Every time I drive on Road 232, a main artery through southern Israel, I see phantoms.

Since moving to a kibbutz in southern Israel in July, Road 232 has become my lifeline, as it is for all residents of a region that is dotted with small towns and villages. This beautiful, pastoral area is where much of Israel’s fresh produce is grown.

Today, however, many orchards and fields are overgrown. The residents who maintained them have either been murdered, displaced from their homes or taken hostage by Hamas. Worn posters of hostages from the area remind residents of this fact at every turn, intersection and roadside bomb shelter.