The First Step in Imagining a Better Future
or - I need to learn more about what is going on
On the way to school, my kids (especially my oldest) often request to listen to a podcast called KidNuz. The short podcast covers pop-culture topics like — rubiks cube world records, Eras tour updates, and sports (and, of course, the intersection of the two.)
It also discusses major news stories — weather disasters, upcoming elections and most recently, the Israel-Hamas War.
The podcast excels at being kid-appropriate and not shying away from the reality of what is happening in our world. During a recent update on the war in the Middle East, I overheard my son say (mostly to himself): I need to learn more about what is going on, and my eyes immediately filled with tears. His words brought awareness to my own need to engage as well.
I’d been stuck in the horror and destruction — the awfulness of it all, but hadn’t engaged past lighting a candle or holding a quiet moment for those suffering. I had read some headlines and a few short NPR articles, but not much more.
If you, like me, are beginning to listen and learn a little later than the rest of the world, you might find some of these resources helpful:
Rabbi Danya Ruttenberg has written two powerful essays that have impacted me quite a bit in the last week— A Lot of Things Are True and A Peacemaking Lens and I highly recommend reading both and taking the time to follow the links and resources provided.
Ruttenberg: It’s perhaps not a coincidence that one of the most widely respected groups fostering dialogue between Israelis and Palestinians is the Parents’ Circle Families Forum—formerly the Bereaved Parents’ Circle. The organization is comprised of Israelis and Palestinians who have lost a family member in the ongoing violence. Though most of their work is focused on the slow, necessary work of talking, listening, and building relationships and trust, in 2011, the Parents’ Circle created the Blood Relations Project, which involved Israelis and Palestinians donating to a mutual blood bank, with the slogan, “Could you hurt someone who has your blood running through their veins?”
This video from their project is worth your time.
I Hope Someone Somewhere Is Being Kind to My Boy from The New York Times
The Progressives Who Flunked the Hamas Test fromThe Atlantic
How to talk with your kids about the violence in Israel and Gaza from NPR — As pessimistic as you may feel about the state of the world… be sure to allow your child the freedom to imagine (and work toward) a better future.
My hope in sharing these is not to sway you to think a certain way (I don’t understand enough to have much of an opinion anyway) but to encourage you to engage with the complexities of our world. The line from the NPR article can be a hopeful prayer during times like this — may you allow your[self] the freedom to imagine (and work toward) a better future.
Alongside you,
Holly