Travelling back to the states is so surreal. Leaving somewhere that you don’t feel ready to leave is a hard thing to do. This morning I got a cab at 3:15am to take me to the Tel Aviv Ben Gurion airport. It was about a 30 minute drive, with Celion Dion to keep us company. He drove the nicest cab I have ever been in, and also played the most love filled music I have ever heard in a cab. I watched the land pass me by, or the land watched me pass by rather, and I got a pit in my stomach. I will be back, Inshallah…
My experience at the Tel Aviv airport was in fact, perfect. At the time, I was angry, upset, and sad. I was put through humiliating security checks, and have never felt that helpless before. However, now that I am in the sky flying to Atlanta, thinking back, it was the perfect experience to leave Israel with. It left me with a feeling of indignation, with a reason to come back. The propaganda filled walls, and the unjustifiable searches filled my head with a new attitude, and my heart on fire. This, to me, is the reality that exists, and with that, I should experience and appreciateit.
The flight to Athens was full of very religious people. Most did not speak, but the man who sat next to me kept eye balling my book, “The Great War for Civilisation” by Robert Fisk. He was dressed in a long black robe with a head cover that had little gold crosses on it, and a long gold priestly looking necklace. He spoke very little English, I recognized him from my flight 2 weeks earlier from Athens to Tel Aviv. At the end of the flight, he turned to me, smiled genuinely, and told me to enjoy my stay, wherever I end up.
I don’t think I will ever be so happy to be in the Athens airport. It was familiar to me; I knew what I needed to do, and where I needed to go. I didn’t get searched, and I only got questioned once, and this was only because I was coming from Israel. The wifi limit still annoys me, however, but I will not be a downer about it since I did get to chat with some friends for 45 minutes while waiting to board my next flight.
Language is a funny to me. There are so many different tongues expressing the same emotions and thoughts. Over the last 9 hours I have been surrounded by many languages that are not my own. I have not had a travelling companion to speak with, and even the native English speakers that I have come across steer clear of me in fear that I do not speak English myself. But even when travelling in and through foreign countries, you will still come across that communal human language; body language. The lady sitting next to me for instance does not speak a lick of English, and I know about 4 Greek words. However, we are still able to communicate, almost intuitively with our body language. She speaks Greek, I speak English, and we almost know what each other are trying to say. The power of empathy towards the different really hit me when we were taking off and she started to cross her chest in a catholic religious manner. This told me, without any words at all, that she was praying for a safe landing, for all of us. I do wish, however, that we were able to communicate more effectively. I helped her fill out her customs declaration, in which the language barriers posed some problems.
10,000 meters high, I find this to be a good time to explain my love for my new besties. Who would have guessed that we all would have bonded so much in such a short time period- I mean I honestly did not expect that. In 10 days, we spend about 17 hours a day together, Caitlin and I spent about 23 hours a day together, and Ahmed spent every night with us. We all became best friends; shared secrets and stories about ourselves, and really watched each other grow. We experienced some intensity together, and spent the nights unwinding and reflecting. The last night, in Neve Shalom was so nice. I was leaving earlier than the rest of the group; my cab came at 3:15 am. The besties stayed up all night with me and we just talked and played silly games. I honestly, feel so lucky to have grown so close to strangers like that.
Caitlin, she stands up for what she feels is right. I haven’t met many people as strong willed as her. She took care of me, stood up for me, and still gave me lots of shit. Shannon, she has that musical soul. She genuinely cares about people living together harmoniously, and I know she will never end up behind a desk. Rachael's smile is contagious. Her passion to grow and travel will take her far. Noura, mama teddy bear. Such a sweet heart and a smart brain she possesses. Disciplined, but still knows how to laugh. Elizabeth, such a genuinely honest person, I admire her bursting truth with every emotion she admits. Anthony, a truly caring person who loves a Cuban cigar and a glass of red wine- he is so quick witted for growing up in such a small town! Meatball aka J, I love me some meatball! J, possesses this unique way of analyzing situations, and is probably one of the funniest people I know. Sarah, so quiet and nice, but sooooo damnnnn smarrrrrrt, girl, you amaze me. And Ahmed- cannot forget about our new Palestinian pal- you provided us with a whole new perspective, stuck up for us at the market store and your stories are ridiculous.
Dr. H, you provided us with the tools to create an opinion, never forcing your own on us. Thank you for setting up meetings with such interesting people, and taking our feedback about the trip seriously.
My friends back home, I know I have expressed this many times before, but none of this would have happened without you guys. Sincerely from the bottom of my heart, thank you and I love you. Hat night tomorrow night, I cannot wait to see you guys! Jet lag can kiss my beep!
I am actually excited to start school, even though it is going to be crazy this quarter. This trip fueled me with the motivation to finish up college and go into the world to do great things. Discipline and happiness are this summer’s theme; I plan on accomplishing a lot so that I am that much closer to what makes me happy- helping people by spreading the truth. The best weapon against the world’s evils is knowledge, and the ability to really think appropriately. If peace was easy, it wouldn’t be such a common word known in all languages.
