Sunday, March 23, 2003

Sunday evening tension
Still nothing from Salam.

The idea of coalition PoW's in the hands of the Iraqis is making me feel sick. All I can think of is the Ramallah Lynching.

Bish saw the female soldier on Sky News. He said she looked scared. I'm glad I didn't see it. Without thinking I asked him if she had long hair. I'm not over this yet. Maybe I never will be.

I'm suddenly realizing (with a mixture of shock and depression) that we're not out of the picture yet. All this Iraqi resistance gives me the feeling that maybe we shouldn't be in any hurry to rule out the idea, widely speculated on in recent months, that Saddam could still make an effort to lash out at us with the worst when he's got nothing left to lose. The feeling of relief that nothing has happened yet, which has been replaced with complacence, could be premature.

I took youngest to her dancing class this afternoon. My friend I. who usually takes Youngest and her daughter, while I bring them back, cancelled. I wondered if I should maybe not take Youngest either, for once, but she was adamant about going. They were starting a new dance routine today, following last week's performance in the Purim party. Watching the six and seven year olds filing into the studio with their gas mask boxes, like it was the most natural thing, I felt very sad.

Youngest told me that N., Eldest's little friend from first grade, found an atropine shot on the floor today at school. All the students up to the age of eight, who had the same type of atropine shot as that found, had to take out their gas masks and check if theirs was missing.

When we got home from the dancing class I had to go to the supermarket for bread and tomatoes. I gave the girls the usual briefing about what to do if there is a missile attack while I'm gone. The supermarket is next door. Once downstairs I discovered it was dark out. Then I discovered I'd forgotten my cell phone.

Bish did the shopping when he got home.

As you can see, I'm feeling rather jittery this evening.

And this morning terrorists opened fire on a car at the entrance of the Israeli village of Katzir, which is inside pre-1967 Israel. One of the two terrorists was apprehended.

Update: Shared my hysterical feelings with Bish and got a big hug. Now I'm feeling much better.