Screaming ambulances fire past me
Sirens echo in the far distance
And I stop everything I do
I stop moving incessantly,
never taking a breath for the to do list 
is simply too long. 
I stop wondering,
constantly questioning
 if I'm good enough,
if I work hard enough,
if I can just grasp onto the goals
 I have set so high. 
I stop worrying,
stop panicking about my own problems,
however big they seem
 in my overworked adolescent mind.
 

All at once these thoughts are quiet
All I hear is my mother's voice 
rising above the wailing sirens.
I stop and listen and remember 
what she told me
 

And so, I begin a prayer for those 
who the ambulance is headed towards 
I have no idea if they are hurt,
if they are fine,
if they are gone.
But I stop and I take my own time to give them hope, much needed hope. 
And in the back of my mind, 
I thank my mom.
 

I sit in class writhing in my seat.
The teacher, a man who believes his
words are perpetually correct,
a man who never realizes 
what a tremendous impact he has 
on his students.
He spits out words mindlessly, 
day after day about Israel
About the terrorism our home country causes on a daily basis,
about the oppressive laws 
and evil institutions of the Jewish state.
 

And I can't breathe
I can't fathom what I am hearing.
I look around at my classmates frantically
They aren't bothered
They aren't questioning
They are sitting there absorbing
 his words, 
for this may be the only opinion on Israel they ever hear and will ever know.
 

So, I stop.
I stop moving,
fidgeting in my seat,
cracking my knuckles.
 I stop wondering
burdened with the idea that every student in this class will soon adopt this same bias against Israel.
I stop worrying,
angry at this man who believes 
he is righteous,
without ever addressing
or understanding the other side 
of the story.
 

 And I hear my mom's voice,
remembering her words
 she told me as a kid, 
telling me you must stand up
stand up for yourself.
Stand up for your beliefs 
Stand up for others.
 You must stand up as a Jew,
for we know what it is like to be treated
 without understanding, 
without compassion.
You must stand up as a woman 
and show the world you are just as strong, 
No, you are stronger 
than those boys who tease you.
You must stand up 
because that's who we are.
 

We are not bystanders.
We do not let hatred pass in front
 of our eyes 
without being bothered, 
without questioning,
without raising our voices,
without standing up for what is right.
 

To be a Jew is to treat your neighbor 
with respect,
for we have been strangers 
in a strange land,
hardship is in our blood
But so is love, so is faith, 
so is perseverance
To be a Jew is to question, to wonder.
To be a Jew is to listen.
To be a Jew is to fight for the greater good
to pray for those who need healing,
for those we know and love 
and for the strangers 
in our midst.
 

To be a Jew is to
find the balance
 between generosity and resistance. Between prayer and protest.
 

So, I raise my hand
I take a deep breathe
I remember what my mom told me,
I remember who I am,
what I believe,
and the knowledge 
my home is being attacked 
right in front of me. 
 

So, I speak
my mind.
I stand up for Israel.
For the country 
I see myself living in one day.
For the country my brother 
currently resides in.
For the country whose flag 
flies above my bed 
every day and every night.
 I stand up for what I believe is right.
 

And the kids in the class look up
They start questioning, 
I can see it in their eyes
They start realizing 
there is another side to this story.
They stop moving 
and they start wondering.
 

I am compassionate 
and yet I am relentless.
I listen and yet I fight
I pray for my neighbors
 and yet I stand up against my attackers.
 

 I am a Jew, 
proudly 
and unforgivably.