I am rallying with the Jewish community, unfortunately I cannot make it to DC tomorrow but my heart is with the Jewish Nation.
lots of us canadian jews coming to rally in washington tomm- great article
Let's put together - a teaching curriculum - that will be effective in dealing with - those uneducated with the truth - and deniers. Having at hand - access to documented proofs - of the horror of the Holocaust - as well as current terrorist activity. Why? - I recently saw a TV journalist confront a Pro-Palestinian demonstrator - and the journalist - hadn't anticipated the demonstrator calling what they were told - was fake Israeli lying propaganda. If the journalist had had things to show - like validated pictures of the horrific killings - also a known video of a Palestinian - who they said was killed by Israel - and fell off the burial stretcher - then by himself - got up - and got back on the stretcher. So - he could have said - it can be shown - who's doing the lying?
Maybe - a little food for thought - we should ask ourselves - and also reconsider - WHY - this has been - and is happening - again and again? We can ask ourselves - maybe it's because - we haven't truly been observing the Commandments - that G-D gave us - in His Written Torah - putting aside - ignoring that - He said He would punish us 7X7X7 - for failure to do what He told us?
Absolutely. Whenever Jews start assimilating in serious numbers, G-d helps and stops them from assimilating.
Excellent article. Precise /to the point. Thanks for sharing. Steven Finer
We have no choice but to keep going as we have since Abraham.
"Just keep putting one foot in front of the other and you'll be ok".That was my father obm.He was born circa 1939 and I was born 45 years later.There was something about that generation that this generation needs to learn...maybe resilience...or maybe just the knowledge that life ain't always a picnic and that's ok.Just keep moving.
I have met people who lived in China who drank tea made from tree bark, to fend off hunger. That was the China of 1973. There are skills involved in coping with famine. The Chinese have the feeling that they may not need to relearn those skills. Many American Jews had the feeling that maybe, just maybe, the struggles of our grandparents were not our struggles. There’s a mourning going on around us, and it’s not just a shiva for the the fallen. It’s a mourning for a loss of a sense of confidence. I think we might want to consider the authenticity of those feelings - and also the not wanting to relearn the survival habits of people who needed survival habits. 75 years of progress should not be summarily dismissed
What progress? How is today’s reaction to Israel and Jews different from 100 years ago?
Promoters of the rally compare it to the rally in support of Soviet Jews in 1987. 250,000 people participated. Here is the key difference. In 1987 there were no rallies against Soviet Jews. So, that rally was very effective. Now, we'll be competing against hundreds of pro-Palestinian rallies. We can't win such competition. Let's compete in a different way.
Use your money to send your children, grandchildren to Jewish schools or help other Jewish parents send their children. Donate to pro-Israel organizations. Vote for pro-Israel politicians. Visit Israel. Look for ways to ensure that your future children and grandchildren are Jewish and won't assimilate.
Yes, we can and will win! A very insightful and positive article. Thank you. Steven Finer
Re: Assimilation/intermarriage. It has already taken place in my family. Re: Feeling tired. Yes. I am tired all.the.time,