Shalom from Israel,
This summer was very exciting for me as I
got to participate in a little bit of Olive Tree here in Israel, and
then I was able to act as an ambassador for Olive Tree while teaching
yoga in a Summer camp in the United States.
There is one lingering thought I have as I feel the
ripple effects of Olive Tree Yoga Foundation's mission: there is a lot
more to do. If I had a shekel (worth a quarter) for the amount of time I
said (not even thought) how amazing it would be to give up my full-time
work and be able to devote my time to Olive Tree I would have plenty of
money to keep Ruthie and all her dreams coming to the Middle East.
Look, it is not just that it would be amazing to actually work for
the Olive Tree Yoga Foundation, it would be very important to be on the
ground here creating creative changes, bringing a simple idea to
fruition with the fruits benefiting all types of people. This work
would be meaningful and productive, because as you know from Ruthie and
from others who have had the good fortune to do work here, it takes focused energy to make a big change here. People here
want change, people want to look at their insecure living situation
differently. It is a delicate situation, it is a sensitive situation.
I know and trust that people want peace, and the only way to get peace
is to make changes. Not drastic changes, but small shifts in mindsets.
I am asked daily to do that, and I know how challenging it is.
We have to do everything we can to contribute to peaceful
living, whether that be dialogue or yoga classes. When I write these
words, I imagine many people thinking: that is ridiculously far-fetched, but for me it is the easiest link to make. It makes perfect
sense, it is not complicated, it is not expensive and it works. It
connects people one to another, and it creates an environment of trust
and good feelings. How better to start making real change in this
world?
I can write forever on this idea, but I want to leave you with one
last thought. Rosh Hashana is coming for the Jewish people, and Yom Kippur
follows. The sound of the shofar, the blasting of the rams horn, is a wake-up call a
month before Rosh Hashana and then all the way through Yom Kippur, the
day of Judgement, for the Jewish people. The simple, uncomplicated, basic sound of the shofar acts as a wake-up call to us. In my
opinion there is no stronger or more meaningful commitment to be woken
up to peaceful living, peaceful thinking, peaceful acts of
kindness. I know Olive Tree is an answer, the question is finding the
resources to make Olive Tree a bigger presence in the Middle
East to start waking up more people.
