Ive

…been walking on this gorgeous day, covering nearly xx miles between a morning loop in the Pine Bush with friends and a late afternoon lap to the Normanskill Farm and home again with Jeter. Without exception, the air felt warm and the sun bright and I’m really glad to have been able to spend my holiday from school outdoors.

…been struggling with a cold which has been teasing me with a sometimes sore throat, stuffy nose and raspy voice, for about a week. I hate taking anything, choosing instead to rely upon big mugs of hot tea with lemon and Black Forest honey dripped from the olive wood honey drizzler brought home from Paros. The Celestial Seasons Lemon Zinger helps more aesthetically than physically, I’m afraid, but when paired with a 74° degree day in early October, I swear I’m feeling better.

…been thinking a lot on this Jewish holiday about the perilous situation in the Middle East and wish I had the power to create peace. Last year when the atrocities committed by Hamas began to reported, my first thought was that the leadership of all three of the factions (Israeli, Palestinian and Hamas) needed to be placed in a room together to hammer out a solution to their conflicts. No one leaves until it’s been figured the f*ck out.

I believed it was vital to get to the bottom of what happened and to stand by Israel as they mourned their lost loved ones and assist in the recovery of those taken hostage.

Actually, even more than merely “stand by,” I held the belief that international organizations such as the U.N. needed to surround and protect Israel from any further acts of violence.

But, I hadn’t anticipated being asked to stand by as witnesses to the subsequent aggressive Israeli attacks against their enemies, attacks which have (conservatively) killed more woman and children than any other recent conflict in a single year. I didn’t imagine that a population which knows far too much about being the victims of targeted genocide would so unhesitatingly perpetrate one of their own.

…grown exhausted by the war in this world. I’m tired of reading about it, viewing it and financing it. The priority of funding killing above education, housing and health care will never make sense to me.

…had it. How about you?