candace

Despite being Shabbat, it was hardly a day of rest. We headed to the Fuchsberg Center for shacharit services. Interestingly, part of the rabbi's interpretation of today's parsha, Terumah, related to bearing witness and creating intimacy (in the Temple). 
It occurs to me that those concepts dovetail perfectly with many of the themes of this trip. 
As we begin to process what we've seen and heard this week, it is clear, from listening to my colleagues that the intimate conversations we had with soldiers, survivors and family members were incredibly poignant and meaningful.

We returned to the hotel for a sumptuous ( think of the most deluxe and most crowded kiddush you've ever seen) lunch. We were joined by Rabbi Loren Sykes, who helped frame some of our raw emotions and reactions to our experiences this week. He spoke about some of the parallels being used in talking about October 7 (including holocaust and pogrom) and shared his views about why they don't apply. 
After a short rest, we reconvened for a walking tour of the area near the hotel with our guide. 
On our return, we were joined by Yitzhak Sokoloff, the founder and principal of Keshet Tours. He was called up for reserve duty- at the age of 69- recently. He spoke about some of the political repercussions of the war and the challenges of the double-standards others apply to Israel. We talked about the deeply polarized Israel before October 7, and how unified it has become since then. Of course, it begs the question: where do we go from here?
In closing, he spoke of the loneliness being experienced by Israel and the consequences of waning support on the world stage. He shared his sense that's why everyone has been so grateful for our visit. Israelis are feeling isolated and alone, on top of everything else they're dealing with.
Another resounding theme of the week is that there are so many more questions than answers. 
Shavua tov and more to come tomorrow.