What Children Share When They Feel Safe Enough to Open Up

After more than a year of Wonder Wheels being out in the field, in schools and communities across northern Israel, we have found ourselves looking back at the things children have shared with our staff during these activities. Some of their words are gentle. Some are painful. Some make your heart break that a child so young has had to experience so much. The image below includes just three of the many children who have opened up during Wonder Wheels events. Their words remind us why this work is so important in the North of Israel, and how much more work there is still to do

At first, a Wonder Wheels resilience activity may look like a creative workshop. Children draw, make bracelets, fill lavender sachets, write notes, or create something small with their hands. But often, while they are focused on the activity, something happens naturally. A child begins to talk.
They are not asked to perform their pain. They are not pushed to explain what they are feeling. The activity simply creates a calm space where expression can happen in a way that feels safe.
For many children in northern Israel, the past year has brought fear, uncertainty, sirens, displacement, and separation from loved ones. Some have parents, siblings, or relatives serving in the military, whether enlisted or called up for reserve duty. Some are carrying worry for someone far away. Some are processing loss, trauma, or memories that are difficult even for adults to speak about.
During Wonder Wheels events, those feelings sometimes come out quietly.
A child may make something for a brother serving in the army because she misses him. Another may draw a pet that helps him feel safe. Another may speak about children she knew who were killed in the Majdal Shams rocket attack at the soccer field on July 27, 2024, and then describe how the smell of lavender helps her feel less angry.
These moments are small, but they are not simple.
They show us that children are carrying emotions they do not always know how to name. They also show us that when children feel safe enough, they will often find their own way to share what is inside.
That trust means everything to us.
Our resilience activities are not just feel-good projects. They are developed with care and professional guidance, in partnership with and with guidance from the Community Stress Prevention Center in Kiryat Shmona, so that the activities are rooted in an understanding of children’s emotional needs during crisis.
Still, the most meaningful moments cannot be scripted. They happen in the middle of making, drawing, smelling, touching, choosing colors, or sitting beside someone who is listening.
A child opens up.
A staff member listens.
And for a moment, something heavy has a place to go.
Looking back on more than a year of Wonder Wheels, these are the moments that stay with us. They remind us that resilience is not built through slogans or speeches. It is built through trust, safety, creativity, and the quiet presence of adults who are willing to listen.
It is an honor to be part of that process.
And it is a reminder that this work is still deeply needed.