Just as it happened here in D.C., a blanket of snow in Israel has suddenly calmed and brightened the mood of those living there under great stress.
“It’s a moment of relief for all of us,” said Avital, an Israeli woman in her 20s, as she built a snowman – complete with a broom and carrot nose – on a traffic island.
In the Old City, Kaed Suweiti, a young Palestinian who turned 25 on Tuesday, was thrilled the storm coincided with his birthday. Getting snowed on near Damascus Gate, he said he felt the white gusts had erased the region’s problems.
A shopkeeper in the Muslim Quarter lighted charcoal in an empty tomato can to warm his hands, and the smoke filled a tunnel alleyway. For the man, 25-year-old Ali Natche, the snow was one of those simple things, like a holiday or a visit from a friend, which bring some joy in difficult days.
“People are happy for a few days because of the snow,” he said.
Do you think God has sent these snowstorms to remind us of something? Why can’t we keep that feeling even after the snow has melted?
