It was a typical Wednesday evening for those enjoying the summer breeze and coffee at the Max Brenner Cafe in the Saraona Market in Tel Aviv, Israel. Around 9pm, two men dressed in suits sat down outside and ordered dessert. However, the sweetness ends there. Within 30 minutes, four Israeli citizens between the ages of 32 and 58 were murdered. Seven others were rushed to a nearby hospital in critical condition. The two perpetrators, cousins from the town of Yatta on the West Bank, and both members of the terrorist organization Hamas fled the scene. Hours later, the rest of the world was exposed to this tragedy.
My name is Jenna, and I am an average Jewish-American teenager. I've never been particularly religious. I don't pray every day or speak Hebrew. I don't eat Kosher or celebrate Shabbat. But on the evening of June 8, 2016, I was affected.
Not even a month ago, I was standing where those four citizens were. Taglit Birthright is a free, 10-day trip to Israel that I was fortunate enough to experience with 40 students from the University of Florida. Every day we were outside at cafes, every day we saw men with suits order desserts. I was never once scared while in Israel or felt that the people surrounding me could harm me in any way. There is not a doubt in my mind that those Israeli citizens had no idea what was coming.
Ido Ben-Ari was 42 years old. Today his wife lives, injured also during the attack, to raise their kids alone. Mila Mishayev was able to say goodbye to her husband over the phone before she passed away at the hospital from the blood loss. Ilana Naveh was a mother of four. And Michael Feige, the oldest of the victims, was a professor at the Ben-Gurion University of the Negev. Although I had never met these people, I feel as though a piece of me is missing. These citizens, these mothers, and fathers, they were innocent people who trying to enjoy a night in one of the most beautiful cities in the world. My heart is empty knowing that people do such things without thinking twice. They pull triggers as quickly as they blink their eyes. They understand what death means, and they actively choose to bring it upon others.
Shootings and attacks such as this one in Tel Aviv are not rare. They are not shocking, and after "Wow, that's awful," we don't think much about them. The past few months alone have given us so many reasons to see the bad in the world. Paris, Brussels, Tel Aviv, and most recently the mass shooting in Orlando. But despite the hatred, despite the war, we can stand as one.
I am Jewish. I am American. I am proud.
I see it as my duty every day to educate those around me and to live my life to the fullest. We don't know what tomorrow, or even the next second, will bring. Don't live in fear of the unknown, don't take advantage of your surroundings. Explore, love, feast, and smile. Take an extra minute today to think of those this world has lost.
