The Middle East moved me in ways I hadn’t ever anticipated. Standing in the courtyard of the Sultan Ahmed Mosque and again when wandering the narrow streets of Tzfat, I felt completely shaken by the region. This is an area shaped by the warmth and resilience of its people, where history and faith are intertwined in daily life. Centuries of religious conflict have scarred its landscapes, yet nowhere else in the world is life lived with such an awareness of the past. History is etched into every stone, from Jerusalem’s ancient roads to Istanbul’s towering mosques and the intricately carved tombs of Petra.