How many more times will I hear, say and read these words in the coming days and weeks?

הלב שלי איתך - אין מילים

“My heart is with you; there are no words!”

I’ve limited my time watching news broadcasting; and when I do, I’ve been rotating between channels because I know each has bias. The truest truth is always masked.

I’ve limited my time on social media, knowing it’s important for my own self care. I cannot sleep with swirling images of people my kids’ ages attending a music festival like all my kids frequently attend. I cannot shake heart -wrenching images of parents, grandparents, young adults and the youngest innocent children.

I cannot be silent because the pain feels like I’ll explode.

I only have tears and words.

I cannot stay silent - When It's impossible for me to be silent when I see the messages from friends who live in Israel - and by now every one of these people is no more than 1-2 degrees of separation from someone whose life has been taken and whose lives have forever been changed by the demonic actions of Hamas terrorists. It's impossible for me to be silent when I see the images and read the stories, hearing voices of families being devastatingly shattered in Gaza.

We cannot stay silent as individuals or as community - whether Jewish, Christian, Muslim, any other faith or even the “nones” I know. Humanity is in a dark, dark place and that affects us all.

When I say that I pray for peace for both Israelis and Palestinians, I am not taking sides between Jewish and Muslim people. I put human beings, all created with the same spark of holiness, together - against terrorists.

An offering for the pain:

This piece is called a Reverse Poem, a special type of writing that can be read top-to-bottom as well as from bottom-to-top. For me, I wrote this poem last week when I was consumed with images of Palestinian children and Israeli children and thought to myself: "Oh, these children. So different and yet the same; such varied circumstances being experienced and yet the same indelible imprints, never to be forgotten. Why do we continue to see the differences and let that influence us, rather than realizing and embracing that we are all human beings, created from the same original Source, all sharing the same sparks that make us humankind?"

A little Israeli Boy

Feeling the pain of

Grieving 

This broken world needs healing

We watch from the sidelines

In constant fear

Helpless yet

Hopeful 

And yet

In constant fear

Where is our loving kindness?

When it comes to healing the world

It cannot be

War being the only way 

Because there is so much more to do than

Seeing a world absent of possibility

Grieving

Looking into the eyes of

A little Palestinian Girl

This reflection was written by Karen Hoffman. She is a mindful living guide and founder of Living on Purpose as well as partner and friend of Retreat House Spirituality Center. Connect with Karen.