These days, the area surrounding Bet Shean is fraught with conflict as locals protest the fact that the beautiful Asi Stream is locked within the gates of Kibbutz Nir David. They are demanding access to this natural resource and claiming that it should be enjoyed by all, not just kibbutz residents.

There are people whose energies go toward controversy; who are excited and revived by disagreement. And then there are those people who like to connect, to find the common ground despite the differences and the difficulties.

How fortunate are we that two of the Jewish Cultural Coordinators working in our Yachad -Jewish Identity program are examples of the latter!

We have one coordinator responsible for the Valley of the Streams (Emek Hamaayanot), which includes Kibbutz Nir David, and another who works in the city of Bet Shean. Their mission through Yachad is to connect Israelis to their Jewish heritage as well as to each other – something they accomplished wonderfully this past Friday.

The two coordinators spearheaded a two-pronged initiative. It started with the distribution of hummus under the banner “Good Neighbors are Created with Love – The City and the Valley Flow Together,” and it continued with a joint musical Kabbalat Shabat on the grass of the kibbutz.

Our coordinators obviously don’t have the blueprint for resolving the issue of the Asi, but they do have a solution to the tension, the anger and the alienation. Thank you Yochai and Elia; in times like these we need your connecting spirit.