Extending the Days, Listening, Discussing, Going

This evening I attended a documentary viewing and discussion on the theme: "Does Israel care about what the world says?" Mr. Gideon Gital produced the documentary "UM - SHMUM Seven Hours to Death" based on the Lebanon War in 2006. The panel was attended by French General Alain Pellegrini, former UNIFIL Commander, and international journalists Odeh Bisharat, Mats Gezelius and Jonathan Steele.

The discussion showed me how much more I need to learn about Israel, its history and its layers.

Yesterday I saw three short contemporary Indian films: Three of Us (fiction, 2008), Vitthal (fiction, 2009) and Wagah (documentary, 2009). The first centers around an Indian family of three. Actually, I didn't really understand this movie's message. I would love to speak to someone who does, as I couldn't find any information online. The second film focuses on a 12-year-old boy, Vitthal, whose grandfather has died. Vitthal is forced to have his hair shaved off, as part of the Hindu customs for respecting the dead. He hates this, is teased at school, and feels alone at home. The third documentary takes place in Wagah, the border crossing between India and Pakistan. The changing of the guards and border closing has attracted thousands of spectators, curious about "the other side." Children are the main interviewees of this documentary.

ALSO, last night Shizuka came into my room with a little envelope. A few days ago, she told me that she had something to show me. "It's useless though," she said. I asked if it was a hug. No. A chicken?

Shizuka sat on my bed and started taking out different pieces of origami, each one associated with a joke or word or event we shared. I wasn't having a good day on Saturday, and she decided to make a piece of origami to cheer me up. One origami developed into this:



Carrots, because we love eating carrots. Zhenia taught us to eat it in a very special way. Squirrel, because this word is hard for Shizuka to pronounce, and it is so cute when she tries! Hevonen (horse in Finnish) because it is one of the first words we learned in Heikki's Elementary Finnish course. I wondered when we were ever going to use this word. We ended up seeing a hevonen at least once a week since then. Lehmä (cow) because it's a funny word. Chicken, because, well, this is way too deep of a joke to start on.

Zhenia described Shizuka best when she likened her to a sunset. A beautiful moment; you can stare at her for a long time. A comfortable sight and often unpredictable. Shizu has a subtle profoundness; a sharp attention to detail; an open, active, eager mind; a relaxed touch. Really, a lovely person.