Working in fashion/accessory merchandising and creating lifestyle content online, Sharday Engel lives in Vancouver with her two children and her husband, who was born in Israel. Her husband’s cousin, Ofir, was one of the Israelis kidnapped by Hamas. We asked her to weigh in on the current situation in the Middle East, as part of our ongoing effort to facilitate kind and compassionate conversation around this crisis. —Vita Daily
How do you use your platform to impact those who follow you?
I don’t go about trying to impact those who follow me. I simply try to bring some light to causes that are close to my heart—and if that is of interest to them and brings a little more awareness, then all the better.
What is your take on current global situations/what is occurring in Israel? How does it make you feel, as a Canadian, a mother? How has it impacted you/your family personally?
As the granddaughter of a Holocaust survivor, the wife to an Israeli and the mother of kids who celebrate Jewish holidays, it would be a lie to say I’m not biased as I have a personal and emotional connection to what’s happening. Almost two Saturdays ago, we learned that my husband’s 17-year-old cousin Ofir was kidnapped by the terrorist group Hamas. He has not been heard from since. Ofir is a high-school student who was visiting his girlfriend in Kibbutz Be’eri when he was taken by Hamas. Understandably these past two weeks have been a nightmare for my family. As a Canadian it makes me feel conflicted as generally, we live a very safe and sheltered life here, and it makes me sad that it’s not the case for everyone.
Does being a mom colour your perspective of the current situation? How?
Being a mother and seeing the horrific image coming out of both Israel and the Gaza Strip absolutely breaks my heart. It doesn’t escape your mind that it could be your child taken by terrorists or a victim of bombings. At another stage in my life, that could have/could be my son or daughter who was taken. As my kids are still relatively young (eight years and four years) we haven’t shared all the details of what’s happening. Keeping a brave and happy face for them has been a big challenge these past dark days.
As a content creator, is it difficult to go about “business as usual” at the moment? Any thoughts around managing/that?
At this time it doesn’t feel right for me to be posting “regular” content. No judgment on others who do, but to me, there’s a whole bigger situation going on right now where innocent people are losing their lives and it would be disingenuous of me to try to push content and sell products.
Have you made any observations around social media in the past few days? Has the response been appropriate? And, in your opinion, does it really matter what happens on social?
I’ve found myself being very selective with my social media consumption these past two weeks. At moments of time, I’ve deleted Instagram and taken a few days’ break. I acknowledge it’s a privilege to be able to do that, but it can also be needed for our own mental health. Especially in the beginning hours of the attack, social media was being flooded with real-time images and videos. Those images are scarred in my memory and stay with me. It can be a lot to take that all in and can weigh heavy on your heart. In those moments when a break was needed, I’ve stayed connected to current events via family members or news. I also acknowledge I have a platform that could help share Ofir’s story and maybe even help with bringing him home.
Any advice/words/insight for those reading who feel removed, personally, from the situation, but wish to gain more knowledge/understanding?
Listen to people’s stories from both sides/perspectives. It feels like a whole lot of people have become “experts” in politics and the history of the Middle East these past two weeks. Listen to those who are there and live this experience as we speak. This is a very complex and complicated situation that can’t be solved with a simple wrong/right answer.
Have you heard of any good/effective ways to help at the moment? Is there any way we can support/help you/your family?
We have family who have worked with the Save A Child’s Heart. They are an Israeli foundation that has saved over 6,600-plus children suffering from congenital and rheumatic heart disease. There have been many children brought over from Gaza who received life-saving treatment that they otherwise wouldn’t have had access to. It warms my heart to hear those stories and how we can come together for the children. They are currently needing supplies to treat victims of the Hamas attacks. If you know someone personally impacted by the current events right now, keep in touch with them and check in every so often. The Hamas-Israel war has devastated so many lives and we need our community’s support now more than ever.
What do you hope that, ultimately, the outcome here is (that’s a tough question, we know)?
That Ofir and all of the 200-plus other hostages are released by Hamas. That the situation will deescalate and ideally, in my heart, I always hold hope that there will be peace.
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