To Yafo, With Love: A Love Story of a Love City

My journey in Israel has always been one of love. I mean, there have been more periods than not where I've felt so broken down and defeated by this state, presumably, but nonetheless, reflecting back on the big picture, I can only call it a love story.

It really took my time in Yafo, these last nearly two and a half years, to understand that, because this little city is the shining jewel of it all. Sure, it's filthy in a lot of places and loud as hell more often than not and generally seems to run on its own timeline, on its own rules.

And that's exactly the point. Yafo, in its very nature, is a declaration - of truth, of authenticity, of connection. Of love. There are a lot of clashes there, a lot, because in so many ways, it goes against the expectations of social norms and operations that many of us living in Israel have come to have. Instead, in place of these, Yafo is filled with a magical, steadfast, rich, abundantly overflowing sense of community and tribe, connection and love.

When you work through many challenging socio-economic aspects of this place, there is a warmth, friendliness, and sense of belongingness like I have never known before. Even me, a very white American Jew who was shy with my Hebrew (and non-existent in my Arabic) got taken into the fold. By the end of my time there, I felt I had a place. In fact, one of the very last things I did before I handed over my keys was to make some rounds by the neighbors and shopkeepers who most reached out and touched my heart in their own, sometimes minimally-worded, ways. It did not feel like a proper completion of my time without honoring these connections.

"Daring to love" - not simply an oppositional struggle against a demanding force, but an honest, precious, potent commitment to live fully as yourself and, in extension, for those you know yourself, inexplicably, to love

And so I've moved now, to somewhere so so different, also beautiful and with its own gifts, but I carry with me the flame that was lit in Yafo. I feel I deeply learned the true meaning of "daring to love" - not simply an oppositional struggle against a demanding force, but an honest, precious, potent commitment to live fully as yourself and, in extension, for those you know yourself, inexplicably, to love, regardless of the circumstances.

I'm moving away now (or perhaps, for now - who knows where this story may take me?), but I can never go back to the way my heart moved and was moved before Yafo. There is no back. Clearly, resolutely, feeling so many new, deep parts of myself that Yafo gave me the space to reclaim, there is only forward and upward.

My darling Yafo, of course no words can truly express my love and gratitude for you, though I trust you feel me and honor me all the same. But let me offer you these thoughts, this whisper of a love letter 💖

I accept your gifts, and I accept your dare. It scares me to leave you in so many ways, but I feel how you have prepared me for this moment, to carry your message of radical love forward.

And I can't help but wonder: if all of this is where I've already been, where am I going next? 💖

From the bottom of my heart: thank you. Bless you. I love you 💖