Yoav and Noa planned their wedding for months on end. With great anticipation, they waited for their special day. They spent a lot of time working on the details: when the wedding would take place, where the chuppah would be, what they would wear, how the tables would be set. They decided that their wedding would be held at Kibbutz Be’eri shortly after the holidays. The weather would be perfect and the chuppah would be lit up with soft and beautiful light.
On the morning of the festival of Simchat Torah, Noa and Yoav were together in the kibbutz. When they heard the sirens, they rushed to their 'safe room' and waited, as they always did. Suddenly they received a message on their mobile phones: "There are terrorists in the kibbutz." They immediately understood that they needed to stay locked in their 'safe room' and remain quiet. They began to hear gunshots. As time passed, the gunshots came closer and closer.
Yoav and Noa's anxiety increased, but the messages on the kibbutz WhatsApp group were reassuring: "The army is on the way!" one of their friends wrote.
Noa chose to think positively, even when it became unbearable to be in a 'safe room' for hours on end without food or water. At one point, Noa felt she needed some air and opened the window of the safe room for a brief moment.
Through the open window she could hear the birds chirping. She inhaled as much fresh air as her lungs could hold. A small tear rolled down her cheek. "There is life. Life is continuing and will continue forever," she realized. The fresh air filled her lungs and gave Noa the strength to continue waiting. After many long hours, she finally heard the voices of soldiers – our soldiers, soldiers who spoke Hebrew, soldiers who kept their promise. The soldiers escorted Noa and Yoav out of the kibbutz. From there, they were sent to Kibbutz Ein Gedi, together with the surviving residents of Kibbutz Be’eri.
Noa and Yoav realized they wouldn’t be able to have the wedding they had dreamed of in Kibbutz Be’eri. Instead, they decided they would get married on exactly the same date, in a different place. Their chuppah would be held at Kibbutz Ein Gedi, with a stunning view of the Dead Sea. The entire kibbutz helped with the preparations. Their lungs became filled with new air. From within the deep pain and crisis, a new home was built by a wonderful couple, by two heroes who overcame evil.
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