For the past five years, it was impossible to spend any period of time in Israel without encountering Gilad's presence. He became this national symbol, a mythic creature whose image was emblazoned on countless posters, banners, and pamphlets. His story, his image, and his plight were forced into the minds and memories of native Israelis and tourists alike. The child of Israel, taken from his country while serving it honorably, whose parents and friends wanted him back where he belonged, dead or alive.
As an HUC student living in the center of Jerusalem, Gilad greeted me every day. The path from my favorite coffee shop to campus included a walk by the Prime Minister's compound. As most of the world is aware, for several years Gilad's family lived in a tent adjacent to the compound, a constant reminder to Ohlmert, then Netanyahu, that Gilad was still missing. I often walked by that tent with a feeling of head-shaking bewilderment. He's never going to come home, folks. I thought to myself. Your efforts are, sadly, in vain.
How mistaken was I.
Not only did Gilad return home this week, but he came back alive, and in one piece. Gaunt, frail, and in dire need of sunlight, but alive. He freaking walked out of "enemy" territory, crossed the border, embraced his father, boarded a helicopter, and flew home to be with his family. Forever. Alive.
The fact that he did not return to Israel in a coffin represents a tremendous deal of hope and promise. Why? Because Hamas could have said, screw it. We don't care if he goes back alive or dead. We can do whatever we want with him. We hate Israel, and we hate their soldiers even more. Israel would have accepted Gilad's body dead or alive, and exchanged it for the same 1,000+ prisoners they bartered him for.
That Hamas was willing to work with Israel - using Egypt as a buffer - to release perhaps the most prized possession they have demonstrates in some small way that peace, or at least a pathway to it, is possible. It demonstrates that there is some way to communicate with "the other."
After looking at images like these, it also reminds us that each of us essentially strives for the same raw human needs. To love and be loved. To have families who care about us. To be reunited with mothers and fathers and daughters and sons.
I do not condone or excuse the heinous acts of those who were released from Israeli prisons in exchange for Gilad. The high price of one life is excruciatingly difficult to comprehend. However, this is Israel. These are the stakes with which the country must gamble. This is how Israel must defend itself in order to survive.
Despite what seems like the most lopsided, misguided prisoner exchange in history, as this article by Bradley Burston reminds us, it was the right thing to do. Israel keeps its promise to its citizens and its soldiers.
Yesterday was an historic and meaningful moment in Israel's history. On a very real, raw, personal level, a mother and father were reunited with their beloved son. A twenty-five year old man returned to his native land, to friends and family, and presumably joined Facebook. (According to my Israeli Facebook friend)
On a national level, Gilad's return encompassed many different messages and emotions. On the one hand, the native son returned to his homeland; the mythic creature reunited with his origins. On the other, his return saw the release of over 1,000 perpetrators of terror; people who have played active roles in the deaths of countless victims of violence. It was certainly a moment of bittersweet redemption for those who wanted Gilad back. And it was certainly a moment of tremendous sadness and frustration for all those who lost loved ones.
On an international level, Gilad's return is a reminder of how complicated and tenuous the relationships between Middle East neighbors actually are. It shows the entire world that Israel, for all its faults and flaws, is committed to sanctity of life, even at such a high price.
To many, Gilad Shalit's return home is hard to comprehend. His release is baffling, even offensive. And yet - I don't see it that way. I see it as a tremendous opportunity for a country that I love deeply but struggle with daily. I see it as an emblem of hope and promise for an area of the world so marred by violence and terrorism.
Gilad's return home is complicated - but such is life in Israel. There is no day and no moment without complication, without argument, without wrestling, and those who truly love Israel and have engaged with it whole-heartedly know this all too well.
Kol yisrael areivim zeh ba zeh - all Israel is responsible for one another. These words carry us through our liturgy, our texts, and our holidays, but particularly through relationships with fellow Jews all over the world. We are united as one, in celebration of Gilad and in looking ahead toward our communal future.
L'chayim, to life.
Jaclyn
