watching from afar i see pawns..

i have not been living in the middle east for some time - although unfortunate circumstances have required that i arrive relatively frequently..

i see the violence bubbling and i see peoples being politically manipulated but i also revel in the resilience.. whether its the thriving israeli economy that just seems to plow through every storm or its the incredible people of gaza and syria persevering through unbelievable misery and although drowning in chaos still holding on to that glimmer of a brighter future..

on all my flights back to israel i have had conversations with israeli arabs.. yes i have decided to call them that recognising that some might specify a different identity if ask eg palestinian citizens of israel etc but really.. they are israeli arabs.. a different kettle of fish living a different life with a different mentality and a different destiny and a different world view.. some have been villagers and some hitech workers.. some have been house wives and others doctors.. all have been nice to me even though i am clearly a - wait for it - israeli j e w.. yes nice to me.. yes about me being jewish..

two old ladies i met knew friends of mine from yaffo.. we laughed the whole way to israel together.. i helped them drag their wheel-less bags down long airport thoroughfares.. they rewarded me with blessings and tales of their journey to morocco in a group of 30 israeli jews and stories of their acceptance within the group notwithstanding their head cover dress or loyalty to their heritage..

not that an arab should need to judaise to be treated as an integral part of society but in the past those were the accusations against publicised instances of arabs (especially muslims) who decided to "fit in"..

i have said this for a while - but i think the arab spring made many people wake up or at least begin to wake up..

(a) life in israel for an arab is incredibly free even with all the racism and stereotypes - we have arabs in all ranks of society from mayors through to members of parliament through to media stars and celebrities

(b) arabs in israel - despite their collective resistance - are largely a peaceful minority who if given half the chance would probably deliver the highest standards of citizenship possible and they should be treated with less blind suspicion and xenophobia because they are not outsiders no matter how you slice the pie..

i believe that reality tv did wonders in making the intimate lives and thoughts of israeli arabs accessible to the mainstream.. some of the first arabs on tv were very westernish and then we got some oriental appearing arabs with gentle views and then we got the hard core opinionated ones.. and you know what? each and every one of them won the heart of the public - just for being whoever they were.. talented individuals interacting..

so maybe it is time to relax the paranoia and make some more concerted efforts to draw the populations closer.. no one is going anywhere (except those of us who have relocated haha) and its time for a peaceful era to kick in..

i believe that greater relations within israels sectors will greatly help israelis to forge trust and act more respectfully towards the folk across the green line..

heres for hoping..