Heart To Heart

“What you perceive to be true and what is actually true aren’t always the same” In fact, one can see how these two things are far removed from each other once you have the realization.  It makes one wonder how you even thought what you thought in the first place.

Tuesday, July 24th marks one of the eye-opening days of my life.  I had the privilege to volunteer at the workshop that was hosted by MyVoice Canada for the Heart to Heart foundation.  

Heart to Heart is a joint program of Givat Haviva in Israel and Hashomer Hatzair – Camp Shomria in Canada.  Their mission is to support a new generation of young Jewish and Palestinian citizens of Israel to become the leaders of tomorrow who recognize the importance of building a shared society. 

All I knew was a group of 20 youth aged 14-15, half Palestinian citizens of Israel and half Jewish citizens of Israel, has come to participate in an immersive three-and-a-half-week camp-based program in Perth, Ontario and My Voice Canada was hosting an event for these children and I offered to volunteer my time.  

As my dad drove me to the workshop, I was thinking in my head how I would interact with these children, what my conversation would be, with the Children of Israel, with the Children of War!  After having seen images of Israel, Palestine conflict over and over in the media, I wasn’t sure what to really expect of this particular meeting. 

In the room, there were many youngsters like me, I connected eyes with two boys in the circle, Kareem and Mohamed, they both stood out as they were participating in the workshop with such confidence that it was difficult to not notice. Before I could even go up to them and connect, Mohamed himself came and asked me with full curiosity about my life in Canada, about what other languages I spoke and what my background was. As soon as I answered his questions, he followed through with a series of more questions, it was evident he really wanted to get to know me and more about my life in Canada.  It was actually surprising to see someone from that part of the world who is very social, I kept thinking the children from those countries might not be that social.  Hey, what else should I think when even UNICEF announced that 88% of children living in Gaza Strip are afflicted by fear. After talking to Mohamed and Kareem, I felt they were just like any of the teenagers I know.

Amongst them, there stood a lean framed girl with a curly rich mocha coloured locks that fell down her back.  I went up to her and complimented how beautiful her hair was, she beamed with gratitude, just like any teenager would do.  She and I spoke about school and her life in Israel.  To me, she seemed no different than any of my friends in Canada. 

 After the icebreaker activity, we all sat down to do a painting activity. The activity was a medium to get an idea of what kids from Israel and Palestine think of when they hear the word ‘Neighbour’. When the activity started, as a Volunteer I walked around to see what they were all painting, I saw the colour of the pain and some images and I jumped to conclusion that majority are painting violence that they are used to seeing and the sadness that is filled in their heart.  When in reality after discussing with the kids about each of their artwork, I must say I was beyond wrong. All the underlying themes and main ideas all correlated with peace, hope and selflessness. For example, back to Mohamed, his artwork looked like one person throwing grenades at multiple other people and there was a huge title that read help. However when Mohamed made me crouch down to his level, eye to eye as he explained that it was his uncle helping those around him I felt so stupid but I also had a complete change of perception. 

Why am I conditioned to jump to the conclusion that this boy is in trouble and has a terrible life? Why am I conditioned to feel sorry for people like Mohamed? Why am I conditioned to label him and stereotype him? I may not be doing this intentionally but it’s insane how our subconscious can lead us to jump to conclusions this big. 

I will treasure this moment with all my heart and for sure these group of teenagers from a faraway land changed my perception of our World today by their actions. I truly do intend on getting more involved in Heart to Heart next year, so that I get to meet more children from that part of the Word, get to hear their real life stories rather what media portrays.  I hope those of you who are reading this article also get inspired and participate as well. You will truly benefit from seeing the world in a different light.