Samaritan feast

Full moon over Damascus Gate

Yesterday's full moon marked the Smaritan Passover. This year, due to the addition of a month in the Samaritan lunar calendar, their Passover did not clash with the Jewish Passover by a month. That made it possible for the jews to go and attend the Samaritan Passover. I understand the crowds were so great the military had to come in to handle the crowds, Muslim, Christian and Jewish leaders from nearby Nablus came to wish the High Priest a happy feast. The slaughter of the lambs took place as scheduled when the story of the Exodus was read in public. The Samaritans are one of the world's minorities, with no more than 500 left and all live here in Israel. Too much in-breeding does not help. I think some students went to witness it. I decided not to go because of the crowds. Perhaps next year.

Beggars at Damascus
Gate

It's Monday .. class at 4am. I was utterly exhausted and wished I could sleep another hour. After class I had to open the library. Then a rush to the other library 1km uphill to open it and arrange the work for the librarians. Then it was a rush back home because one of the students sent his very very late thesis chapter for correction. I have sacrificed so much for these students but some are just beyond help. The dateline was a week ago but I think he asked for an exemption, Still it's 3 days late from the exemption dateline. Right now I'm so exhausted from english class and correcting 10 pages for a professor ... I just can't look at this thesis. It's just so depressing.

And talk about depressing ... I've noticed a rise in beggars at Damascus Gate. Since the 2nd Intifada and the stabbing Intifada 3 years back, fewer beggars dared to sit around Damascus Gate just in case a stray bullet might hit them. But these few months, a flood of beggars have returned to the Gate ... both inside and out. Most of the women we know ... they're regulars. 3 sisters with their children whom they drug with sleeping pills in order to draw sympathy and money. Now they cover their faces with veils so no one can recognize them. But after each day's begging they gather with their families and eat picnic style at the park along the City Gates.

Well I might just join them and beg .... beg for sleep, beg for free time, beg for a vacation  ....