Day Six - A Hard Day

I've had to drag myself to the computer tonight to write something for this day. Maybe it's obvious to my regular readers, but I tend to write more when I'm happy. Some people write more when they're sad since writing is an outlet for them to release the pressure of unhappiness or depression. But for me, I'm much more inspired to write when I'm overflowing with joy...which is not the case tonight...

Today was the most difficult day yet for the boys and I. We had a particularly difficult "piranha hour," and my parents who were here eating supper with us got to witness a full display of disobedience and bad attitudes. Ugh.

However, the evening did get better, especially after the boys fell asleep. :) With a challenging day today, surely tomorrow will be better! Live ever in hope, right?

So--on a more cheerful note--some pictures that Jeff sent today:

~ a terraced grapevine at Nazareth Village, done in the first century style
~ the students in one of the smaller classes (Josiah and David were so excited to see this picture, although David did ask, "Where's Daddy?" and didn't realize that Jeff would be the one taking the picture...but the funniest thing is that J & D were thrilled to see Jeff's blue backpack on the table at the front of the room...they--and I--cling to any kind of link to Jeff) :)

Jeff wrote that he volunteered to help tomorrow afternoon with the construction of a stone mikvah that is being built (using ancient methods) at Nazareth Village. Working outside...in Israel...in July...in the afternoon...moving stones and mixing mortar...hmm, doesn't sound like much fun to me! :)

And now, for the Israel cultural note of the day... This picture was taken on May 12, 2005, Israel's Independence Day. Since we just celebrated America's Independence Day, I was reminded of this picture showing the typical Israeli celebration for their big day: going to the park for a picnic. This was a huge park, but it was absolutely packed with people. Groups were everywhere, with tents, canopies, small grills, tables, coolers, etc.--all the items required for a great picnic. And although I can't say for sure what percentage of the people got there on foot, what percentage came on public transportation, and what percentage drove there in their own car, I think it's safe to say that the drivers of their own car would be the smallest category. We went on public transportation, and I remember how inconvenient it was to lug all this stuff around, much more of a bother than simply loading up the ol' minivan and driving somewhere like we do in the States. But that's how things were done there, so that's how we lived, too. In any case, I remember being shocked by how crowded this park was...and being assured by the "natives" that every park in Israel was similarly packed on that day!