In the Line of Fire in Sderot
What is it like to live under threat of attack any moment? I went to see for myself.
Moved by the plight of residents of southern Israel as missile attacks escalated following the Gaza operation, I decided to take action. With the day off from work, I called two organizations in Sderot to offer my assistance.
I teach yoga in my community, and volunteered my services to shaken residents in hope that they could learn some relaxation techniques.
Both organizations quickly agreed that it would be helpful, but as I drove south, accompanied by my son and his two friends, both teenagers, they called to cancel.
The morale of Sderot residents was too low for new experiences, they feared. They hesitated to offer any new programs, and many people felt more comfortable in their own homes with the ongoing missile threat. However, “One Heart,” a community aid organization in Sderot told us there was plenty of cleaning and windows to board up if we wanted to volunteer.
So, together with my 16-year-old son Etan and the two 17-year-old girls, Sarena and Reut, I continued on the hour and fifteen minute drive from the center of the country to Sderot.
Lev Echad’s main office is in Jerusalem, and once every several days it sends a bus of volunteers from Jerusalem to Sderot. Today they were expecting fifty volunteers on the bus, and we planned to join them.
On the way down to Sderot we passed through several checkpoints and saw groups of Israeli soldiers with duffels boarding buses. The mood was somber — this was war. We noticed how quiet the roads were. Vehicles were coming up from the south, but few were going in our direction.
The two girls, Sarena and Reut, had been to Sderot before. As we entered the city they pointed out the bomb shelters that line the main road. I’m glad they did, because it reminded me that there was a new level of alertness I needed to have.
It was far from a ghost town — people were out walking, cars were driving — but as we drove into the center of town, we noticed that stores were closed. We were told to find the police station and to wait there for instructions. After several minutes of waiting, I decided to park the car so we could walk where we needed to go.
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Karen Zivan is a psychologist and yoga instructor who moved from Rochester, NY to Israel in July 2008. She blogs at Zivans in Israel.
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10 Comments
1. Tehillah:Karen, Thank you so much for sharing this experience with us. Time to make another donation to help out the people of Sderot (via the OU’s secure donation site https://secure2.convio.net/ou/site/Donation2?idb=1484751277&df_id=1500&1500.donation=form1 )
Dec 31, 2008 - 8:27 am 2. DoubleTapper:You’ve only got 15 seconds, that’s it. 15 seconds between when the sirens sound and when the rockets impact and explode.
It’s like…this!
DoubleTapper
Dec 31, 2008 - 12:27 pm 3. goldy:DoubleTapper@gmail.com
DoubleTapper, blogging on
Guns Politics Defense from Israel
karen.. watched CNN,..Mom called to let me know you were being interviewed, hope you are all well and safe. following the newsreports and wondering if we are getting it all.
Dec 31, 2008 - 1:12 pm 4. Michael Wildman:Great article, Karen! I’m proud of your contibution to those in need in Sderot. Keep up the laudable efforts and keep safe. Please let the people you have contact with in Israel know – there are many here in the U.S that are thinking of them everyday! Best!
Dec 31, 2008 - 10:15 pm 5. Shef Rogers:Will your next visit be to Gaza City?
Dec 31, 2008 - 11:33 pm 6. JonathanInTelAviv:Shef – We’ll leave that for the IDF.
Jan 1, 2009 - 10:48 pm 7. Sylvie:I can imagine. Carrying on with sleepless nights and a brave smile by day with a pounding heart not knowing if you when you close that door of your home if you will live to open it again. And then the little children, holding their hands tight as though never to let them go until you reach the kindergarten and then to leave them in the hands of God till you see them next while you go to the market to keep life going on as normal. But it isn’t and you know it and everyone else knows it too for that Red Signal tells you so and the wailing sound of the Sirens proves it too clearly …. Where was it this time??? so that should’t we say ‘Hats off and more’ to all those brave people living in Sderot that despite it all, do not leave……..?
Jan 2, 2009 - 12:41 pm 8. aloysiusmiller:I watched news reposrts of Hamas led demonstrations. I looked at the pictures on PowerlineBlog. The thought kept coming back to me at what point to people lose their humanity? I just see cockroaches and vermin attacking humanity.
Jan 2, 2009 - 3:08 pm 9. peaceplayer:Karen, I just watched you on CNN. I must say- you mentioned that 2 out of 3 Israeli kids have PTSD? Well, at least they are alive. I lived in a warzone myself for many years, and I can tell you first hand that I know what both sides are experiencing. But for you to say that the Israelis are experiencing so much hardship after nearly 500 Palestinian deaths is comical. Truly. The Israelis say that the Hamas rockets must stop? The world says that the embargo imposed on the Palestinians should stop. They are Human Beings too. They have been living in a state of horrific disgust for a long time. I am sure the majority of those living in the Gaza strip very much dislike Hamas and all that it is causing. But please, don’t go around showing the world what injustice is being inflicted on the Israelis when so far 100 Palestinian children have been killed. That is just not fair. You, as a mother should know. I have NEVER been a supported or Hamas, nor will I ever be, and I have always made it a point to be a mediator between Arabs and Israelis, but this time Israel has gone too far. Time for some objectivity.
Jan 4, 2009 - 1:57 am 10. Lilith:Well, here’s a thought for you, “peacekeeper” — and, really, how many times do we have to say the same thing….If the Palestinians would stop bombing Israel and instead, set about building their country – and yes, they do have a country – there would be no more wars — no more killing….further, I really wouldn’t trust any report from the Palestinians regarding the number of dead. And finally, something I have recently recognized — the Palestinians don’t want to build their country — it was bloody hard work for the Israelis to turn the desert they were given into the modern nation it is today — and the Palestinians are basically lazy. Their men would rather hang around doing nothing all day – when they aren’t out setting off rockets – Hey! it’s easier to sit around whining and waiting for handouts, then it is to actually set to work to create something of lasting value. With the amount of aid they have received over the last 60 years what have they got to show for it? A lot of weapons.
Jan 8, 2009 - 3:44 pmAs the mullahs in Iran have said so often: “Muslims worship death, not life.”