Updates

All night pain deep in the sinus. Had another flush of blood late in the night. Till now the pain is overpowering despite taking painkillers. I think maybe some of the internal stitches burst when I sneezed. Have been lying down mostly this morning, though I did go down for some fresh air at our main door for a few minutes. Good to see some old friends at work: Rotem, Avichai and a few others. Everyone wanted to know how I was and insisted I go back to Jaffa to rest. I really think so too. Jerusalem is 100% not a place for recuperation.

Homemade helmets
against missiles

Missiles continue to fall toward Tel Aviv though mostly all have been intercepted by Israel's Iron Dome Defense rockets. In Jerusalem it's peaceful ... we haven't had a siren alarm the past 2 days. Here we only have endless fireworks for families celebrating the successful matriculation of their children. And its powerful explosives. The family behind our house fired almost 100 rockets of fireworks last night. It shook all the neighbouring houses and no one could sleep. What a dreadful waste of money .... 100 rockets cost about 20,000 shekels ... all literally gone up in smoke. Then they complain they have no money for food and education. It's one very bad mark of local culture ... wasting money to show off. Things must change.

Israel's bombing in Gaza has affected Mother Theresa's sisters too. They run a home for handicap children. Last week at midnight they received a call to evacuate because a house nearby will be bombed and their convent will be affected. The poor nuns had to carry all their handicap charges to the nearby church for shelter in pitch darkness. Thanks to your kind donation of dynamo-charged torches, they and their neighbours could find their way safely to the church. The poor children didn't understand what was happening ... just scared of the loud explosions around them as the nuns covered them with thick blankets to prevent injuries from shrapnel. Those nuns are real heroes. Now they need help for medicines and other daily necessities which the war is depleting stocks from pharmacies and hospitals. The children need help.