Gardens of Memory: Grounding and Growth in Post-Trauma Israel

In the months after October 7, many Israelis found themselves surrounded by silence — a stillness that followed sirens, loss, and fear. For some, the quiet felt unbearable. For others, it became a space to notice something simple: the need to touch the earth again.

Across the country, people began planting — not as part of any organized program, but as a natural human impulse to reconnect. In backyards, balconies, and small corners of temporary housing, flowers and herbs began to appear.

Mental Health First Aid Israel recognizes this instinctive return to the ground as more than symbolic. It is a reminder that healing often begins in the ordinary — in tending, watering, and noticing growth, even when everything else feels uncertain.