A Warm Welcome in Beit Shemesh

I do not look Israeli. When I walk into a room, people see a young, white, westernized female. They probably assume that I am not Jewish and do not speak Hebrew. As a psychology major, I cannot help but take notice of human behavior and expression during cross-cultural interactions. This is what it feels like to be different, to stand out. I become anxious at the possibility of appearing culturally incompetent; I want to seem capable of belonging.

I am volunteering at ENP because I believe in empowerment and equal opportunity. Every member of the Ethiopian-Israeli community should feel as though he/she has the potential to succeed academically, economically, socially and become integrated members of Israeli society. As a spring intern, I have the privilege of being a part of this process by working with the children at the youth outreach center in Beit Shemesh each week.

Last week was my first visit to the youth outreach center. I met the children for the first time and realized that they spoke very little English. With the help of an English translator and basic knowledge of Hebrew, I was able to introduce myself as an American student studying temporarily at the Rothberg International School in Jerusalem. After taking care of the logistical information, another volunteer and I challenged a few boys to table tennis and pool. Amidst the games and laughter, I started to think about the challenges that I might face this semester. How might the differences between the Ethiopian-Israelis and myself affect their growth and successful integration? I am a white, Christian, female adult from the United States and speak English. Verbal communication will be a challenge in itself, but how can I communicate emotionally with the children when we come from vastly different backgrounds? Would they want to listen to someone who doesn't share their struggles?  What do we share? How can we connect?

Yesterday was my second visit to Beit Shemesh. It was an amazing visit because many of my questions and concerns from the previous visit left me. The Ethiopian-Israeli youth and I may not be the same age, gender, religion, ethnicity, socioeconomic status or share language, but these differences did not hinder growth in our relationship with one another. Without hesitation, they welcomed me into their sphere and expressed warmth  and acceptance through their actions and gestures. After a few games of table tennis and pool, another volunteer and I decided to take three boys outside to play basketball. We taught them words in English like "pass", "dribble", "shoot", and phrases like "behind the back", "between the legs", and "no-look pass". We talked and the boys listened, repeating the words and phrases as we said them aloud. The outreach center does not have a basketball goal, so I created one using my hands and we played games until it was time for them to leave. We said our goodbyes, smiling as we parted ways and returned to the outreach center.

During this past visit, I found a connection between these boys and myself. We share a passion for sports and their attentiveness demonstrated respect, openness, and a desire to learn. Communication is more than just words...And acceptance is the sense of belonging I felt when three Jewish, Ethiopian-Israeli boys demonstrated out-group tolerance, allowing us to be strengthened by our similarities and differences.