Inches to Metric: Holiday of Miracles |
My husband and I were fortunate to be in Israel in October during the release of the remaining living hostages. We timed our visit with the intention of standing with our Israeli brothers and sisters during the painful second anniversary of the October 7th massacre, as the war continued and the hostages remained in Gaza.
Shortly after our arrival we heard President Trump, Jared Kushner, and Steve Witkoff were coming to Israel to broker a deal; release the hostages, end the war. We watched from our TV in Jerusalem in disbelief as Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff spoke from Hostage Square in Tel Aviv. They said freeing the remaining hostages was their personal mission. I sensed it and wept.
We decided to go to hostage square the following evening, choosing not to stand amongst the swarms of people on that historic night. We took the train to Tel Aviv. It is efficient, clean and fast. Before descending three incredibly steep escalators required to reach the train platform, I paused. I thought of the hostages shackled in the Gaza tunnels. None of hostages had the ability to descend smoothly on an escalator into the network of tunnels, rather each one had to climb at 90 degree angles in cement tubes on simple metal rungs. Photo credit Beth Kopin
We walked from the train station to hostage square. Many from the train walked with us. This was our third visit. On past trips the atmosphere seemed animated. People spoke freely of loved ones, selling merch and raising much needed funds for those desperately in need. This time it was somber. The feeling in the air was palpable. It........