People praying at the Western Wall in Jerusalem. Photo taken by me

It is Sunday morning as I write this, a time I usually reserve for coffee, exercise, and time with family — but I feel compelled to share the stories of people I know who are personally impacted by the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

People I have interviewed, family members, and my personal story, too.

I hope that by sharing a couple of these stories, we can better humanize the terrible events that broke out over the weekend.

The What’s App War

I lightheartedly told Brendan to get over it, not realizing how close he was to a dangerous situation.

Brendan, one of my oldest and closest friends, was in Jerusalem this week on a work trip. Well, an alleged work trip — judging by his messages to us back home, it seems it was all play and no work.

He sent us a message saying he had heard loud explosions and what looked like rockets overhead. Brendan is prone to exaggeration, so we passed it off as another tale.

A few hours later, he was at Tel Aviv airport trying to get the first plane back home. Once again, war had broken out in the region, and it was serious.

As news spread worldwide over the Hamas attack on Israel, my WhatsApp exploded with messages.

I have family on both sides of the conflict and friends with differing views. Both sides sent emotional messages, placing blame and wanting more deaths and revenge. I felt sickened reading them.

I am Jewish and want safety for the Jewish people, but I have also spent much time speaking to people involved in the issue to understand more. I think each side has done right and wrong.

Wanting people on the opposite side to die is not the answer.

West Side Story

A Palestinian and an Israeli meet at a summer camp. The first line of a joke? Synopsis of a rom-com?

It’s the true story of two people from very different backgrounds who historically have opposed each other…