Dear @theasianisraeli community

Hey there chamudim, how are you? I would be remiss if I didn't start this letter off by saying TODA RABA. Thank you to each and every one of you for following me throughout my journey of discovery, identity, and just plain ole' life. Thank you to all of you who have supported me in hard times, to all of you who have asked me (sometimes tough) questions, sent me suggestions for anything from what to wear to what to eat, and more. Thank you for being my friends!

As I've said time and time again, I'm on a journey. It's the journey of life, and I believe we are all on one. As we go through life, our experiences, the places we go, the people we meet, and more, all help direct the eb and flow of where our journeys take us—and we can never know where they might take us. If you asked anyone in the first 20 years of my life if they ever thought Amy Albertson would move to Israel, they would have thought you were smoking something. Yet here I am, 6 years an Israeli.

This all brings me to why I actually decided to write this letter to you all. After a lot of processing, I have decided to take another big step in my journey and move back to the US.

I still love Israel very, very much—I just don't think I want to live there at this point in my life. My personal goals have changed and at this time, Israel just isn't the place for me to achieve them. In so many ways, Israel and all my experiences living here have shaped me into the person I am today. As an Israeli I've become confident, assertive, and expressive. I've been blessed with amazing professional opportunities over the years and have grown into a very skilled marketer. My knowledge of and connection to the Jewish people has grown and developed exponentially. I've grown physically, mentally, and spiritually more than I could have ever imagined.

But now it is time to take this new Amy, her chutzpah and all, into the next phase of life.

If anything, I do not want this to discourage any of you who have hopes of making Aliyah and have asked me for advice on the matter. Many hold negativity towards "yerida", and see it as a failure. It is absolutely not. As I've said many times, one of the most beautiful things about Israel is that it is always here for us no matter what. Not necessarily every Jew in the world needs to live there, but if at any time they decide they do, Israel will be there. So it is with this in mind that I will leave Israel, and know that it is always there for me no matter what. (And of course I will come visit!)

I am and will continue to be, a proud Jewish woman. Discussions of identity, Judaism, Jewish issues, antisemitism, etc. will continue. I hope we can continue to learn and grow as a community in these areas, and hopefully new ones, as this new phase progresses.

I know many of you found The Asian Israeli for a specific reason. I hope you will choose to continue to not only follow but also be part of, my journey as I flow into this next phase.

B'Ahava,

Amy