Where the Desert Meets the Sea

by Werner Sonne

“But it is their homeland, after all. You just said they’ve been living here for centuries.” “Yeah? So?” “I mean, now here we come. No wonder they’re scared we’re going to take it away from them.” Yael straightened up. “Judith, they’ve been here all along, but Jews have too. For thousands of years. We’re definitely not religious here on the kibbutz, you know that. But we are Jews, and we do intend to finally have our own homeland. Where we don’t have to keep apologizing for merely existing. Where we won’t be exiled or exterminated. If the Arabs can understand that, there’s enough room for all of us.” “And if not?” Judith interjected. “Then we’ll defend our ground. With all available means. We built this land up, working with our hands, hard goddamn work, every day. And we don’t have any intention of giving it all up again. Imagine sending all those refugees back—refugees like you, Judith. No country will take them. Where would they even go? Camps?” For a while, only the excruciating whine of mosquitoes could be heard in the room. “But how’s that supposed to work?” Judith asked. “It’s simple: we want a state, our own state, and they should have their own too.” Judith shook her head. “But that means—if we stay here in Galilee and expand our settlements, if this part of Palestine is supposed to become part of our state, then the Arabs in the village here will have to go somewhere else.” Yael shrugged. “They aren’t going to simply accept that!” Judith said. “There’s no peacefu...