Moving the center to the north: It is time to change consciousness
The next time you head north, don't ask yourself "when are we arriving?" Look outside, breathe the air, and realize you have arrived. The center has moved. Now it is your turn to be truly present in it.
There is an optical illusion that occurs the moment we get on Highway 6 heading north. Without noticing, we carry the center with us all the way. We bring with us the concept of urgent time, the efficiency of Waze that needs to maximize every minute, and the habit of seeing everything beyond Netanya as something located in the "periphery" — a place to pop into to catch an attraction, snap a story, and return home.
But the real shift in consciousness on a trip to the Galilee begins when you shift the center of gravity.
Shifting the center of gravity means understanding that the Galilee is not a backdrop for your weekend, and it is certainly not the country's backyard. It is the center. Right now, at this very moment, the trail, the mountain, and the community living here — they are the real story.
In recent years, the Galilee has undergone difficult upheavals. The green landscape has absorbed blows, the roads have known tense silence, and the local communities have faced physical and mental tests that have no parallel. Precisely because of this, coming here today is not just an act of leisure — it is a position of consciousness.
It means lifting your head from the fast screen of Waze, stopping the calculation of which route will save four minutes, and letting your eyes meet the topography. Dealing with the road, climbing on foot to the cliffs, feeling the pulse rise, and knowing that this effort is exactly what connects us to this land.
And above all, shifting the center of gravity means seeing the people.
It means that the morning coffee is not just another stop on the way, but a meeting with a local business owner who is fighting for his home. The lunch, the winery, the off-road guide, or the B&B at the edge of the village — they are not "tourist services," they are the beating heart of this region. When you buy from them, stay with them, and eat at their table, you are not "doing a favor"; you are actively participating in the restoration and strengthening of your new center.
And when you return home — carry this message to those around you. Remind them and yourself: The Galilee is not just another weekend with traffic jams; it is a land of life.
Ilan Rubin is the CEO of the Lev BaGalil organization.
