In his final public speech, the great Israeli writer and peace activist Amos Oz said: “You could not find — in my childhood and certainly not today — two people who could agree on what the goal of the Zionist project was. Zionism was a federation of dreams… but whatever those dreams were, they all agreed that they could only become true here.”

As we mark 78 years of the State of Israel, many of us carry complex feelings. We have felt immense pride — like when we watched hostages finally come home after more than two years. But we have also felt pain, division, and deep worry. For many young Jews, their relationship with Israel has been tested like never before.

And yet, it is almost impossible to remain indifferent. Israel is now home to roughly half of the Jewish people. It is the place where so much of our collective story has been and is still being written. Many of us have family and loved ones there. Most of us feel something deep stir inside every time we visit. Asking ourselves and each other what our connection to Israel is like has become a pretty Jewish act in itself.

For me, Israel remains the greatest collective endeavor the Jewish people has undertaken in many centuries. I feel its successes and struggles as ours, collectively. And I also accept that there is no single “correct” way to feel connected to it. As Oz himself put it: “The only way to keep a dream, any dream at all, is to never live it out. All dreams fulfilled are imperfect.”

This Yom Ha’atzmaut, let’s ask ourselves: How do we actively take part in this dream? How do we create spaces where young Jews can honestly wrestle with Israel’s reality without running away from the difficult questions? And how do we turn our emotions and solidarity into action?