The unconquerable beauty of the human spirit

By Herbert Rothschild

This Thanksgiving I’m more aware than ever that hunger, not plenty; fear, not security; suffering, not joy; are the lot of so many of my sisters and brothers. Adding to the pain of that awareness is knowledge that I am complicit, albeit unwillingly, in some of that suffering.

I tried hard this month to mobilize pressure around the state on Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden to join with our other senator, Jeff Merkley, in the effort to stop further transfers of offensive weapons from the U.S. to Israel. The Joint Resolutions of Disapproval, filed by Sen. Bernie Sanders, garnered only 18 votes in the Senate last week, and Wyden’s was not one of them.

So, the killing will continue unabated, unless President-elect Donald Trump actually does have a magic wand with which he’ll fix all the world’s problems. He can hardly do worse than Biden has done. At least I won’t any longer turn on the TV and see Secretary of State Antony Blinken calling for a ceasefire and shaking his finger at Netanyahu all the while we are vetoing efforts by the U.N. to stop the slaughter and our weapons flow unceasingly to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF).

In the email below, Eissa Eissa, the writer, uses the initials IOF, meaning the Israel Offense Forces, because that’s how he has experienced them. In my column on June 7 titled “Message from Rafah,” I reprinted with permission an email he had sent to Brenda Gould, a mutual friend. She sent the column to him, and in gratitude he said he would send me one of his epaulettes from the time he was a merchant marine captain.

Last week Brenda received this email, which she forwarded to me. She prefaced it by letting me know that Eissa’s cousin Zuhair and his wife Aisha, educators who devoted their lives to teaching Arabic, geography and education in several Gulf nations and who recently had returned to Gaza to continue teaching, were killed in a drone attack while they were at prayers. 

“I hope this email finds you well. 

“I was contemplating on the situation I am in Gaza and the number of times I had been directly targeted and now I know there is an elimination sentence on me, and considering how serious the IOF about executions of people like me, and after analysing all factors, I came to conclusion that the chances of me surviving this genocide are very slim. 

“In view of this conclusion and because I am a man who always keeps his word, I am now trying to do everything I promised to do while I still can. I know that I don’t have chance to deliver all promises I made and that’s why I dedicated things I promised to do to some of my family members and friends so that I am certain all my promises are delivered in full so that when I meet Allah, my parents, my martyred siblings, my martyred friends and all innocent souls who have already ascended to heaven before me, I meet them all with my head held high.

“Having said all above and because you to me are dear friends and family, I am writing to you now with a humble request which I hope you won’t find out of place. My request to you is to help me in fulfilling a promise I made a few months ago to Mr. Herbert Rothschild when I promised him that I would share one of my Master Mariner epaulettes with him in recognition for his noble act of telling Nora and Ahmed’s story. In the promise I made, I took on myself that if I survived this genocide, I would deliver my epaulette to him myself and (if) I didn’t survive it then one of my family members or friends would deliver it to him on my behalf. 

“There is no one in this world whom I like to do the delivery to Mr. Herbert on my behalf more than you, and I hope you do me the honour of accepting my humble request. I know it is maybe a heavy task to take on and I understand if you decide not to accept.

“I know that I should have asked you prior to doing anything, but considering the time and prevailing circumstances I am in, I have already asked my cousin to go to my place, open my uniforms closet and remove my epaulettes from the uniform I wore on my last command, prepare them in a presentable way and given him some text to write under the epaulettes. One addressed to Mr. Herbert and the other addressed to a special dear friend of mine and send to you to deliver to Mr. Herbert. 

“If you decide against this, please let me know, I understand totally. And please forgive me if I have in any way caused any inconvenience by this request of mine.

“Thank you for being the incredible friends and family you are to me. 

“Your kindness and support mean more than words can ever express.

“Everyone here sends their love and prayers to your beloved family.

“Eissa”

What better can one do in a world of so much ugliness and beauty than give thanks for being alive to it?

Herbert Rothschild’s columns appear Fridays. Opinions expressed in them represent the author’s views. Email Rothschild at [email protected].