Ash Wednesday

Almond blossoms in the park

I finally had to go see the doctor. The dizziness, breathlessness and tightening chest was quite bad the night before. I really thought a heart attack was due ... all the symptoms were there: sweaty hands, blurred vision. But not before teaching over 4 hours of class and doing lots of chores. I was utterly exhausted by 6pm when I walked to the clinic 2 kms away. Anyway the doc placed several drops of a liquid under my tongue and I rested in the clinic for an hour or more. Then I walked home. It was almost 10pm by then. But I had a very good sleep and woke up feeling much better today.

My Media and Communications class:
41 students learning how to operate
a movie camera

It's Ash Wednesday today. I had wanted to do the full fast ... but being still weak and under medication, I had to eat a piece of bread this morning. My aim for Lent is to eat the diet of the desert fathers - those monks who lived and still do live in the deserts of Judea, namely dates. There's sufficient sugar and fibre content in dates ... and they survived on this for many years. I want to try it out. Let's see how long I can hold out on a date diet for 40 days. I guess it's my way of praying for the christians in Syria, Yemen, Iraq who are persecuted by ISIS. For us, fasting is a choice, for them fasting is a daily reality forced on them.

Terrifying news yesterday and today. ISIS has started persecuting christians in the Sinai peninsula as well. Christians are fleeing the cities by the thousands. Refugees are seeking shelter in churches in Egypt. Pray for them.  http://www.jpost.com/Christian-News/Egypts-Christians-fleeing-Islamic-State-violence-are-left-in-limbo-482746   and   http://www.jpost.com/Middle-East/ISIS-attacks-on-Sinai-Christians-pose-challenge-to-Sisi-482878

Well sick or not, school has to go on. Walking to Ratisbon Institute is an ordeal for me. 2 kms away uphill. I have to stop twice along the way to rest. It takes me more than an hour to reach there. But the 41 students that I teach make it all worthwhile. Last week they learned how to operate a movie camera by one of our expert cameramen from the Media Centre.