Quiet Thursday

It's Thursday and all is calm at the borders. Apparently there were secret meetings between Israel and Gaza for a ceasefire that will last for a year. In return for not firing missiles, Israel will open humanitarian corridors both on land and sea so that food and medicine can enter Gaza. It's a deal Gaza should't pass if it were smart.

The dollar is rising

Meantime the US imposing tariffs on Turkey and other factors have resulted in the dollar rising against local currencies. For the first time in a long time, the dollar is worth 3.6 shekels instead of 3.3. Many people are waiting for it to rise to 3.8 before selling their dollars. The exchange stalls along Salahadin Street were packed with people this morning. Aladdin Exchange, one of the oldest exchange agencies and one of the most honest, is frequented by almost all christian institutions ... orthodox, catholic and protestant. As I passed by this morning, there were many people there watching the dollar exchange.

And also on a happy note, despite the US withdrawal from funding UNICEF, the 711 palestinians schools depending on those funds will still open on August 29th as the new academic year begins. Let's hope all will go well as the year proceeds.

Sunrise today on my way to Ivrea
convent

Our chapel is under restoration as mosaics have been falling off the dome as well as the floor. Theoretically it should take "one day". Anyone living in the Middle East ought to know that means "one week" or more. As we're practically only 2 of us left in the house who actually can say Mass, our workload suddenly intensified. Not only do we 2 have to celebrate the Masses in our place and at the Ivrea Convent but we have to oversee the restoration work and control the unruly tourists from entering the church. It's dangerous because it's full of scaffoldings and something could fall on their heads.

All this has stressed me out and my ankle and left palm is swollen quite badly. And I had a fever last night and my right shoulder continues to hurt when I lie down. In short I hardly slept the past few nights. Stressed on a quiet Thursday.