Ash Wednesday

Drizzly night with reddish clouds

It's Ash Wednesday. Lent has begun. It's a day of fasting ... so it's lentil soup. I might just do the Desert Fathers lenten diet ... dates and water. I was told dates are good for my health situation. Anyway the docs have ordered that I keep a vegetarian diet from ... like 2 weeks ago. No meat allowed or oil. So dates should be fine for me. My vegan friends are very happy ... to say the least. Our kitchen staff has been very kind to me and provide a large stock of veggies and fruit. I guess I can also eat boiled or steamed fish ... otherwise I'll get very bored with meals.

Purple freesias &
yellow daffodils

Well anyway it's the perfect diet for Lent. And as for penance ... the unending fever and pain is the deal. Anyway we had ashes distributed this morning. The Mass was long ... one hour including homily. Most of us who start work at 8am and only half an hour for breakfast and travel to work. What a rush.

And what a downpour yesterday .... so many places were flooded from the north to the southern desert except Jerusalem. There was only slight drizzle all day there. Roads in there best of the country were closed off or blocked. Cars were stranded and desert wadis changed course due to the torrents.  https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5473994,00.html
and
https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5473215,00.html?fbclid=IwAR3saAAHAOF2fAz5MdXqYjAlzG1Q1MT1quehesz-4J6kBZL-kxLXSOSfJQs

And we've been warned a plagues of locusts will invade the country by Passover because the heavy rains are conducive for those insects to breed. It's a Passover plaque all over again. Anyway a local rabbi has the solution for it ... eat it. It's kosher.    https://www.jpost.com/Israel-News/Delicious-locusts-With-swarms-imminent-one-Rabbi-offers-a-tasty-solution-582357?fbclid=IwAR0FbvaOiWK3MxvmWzu3GfIpI67dl1OUfT422e_E5Uld1MeIwG1VnQkQ03M