On Monday this week, twenty hostages returned home alive, after 738 days in captivity. My husband and I went to one of the hospitals where the hostages were being brought for recovery to welcome them, to sing, to be part of the moment.

It was extraordinary to witness how people just show up in these moments. In an unplanned show of support, thousands of strangers gathered in the hospital parking lot, singing, dancing, waving flags and celebrating this special moment together. People who don’t know each other, bound by shared heartbreak and hope, giving one big national hug of love and belonging.

Our hearts are filled with indescribable joy as families are reunited and prayers are answered. We’re a nation exhaling together for the first time in months.

And at the same time, our hearts are shattered by those who return in coffins, by those who will never return, by the lives lost that can never be replaced.

Later today we will attend the funeral of our dear friends’ son, whose body was returned for burial. One more of the many premature goodbyes we’ve had to say over the last 2 years.

As I write, twenty-one hostages who are no longer alive have yet to be returned, a heartbreaking breach of the agreement. A reminder that this peace is fragile and that our work, our prayers, our vigilance continue.

The deal that’s been brokered is complex and painful. Nearly two thousand prisoners are being released, including over 250 serving life sentences, some with multiple life sentences.

Once again, we are called to hold the nuance. The paradox of joy and sorrow, right and wrong, good and evil, all existing side by side.

We’re told the war is over, but is it completely over?

Everything hangs in the balance as we wait for promises to be kept, for final hostages to come home, for the first steps toward peace to take root.

As a nation and as individuals, we will need time for repair, for healing, for the slow stitching together of what has been torn apart. There is no right or wrong way to go through this. We each have our own way, one day at a time.

Like in the Japanese art of Kintsugi, where broken vessels are glued together with melted gold, may we fill our cracks with gold. The gold of our nation that is courage, compassion and faith so that we can create something even more beautiful, even more whole.

“שהחיינו וקיימנו והגיענו לזמן הזה.”

Blessed are we who have lived to see this moment.

Watching the videos of the hostage families reunited with their loved ones brings tears, awe and deep gratitude. The hostages emerge after two years of unimaginable suffering, isolation, starvation, darkness, and yet they show up with smiles, resilience and extraordinary inner strength. Their courage reminds us of what it means to be human, to endure and to hold on to light even in the darkest places.

It feels like the beginning of an end to a tough two years of war and with it I hold hope that it is the beginning of a new beginning. For rebuilding what was broken, for healing what’s been wounded, and for finding our way forward.

Here’s to hearts that mend, cracks that glimmer with gold, and the quiet courage to heal, hope and rebuild.

P.S. If you feel that your full brilliance isn’t showing up every day, you might be due for a shift.

For a limited time, I’m offering a “Get Brilliant” mini session – 45 minutes focused entirely on helping you pinpoint what’s holding you in Excellence and how to start living more in your Genius for just $99.

If you’d like to book a session, reply with “I’m in” and I’ll send you the details.