Some Refreshing Advice From My 96-Year-Old Grandfather
I just got off of FaceTime with my 96-year-old grandfather — yes, he has an iPhone! — who reminded me of something worth mentioning.
He said that, while we're definitely living in scary and uncertain times, it's important to keep everything in perspective.
For example, my grandfather grew up in the Great Depression, a 10-year period during which every single day was a question mark. That's 3,650 question marks, if you're doing the math.
Still, people are suffering and the economy is spiraling downhill, which is why I want to share with you five pieces of positivity during these troubling times:
1) Coral Bismuth is Israel's top street performer, spreading love and music with her signature sunflowers. Her music is amazing, but her story is even better. ??
2) Ari Liberson is the co-creator of Molet, which makes functional furniture from wooden pallets found as waste in the streets. Today, their team of creatives is devoted to "upcycled" architecture, design, and education in Jaffa, Israel.
3) Tabea Oppliger and her husband Matt founded KitePride, a Tel Aviv-based social business that sells repurposed kitesurfing equipment. Their mission is to fight human trafficking by employing victims of the industry, so they can safely and comfortably make their way back into the mainstream workforce.
4) Julian Melcer runs the project Clean the Butts, a Tel Aviv-based organization on a mission to eliminate the world's most common piece of litter — cigarette butts — through community clean-ups and events.
5) Maya Kramer, a Tel Aviv-based expert on modern-day wellness, is currently running a virtual wellness retreat, which I highly recommend checking out!
It's stories and characters like the ones above which we are so excited to start sharing with you via IZZY – Stream Israel!
Stay safe, and stay positive. ??