Separation brings tears. That is what my 10th grade Chumash teacher, Rebbetzin Esther Twersky, taught us regarding the separation of the upper and lower waters in the story of Creation. The raindrops symbolize the tears that separation inevitably causes. Still, separation can also cause unity, she said. Among the tribes that settled east of the Jordan River was half of the tribe of Menashe. The other half lived in Israel. In this way, the tribe members east of the Jordan River missed their brethren and always felt drawn and connected to Eretz Yisrael.
I have thought a lot about these ideas in the months following October 7. There has been so much separation. Separation in death, in captivity, and in the long absences of soldiers from their homes. We have cried a lot as a nation. For those of us outside of Israel, there is the added discomfort of feeling separated from the epicenter of our people. We feel the longing for our other half and the guilt of feeling absent as the next chapter of our history is being written by those on the ground. In response, the efforts rallied here on behalf of those in Israel have been truly inspiring. More surprising still is how meaningfully these gestures from afar have been received. Perhaps, the silver lining is that these months have also demonstrated how close we really are.
