You’re still alive on Facebook

By Ami Kaufman September 12, 2010 | Edit

“Aviram Pasternak’s Birthday”.

That’s what my Facebook home page said all day.

High up there, in the right hand corner.

I wondered if there was a way I could erase it somehow. My eyes kept veering towards those words each time I looked at my page.

Sometimes Facebook, in that same corner, up there on the right, tells me I should “reconnect with you”. Because we haven’t spoken in a long time.

I pressed the link on your name, and was transferred to your page.

I saw that the last time I wished you happy birthday was also the last thing anyone wrote on your wall.

I miss you. And your smile. And I miss Meni, too.

You're still alive on Facebook

From right: Meni, Aviram and me. Kerala, India

You're still alive on Facebook

Aviram and Meni. Kerala, India

You're still alive on Facebook

Me and Meni. Hikkaduwa, Sri Lanka

You're still alive on Facebook

Meni and Aviram, throwing me into the pool at my wedding

I know you’re happy wherever you are. Even though you’ve left us down here.

But you’re still alive on Facebook. And I’ll bet you and Meni are celebrating your day just like you always knew how.

It’s weird, but I wish Meni had a Facebook account before it happened, too.

Happy birthday, dude.

Life & Culture

If you believe these stories are important, become a +972 member today to make sure we can keep telling them.

For those who care deeply about the people living between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea, this is your opportunity to move from despair into action.

The effects of Israel’s genocidal assault on Gaza are still being felt: much of the Strip lies in ruins, millions remain displaced with nowhere to return to, tens of thousands have been killed, and many more are believed to be buried beneath the rubble.

In the West Bank, the Israeli army has displaced tens of thousands of Palestinians from refugee camps, while state-sponsored settler violence is wiping rural communities off the map on a weekly basis. At the same time, Israel’s ever-escalating regional aggression threatens to drag the entire Middle East into the inferno.

We are here on the ground — from Gaza to Tel Aviv to Masafer Yatta — exposing the crimes, reporting the horrors, and amplifying the voices of those resisting injustice to an audience of millions around the world. If there was ever a time the world needed +972 Magazine, it is now.

As a binational team based in Israel-Palestine, we are best placed to cover this pivotal moment in a way that no other outlet can — but we need your help to do it. Join us as a member to become part of our mission, and support independent journalism that really makes a difference.

BECOME A +972 MEMBER TODAY