Holy Sepulchre Mass

Mass inside the Empty Tomb today

Weather forecast : colder and colder. Even when the sun is shining we have to wear jackets and hoodies and scarves. It's been hovering around 15 degrees today. What we really need is the rain. Let's hope all the forecast for dry weather will change suddenly. The earth here is parched and plants are barely surviving.

I had another early day today. Up at 4am to prepare to go to the Holy Sepulchre at 5am for Mass. Remembered you all during Mass. I was dead tired as I came home from work last night at about 10pm. This week has been unbelievably exhausting with exhibitions, conferences, meetings after meetings, and of course normal work. I've slept about 3 hours a day for the past 7 days. Well I told the superior that I can't continue like this anymore and need to rest. So he said I could go to Jaffa to rest tomorrow. That means 12 hours of sleep undisturbed ... I hope. I'll have to wake up at 3am in order to prepare to leave at 4.45am by bus in order to avoid the legendary traffic jam of Tel Aviv.

Cyclamen from
Sr. Gabriela

After early Mass today I had a short lesson with the filipinos from our Jaffa parish who came to Jerusalem. Then immediately it was a 3 hour meeting before a short lunch break. I tried t rest when I got home but only half an hour the phone rang and rang. People wanting this and that. 4pm I had another meeting 1 km uphill and then another meeting. Now it's almost 8pm and I'm finished with it. I want to sleep. Tomorrow I need to wake up early to rest. What an irony.

Yesterday Sr. Gabriela, our neighbour at the 3rd station, gave me a pot of cyclamen for my feast day. How thoughtful. The sudden cold has made the cyclamen blossom and poinsettias turn red. Even the tulips are sprouting leaves. Christmas will definitely be cold this year ... but like I said earlier, what we really need is the rain. That would be the best Christmas present we could have.