Living a normal life in abnormal circumstances

By: Lauren Abroms

Posted: 1/14/10

Over the break I actually received an opportunity to go to Israel for two weeks on a free trip. Of course, I said yes and embarked on my journey. It was actually my first international trip and a memorable one.

Since I am a foreign language major here at UNA, Geography 102 is one of the required courses needed for graduation. Last semester I took Geography 102 with Dr. Strong and throughout the course he would emphasize the importance of experiencing a country in person. I never really understood what he meant until I went to Israel.

Of course while I was over there I experienced all of the normal "tourist" destinations like floating in the Dead Sea, going to the Western Wall, and climbing to the top of Masada; but I also got to see a part of Israel many people will probably never get to see.

The group I was placed in actually had the opportunity to go to southern Israel and get a tour of the border crossing into Gaza. It was a weird experience standing on a hilltop, looking out over a place that you have seen on the news repeatedly and knowing the chaos that is going on right below you. After we toured the border crossing, my group went to a little town called Sderot This was the one of the areas that caused the Israel Defense Force to launch an air strike on Gaza in December 2008 after Hamas had launched over 300 missiles into the area.

When we went to the town, it was in the process of rebuilding itself and adapting to a new way of life. We actually went to a playground with bomb shelters incorporated into the playground's design. I actually talked to a few people from Sderot and really got an inside perspective on how they actually live life. Most of the people in Sderot suffer from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and deal with the threat of another missile attack everyday. When I asked them why they still live in Sderot they told me that there was no reason not to. They explained that no matter where you live there is always the threat of experiencing a terrorist attack and that there is just as much threat of dying in a car crash, so why worry. They used the expression, "living a normal life in abnormal circumstances."

This statement got me thinking. In today's world of WMDs, recessions and terrorist attacks, everyone all over the world is trying to live a normal life in abnormal circumstances. Maybe that is the one thing we all have in common.