As a child growing up in New York City enrolled in the public school system, I changed schools at every level of education (i.e. Elementary, Middle and High school). This meant I sat in the classrooms of upwards of 50 different teachers. Some of these teachers I liked, while some less so. Then there were some who changed my life. The most prominent being my high school Global History teacher, Mr. Moscow.

Life for a vast number of human beings all over the world may not be the party they hoped for. The road to success is wild, unexpected and plenty of obstacles to overcome. My Colombian compatriots, just like my new Palestinian friends here at Tomorrow’s Youth Organization, understand the meaning of being challenged by life day in and day out and this is why I believe we connected from the very beginning. Since the moment I arrived in Nablus, I got enchanted by the smiles and energy of the people, their kindness and their powerful will to help each other.

After classes let out on the last day of summer EFL classes at Tomorrow’s Youth Organization, I went back to sit in my classroom. For eight weeks I’d led a class of amazing, strong women and earlier in the day I’d watched as they recited poetry, did a powerful skit, and gave a speech on women’s rights. Afterward, we played Apples to Apples and said our goodbyes. And there I was again.

On the last day of class, I instructed my students to not only stand in a circle, but literally tie themselves together using a piece of light blue yarn. The yarn was short and didn’t quite reach all the way around all twelve of us while still leaving room between my students. Therefore, as each student wound the yarn through a button hole on their jacket or a shoelace, we were forced to renegotiate the distance and come closer together.

As one of the final assignments I gave to my elementary EFL class this session, I tasked my students with writing a poem in the form of a letter to one person who changed their life in some way. The only parameter to the assignment was that it outline the impact that this individual had  made on their life trajectory— that is, that they clearly describe themselves both before and after the change had been made.

9 weeks is a short time, and every successive week of this fellowship felt as if it went faster than the last. First and foremost, I am grateful to have been given the time and resources to live in and explore Palestine and the myriad issues facing its people with patience and tact. There is no doubt in my mind that I have just scraped the surface, but, again, 9 weeks is a short time.