Over the last several days, I've been trying to wrap my head around the events that transpired last week in Israel, let alone the past 330+ days. More specifically… I am still grappling with comprehending what I am feeling since these emotions are unlike any I have ever had, let alone felt them for this long. I believe part of it is subconsciously feeling helpless, but more a pain and a deep sense of loss.

 

I hope that I discover that while I am overwhelmed by all of it, I have not become numb to it (although, at times, it sometimes feels as though I have). However, as every day has gone on since October 7, and reports continue to pour out over the death and destruction that was instigated by Hamas' attack, I keep coming back to that feeling of loss and deep sadness.

 

I hope it's not a numb feeling because I never want to feel a lack of empathy, grief, frustration, loss, and a whole litany of other emotions because what we have witnessed and experienced goes against everything we have been taught that humanity stands for.

 

Over the last several days, we have watched hundreds of thousands of Israelis protesting in the streets all across Israel, in cities like Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, Caesarea, and others. They are hurting, they are suffering, and they are doing everything they can to bring an end to all of this, and sadly, it is still not enough to end the nightmare they are living.

 

Following the reports of how Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Eden Yerushalmi, Ori Danino, Alex Lubnov, Carmel Gat, and Almog Sarusi were murdered because it appears that the terrorists who were holding them were afraid that the IDF soldiers would discover them, a friend of mine posted that they felt like they had lost a family member. I think it encapsulates for so many; this simple comment is what many of us have been feeling as well.

 

Yesterday, surrounded by family, friends, and what must have felt like the entire country, two parents did something that no one should ever have to do, and yet it has happened time and again—offer a eulogy for their child. The poise, fortitude, strength, sadness, and hope were powerful and palpable. (If you did not get a chance to see or hear it, you can view it by clicking here.)

 

As I listened to the heartbreak and sorrow emanating from their lips, my thoughts turned to a famous quote by Gold Meir, who famously said, "We can forgive the Arabs for killing our children," she said. "But we can never forgive them for forcing us to kill their children."

 

The Talmud teaches us that if one person saves another life, they save the entire world; based on this, the inverse is also true. Hundreds and thousands of lives, or more specifically worlds, have been forever changed since October 7. As the days, weeks, and months continue to play out with an uncertainty of what will finally come to be in Israel's war to defeat Hamas, it is imperative that each one of us continues to exhibit and feel empathy and compassion for this and not forget or become numb to it.