Yesterday I was in Gush Katif at an antidisengagement demonstration. (truly, the longer I stay in Israel the bigger words I start using in English) I went with a few friends. One my friends called her mother as we were leaving Jerusalem to tell her we were on our way to the rally. Her mother said "don't get arrested or beaten up". Advice to live by. I talked to some of the soldiors at the site. They seemed friendly enough. A police officer yelled at me though, but that was because I standing in the middle of the street and a car wanted to go through.
People ask me all the time why I go to the rallies. What do I think will happen. Will Sharon show up to one and say, "oh, I didn't realize all of you were against the disengagement. I'm sorry, I'll call the Knesset now and see if they can tear up the paper they're signing". No, I don't think that. I don't live in a complete fantasy world. If the disengagement does not take place, it'll be nothing short of a miracle, and I don't think Sharon will be used in that at all... If there hadn't been all these rallies, there wouldn't have been a team of lawyers who decided to stand up and fight this legally. There wouldn't have been soldiers asking themselves what they really are fighting for, and what they really believe in. There wouldn't be kids seeing everyday how a people stand together for each other. There wouldn't be Knesset members standing up and trying to block the bills from passing. There wouldn't be discussions sparked at every social gathering about the right of Israel to exist, why we all moved here, what we think is worth fighting for. So, do the rallies make a difference. YES.
Ok, so why would I go to Chevron? Gush Katif? Why do I continuously travel to the Gush (Etzion)? Because I can. I was at a party the other day where someone was saying that the residents of Gush Katif don't deserve to be guarded because they don't serve in the army. I asked her how many people who live in Gush Katif she knows. She answered that two Hesder Gush Katif guys came to her apartment to talk to her. I responded with the fact that they were Hesder by definition means they serve in the army. The communities that are out there are mainly made up of people who serve in the army. And unlike her, who has never served, lives in Jerusalem on Emek Refaim, and smokes up everyday, the residents of Gush Katif, who mostly serve in the army, by mere definition of where they live are protecting our borders by simply living.
I witnessed the greatest story when I spent Shabbat in Chevron. The family that I was staying at has a 2.5 year old son. We decided to take a walk on Saturday afternoon. The mother and son came with us for our walk. She told him he did not have to sit in his stroller on our walk. So, the two and a half year old was walking down the street singing a song. It took us a minute or two to truly hear and understand what he was singing. In a two 1/2 year olds little sing song voice he was repeating over and over again "This is very dangerous". I turned to the mother in surprise to say why would he be saying that! I was thinking that this 2 and a half year old kid feels that he's growing up in a war zone. What a horrible way to grow up. Maybe I've been wrong this whole time. This cute little 2 and a 1/2 kid doesn't deserve to grow up with danger every time he walks down the street. His mother's answer, "he's right, we never let him walk in the street without holding someone's hand, I don't know what I was thinking."
So why do I go to Gush Katif, Chevron & Gush Etzion? For the same reason I go to Ra'anana, Beit Shemesh, Maalot and Ofakim. Because I can. Because there are families raising their kids to not run in the streets, say "Shabbat Shalom" to the soldiers, play nicely with their friends, and believe that they have the ability to do anything they want.
