Not Since The Wall Came Down

Not since the Berlin Wall came down have I been so transfixed by a movement.

I was 10 years old at the time, visiting my family in Israel. We were at my mother’s friends’ house and their daughter, only a few years older than I and I sat 2 feet from the television set, wide-eyed. I’m not sure I was 100% clued-in to the full significance of what I was seeing, but I know I knew, even then, that I was watching something of great historical weight. I knew somehow that I was watching something major unfold and I remember feeling a tingle. A combination of excitement and trepidation, though I probably couldn’t have named them as such at the time.

I feel that way again now, listening to the coverage of the demonstrations in Cairo. There is something so overwhelmingly inspiring that I come close to tears every time I hear an interview or sounds from the crowds. I’m not sure why this movement over all others in the last 21 years has struck such a chord in me but it has and I am once again riveted; excited, nervous, inspired. I wish those who work peacefully toward change strength and patience, and offer, for what its worth, my support.