And the Killing Goes On - Happy Anniversary

As of yesterday, in Israel, over 70 rocket attacks, a father of two, who was expecting his third, killed, when a rocket hit his car in Beer Sheva, a woman very seriously wounded in that same attack (according to hospital reports, now fighting for her life). Two children 'lightly' hurt in their home in Ofakim, that took a direct hit (I heard all of the 4 booms from my home). Many 'lighter' injuries - 'just' fragments from rockets in arms and legs, 'just' trauma...

The mortars and rockets have been hitting all of the communities along the Gaza border, and the towns and cities, this time even hitting north of Ashdod.

And in Gaza - many bombardments since Thursday afternoon, with 15 dead (some of which are the terrorists, others are innocent victims - including children, women, the elderly - 'collateral damage'...) Over 45 people wounded (again, many innocent people), huge explosions throughout the Gaza Strip, traumatizing, once again, the people caged in this small piece of land.

The killing goes on, and as of this morning, there is no end in sight.

Are these people in the following photos to be our 'heroes'? Are these generals and militants to continue to dictate our lives? Why do we let them dictate our lives?

                                              Minister of Defense Barak with officers

                                                         Palestinian militants


Today is our wedding anniversary - David and I have been married for 38 years. We were married in 1973, just a month and a half before the Yom Kippur/October War. This was my first war, unfortunately not my last. David went off to reserve duty for 6 months, and we barely saw one another, and barely talked to one another during that time. It was a period of history before cell phones (the kibbutz only had one public phone, and we had no phones in our homes), before email, before Skype, before chats on Facebook...

Our married life began in war, and now 38 years later, on the day we were married, war is once again, all around us. Only this time, it is a war being carried out mainly against citizens, against men, women and children who have nothing to do with the bombing of the other... 

This is what I would like for an anniversary present: a ceasefire.
I do not need jewelry or flowers or chocolates.
I will forgo the cake, and forgo the candles,
you need not send an anniversary card.

Dear Mr. Netanyahu, Mr. Barak and Mr. Haniyeh:
Please, send us a ceasefire for our anniversary.
This is my anniversary wish.

I don't need chocolates. Don't even need a card...