Bravery: Is it brave to move to where you feel at home?

This blog post was written by Jamie Kolb, a Yahel Social Change Fellow living and working in Rishon LeZion

Learn More About The Fellowship

I never understood bravery. I understand the idea, concept and the definition but I cannot recall a time in my life that I ever felt brave, or did something brave that was noteworthy. The decision to come to Israel for nine months was not even a question and when the war started, I felt I could not have come sooner to help. Israel did not feel so much as a choice but a calling and felt like a sort of homecoming. Coming to Israel just felt like the right thing to do. 

Before arriving in Israel  

Even before landing in Israel in the middle of a war, friends, family and coworkers all expressed how brave I was to go to Israel to volunteer at a time like this. Truthfully, I felt it was more of a timid move. I was scared to be in Canada with the escalating rise of violence and anti-semitism towards my community and what felt like an indifference from the government and police. Even my Canadian Jewish friends shared my feelings and fears in Canada and half joked that if things continued to worsen in Canada they would join me in Israel. As much as I felt that it was a calling and something that I had to do, I felt that it was easier to be Jewish in Israel during the war. 

I moved around a lot as a teenager and a young adult, not staying in the same neighborhood for more than a few years. It was like a new adventure every time and an opportunity to intimately get to know a new community within the city that I spent my life. The thought of moving to a new country, at least for a temporary time, had always been a dream. I always wanted to do a semester abroad during my degree but it never worked out with my schedule. Then after a few years of work experience, I looked into options to work abroad to enhance my career, however, at every point for different factors it never quite worked out. Since going on Taglit in 2022,  I realized that Israel is where I wanted to live. Sure, moving to a different country where you do not speak the language and are not fully aware of the culture and diversity can be intimidating or scary. I felt really excited, a little nervous, but the fact that my life back home was on pause until I came back, and that the Yahel program was almost like doing a two semester practicum abroad eased the fear. 

Since being in Israel   

From the moment I arrived in Israel, I have felt nothing but warmth from everybody I met. Friends and their families took me in as their own and even referred to themselves as my ‘Israeli mother’ while I was away from my own family. The Yahel staff made us feel welcome and continue to this day to express how grateful they are for us being here, especially at such a difficult time. As much as Israel feels different this time around, I did not feel any more brave coming this time than any of the other times. In fact, I still felt the weight off my shoulder and the relief of being in Israel. It felt safe. 

When we (Yahel Fellows) started meeting people in the community and potential volunteer opportunities, without fail they would say “wow, it’s so brave of you to leave your lives and come to Israel during a war” and would always follow with the question “why?” and you could see how emotionally moved they were. I always felt uncomfortable with people referring to me as brave. For once in my life, I felt safe and comfortable wearing my Magen David out in public, visible for everybody to see. I felt that I could channel my anger and sadness into something positive. I did not feel I was in danger at all, in fact Ramat Eliyahu feels safer than anywhere I have ever lived, especially as a single female walking home at night. 

As I learned more about the community of Ethiopians in Ramat Eliyahu, and the history of their Aliyah journeys, I cannot help but think about how brave they must have been to come to Israel. Their strength and the life threatening danger they faced with their children and families, and to make the decision to be rescued by a foreign government bringing them to live in Israel, took a strength and courage I only wish I could embody. Recognizing that everybody’s life situation looks different, and therefore courage and bravery looks different, I could not help but think that my action of being in Israel (something I planned for before the war started) was a choice given my privilege. Upon reflection, when hearing different stories, none of them described themselves as brave, just something they had to do given the situation. 

Final Thoughts

Perhaps bravery is not something that you identify yourself as, a quality or action that you have or do. Maybe bravery is how others view you. Maybe I will never understand how some people feel that going to Israel during a war is brave, and that is okay. What is important is the positive impact I can make in the community that has welcomed me as their own. 

If I had to describe how I have  demonstrated bravery being in Israel, I would say I was brave for coming with an open heart and an open mind. What was brave was not my actions of coming during a war, but for me to open and be the most vulnerable I have ever been with strangers from all over the world. 

Learn More About The Fellowship