A Diaspora Sister’s Caring

During the recent war in Gaza, I participated in a project, organized by Cherie Brown and Aliza Becker,1 to offer one-way time2 to Israeli Co-Counselors. I was assigned to counsel X—. She and I exchanged e-mails to get to know each other a bit and agreed that I would give her one-way time once each week for the coming period.

I thought in advance about how I might be an effective ally to her, and she was able to discharge hard throughout the first half hour I gave her. We connected deeply and immediately as Jews, as women, and as mothers. It was beautiful to see how fully she could use the contradiction3 of her Diaspora sister’s caring. Also, being close to her dissolved my numbness. I cried quietly along with her some of the time and was able to discharge my heartbreak about the violence in my own session later. Having one person to think about helped me be more humanly connected to the events in Israel and Gaza.

After X—’s sessions and mine, I have been able to pay more attention to the situation and express caring toward all of the peoples of the region—one-on-one with friends and family members as well as in a public forum. I claim X— as my sister, and I claim all of the peoples in Israel and Gaza as my brothers, sisters, and cousins.

Becky Shuster
Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Reprinted from the RC e-mail
discussion list for leaders of Jews


1 Cherie Brown is the International Liberation Reference Person for Jews. Aliza Becker is a Jewish RC leader in Chicago, Illinois, USA.
2 “One-way time” means listening without receiving listening back.
3 Contradiction to distress


Last modified: 2022-12-25 10:17:04+00