.....Color Red???
Today, several of us took a picture with some children in Kibbutz Alumim's library building. I was a bit taken aback when the photographer prompted precious smiles with: "123 - say Color Red!" My puzzlement eventually turned into inspiration and awe...
Kibbutz Alumim is a community six kilometers from the Gaza border. When we entered the Kibbutz, our questions were obvious if unspoken: Why would people live in an area the area that's been peppered with Kassam rockets for sixteen years? Can their lives have any normalcy? What about the kids, and young teens, who have this reality as their personal 'normal'?
Sitting with another 450 American Jews, enjoying a beautifully arranged banquet under the sun, as we're serenaded by a local Jewish band, it was hard to imagine the rockets and the destruction. It felt more like paradise.
But we knew where we were. And we knew there was a lot of emotion, pain and inspiration sitting just beneath the surface of this gorgeous setting.
At one point, a local mother and social worker stood up to speak about their lives, and explained the significance of "Color Red." You see, this kibbutz is so close to Gaza that the residents have all of 15 seconds to find a safe spot once a missile is fired.
The normal Israeli alarm system is insufficient and the Iron Dome can't help; they're simply too close to missile launch pads and there's too little time for the conventional response protocol.
Out of necessity, the Army instituted a special system for that part of the country. When a missile is (G-d forbid) launched "COLOR RED!" (TZEVA ADOM in Hebrew) blares on public loudspeakers, alerting people to immediately seek safety.
Given that background, this kibbbutz mom explained how the community's children had developed fearful associations with the color red. Some children had begun to clearly exhibit negative responses to mere mention of the color. In response, this woman had developed a way to help the children appreciate that the color red is their friend; it helps to protect their lives.
She (Esther Marcus) wrote a children's book depicting a meeting between the colors of the rainbow. The various colors spent time focusing on each respective hue's value. But the sad color red cried of her misfortune in being associated with terrorist attacks. Poor color red. So, in the narrative, all the colors come together to support and celebrate color Red's contribution to society's safety.
We even saw a play based on the book, put on by children in the Kibbutz library building.
We saw kids expressing their recognition of the danger in which they live, and their gratitude for the system which keeps them safe.
In their words:
They don't have the benefit of Iron Dome; but they have a Divine Dome.
They don't have the benefit of the conventional alarm system; they have Color Red.
In the story of Color Red we heard much more than an alternate plan for safety. We were able to feel how much a community cares about keeping their children emotionally healthy. We were able to feel their commitment to teaching their children love and understanding, and protecting these precious souls from the abyss of hatred and bitterness.
We were able to feel how faith, love and commitment can transform a trigger for fear into a prompt for precious smiles.
The people of Israel in the Land of Israel.
A light to the world.