This trip to Israel was unlike any other we’d made before. See why.

Post 2: Should we go? A barrage of rockets and guided missiles were launched at Israel two days before we were to fly there for our son’s wedding celebration with family. The coordinated attack came from multiple directions: Hezbollah in Lebanon to the north, Iran to the east, and the Houthis in Yemen to the south. Israelis rushed to bomb shelters day and night. Our son and his bride, already in Israel, joined them, with only seconds to run for protection.

Should we still go? We thought about it for maybe a minute. We were not going to let the Iranians dictate our lives.

I was surprised to see a completely full plane. Families with young children, teenagers, adults, people of diverse backgrounds and religions. We weren’t the only ones refusing to let fear stop us.

While stretching my legs, I met a Christian woman of color excited to visit Israel for the first time, and a family of 5 traveling to see grandparents.

We were going to celebrate love.

Visiting the site of the Nova Music Festival October 7 massacre was not on our priority list. Who would want to go to a place where hundreds of people were shot, butchered, mutilated, gang raped? Just thinking about the brutality that occurred there made us sick. But my dear cousins had planned an entire day there. We admire and respect them deeply so we couldn't say no. We knew it was important to go.

We left early for the two-hour drive south, my two cousins, a partner, my husband and me. The partner, also our driver, had made a detailed itinerary of 5 stops across the Western Negev region.

As we got closer, one cousin said, “We are now on the road the terrorists drove on.” Route 232 runs through a quiet agricultural area, connecting little towns and kibbutzim. Along the road I noticed multiple small, colorfully painted concrete box structures. They are bomb shelters, built to protect people from rockets fire from the nearby Gaza Strip. But on October 7, those shelters became traps. They were never meant to offer protection from a ground assault. As we sped past, I couldn't stop thinking about the terrified young people who crowded inside, running from the festival, seeking safety. Trapped, many were slaughtered or taken hostage as terrorists hurled grenades and opened fire into the cramped spaces.

We hadn’t even gotten out of the car yet and already we were deeply shaken.

Photo 1: @cccsotex

Photos 2 & 3: Alan Markowitz