i/p is nice in february
Jacob Rosenblum
Just a quick update to share some breaking news.
I'm not going to Israel/Palestine for another six months. My decision
mostly involved conversations with my family; I'd like to be in
Israel/Palestine at the same time as my mother, so I'm banking on her
coming when it's a bit calmer. And really, the weather's better in
February.
"Being true" (to myself) is a tricky balance for me here. I truly
believe that it is possible to go to Israel/Palestine and have a great
time of it, and that Jerusalem is a relatively safe place right now.
Safer than places that people wouldn't think to question my going to--
Rio de Janeiro, for example. In this way it feels like a sell-out for
my to accept my parents high level of concern as valid and change my
plans.
I also don't like the idea that it's "a bad time to go right now" and
that I should go when things are a little more calm. If I have a
friend who's having a bad day, I don't say "come back and talk to me
when you're feeling better. I really don't want to hear about your
struggles." This is so true of both Israel and Palestine- they could
use some friends about now. Right now, Israel is the friend who
everyone stares at when they walk into the room. Palestine is sitting
in the corner.
Because my finances are tight, I tried responding to this situation by
allowing them to "buy me off"- if I wait six months, then *they* cover
my trip (rather than having Aish Hatorah paying for a big chunk of
it). For $2000, I won't go for six months.
This didn't work as well as I'd hoped. My family was understandably
perturbed about being bribed; my mother said that "if I went, and I
got killed, then she would never be able to forgive herself" for not
buying me off. I canceled the deal, realizing that this was not a
financial agreement that my family would be able to participate in
mindfully, willingly- that the point was not for me to compel my
mother to give me cash.
At the end, my mother said she'll cover my flight if she ends up going
during the same period of time. So I decided to give in, to suspend my
plans, to forget about israel/palestine for another six months. I
don't feel great about it as I sit here typing, but I feel okay about
it. I really didn't see an elegant solution.
I'm looking forward to what I might be doing in the next month, month
and a half, while I don't have hostel responsibilities. I'm probably
going back to the east coast again tomorrow. I might work on a medical
study for my father in Portland that'll take about a month.
B'ezrat falafel, things will start 'calming down' soon in the region.
The weather's better in February, anyways. I'm really hoping that I
can find some friends who want to be in Israel/Palestine at the same
time as me, that would make my trip so much greater. So if you want to
coordinate with me when I go, I'd love to travel with you!
Shalom wa salaam,
Jacob