The World Vision group came to the school assembly that morning, to share words of encouragement and to get a further tour of the school and the new hall (where the old hall once was) now under construction.
Read More"I'm not allowed to tell you this," he said, "but the problem there is the Israeli settlers - not the Palestinians."
Read MoreA late Sunday afternoon walk in the mountain with our friends.
Read MoreIt's clear that a strong relationship of trust and mutual respect has been cultivated, as they discussed particular passage in the Qur'an and the Bible.
Read MoreAs we passed, the gun went off - we all ducked in reflex, but the car was untouched - not sure about the two boys who apparently posed a great security risk. Only one word can describe the scene we witnessed - obscenity.
Read MoreToday is the Jewish festival of Purim, which celebrates the liberation of the Jews in Persia from the evil Haman who sought to destroy them. It also celebrates the murder of the enemies of the Jews and the hanging of the sons of Haman. A reveler in the New City decided that the parallel held up between Haman and Arafat, and decided to let everyone know.
Read MoreWhen we reached the split road of Kfar Darom, the bottleneck of Palestinian taxis was overwhelming. But even worse was the loud "boom" we heard as we passed the Israeli tank (at least one gun is always pointed at the traffic) - turned out to be from an airplane, probably, but not the noise you want to hear then.
Read MoreThe result is that most of the produce is simply rotting on the vine while people in Gaza City have none. Economic strangulation.
Read MoreToday was the beginning of 'Eid al-Adha, the Muslim feast which celebrates the sparing of Ishmael (in the Qur'an, it is understood that Abraham took his firstborn - i.e. Ishmael not Isaac - to sacrifice) from the knife of Abraham, and marks the end of the season for pilgrimage to Mecca.
Read MoreOur neighbor was headed down to the Gaza Strip to see his family and invited us to come along.
Read MoreOur mechanic is desperately trying to find a 1987 Citroen automatic transmission that can make it through the dozens and dozens of roadblocks.
Read MoreHospitable, resourceful, and generous. So many stereotypes subverted in one moment. Here we were, the Americans whose tax dollars are contributing to their oppression. Here we were, with Israeli license plates. And here we were, Christians in a Muslim town. None of that mattered - we were people in need, and they came to our aid.
Read MoreSince all of our building's telephones are in the name of our landlord, and since one person recently moved out without paying his phone bill, all of the lines were cut.
Read MoreToday is Ash Wednesday as Lent begins.
Read MoreThe recent unrest has accelerated some departures, as lack of work and closures (as well as a failed peace process) are strangling everyone here.
Read MoreThe situation faced by Palestinians today far surpasses the conditions faced by Blacks in apartheid South Africa, in terms of the violence, randomness, ferocity, and sheer venom of the Israeli occupation.
Read MoreWe then headed down to central Ramallah for a solidarity rally, led by a Muslim sheikh, a Coptic bishop, and an Anglican priest.
Read MoreWe visited the rooms in the Red Crescent/Red Cross hospital which burned after being hit by Israeli shelling; we also saw other damaged targets, including homes, a minibus owned by a school for deaf children, and a nearby newspaper office.
Read MorePeople are celebrating in a much more muted way. There's music, but no dancing. People are still in a nation-wide mourning.
Read MoreOur West Bank is landmarked by Palestinian cities and villages, connected (now) by windy roads, whereas hers is marked by Jewish settlements connected by highways. It was as if we were talking about two totally different countries.
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