It's Friday evening, Erev Shabbat. We're having 6 people for dinner and I've spent the day cooking. It is decidedly the day after. Shabbat is really Shabbat here. The soldiers and the police have gone home to their families. Those families remaining still in Gush Katif will have their last Shabbat in their homes. No one will disturb them. It's like this always here; the soldiers go home for Shabbat. (Not all of them, obviously, but most of them.)

Looking back on the week, I feel extraordinarily proud of our country and especially its soldiers and police. They behaved with such admirable restraint in the midst of chaos. I understand that some people egged them on to get tough with the settlers, and I'm sure some were tempted, but they didn't. Because of their restraint, their intelligence, and their good hearts, really, there were no disasters. A few policemen were injured in the struggle with the resisters in Kfar Drom, but as far as I know, none of the settlers were injured.

Sharon's leadership has been incredible. In his speeches he sounds like he's on the left! In a speech on Thursday he took full responsibility for the disengagement, urging people to criticize him, swear at him, vent their feelings on him, not on the soldiers and the police. One can hardly believe one's eyes and ears!

Frank has gone off to synagogue. I have a bit of cooking to finish and then I'm going to take a shower and put my feet up. Shabbat after an extraordinarily tense week. I do look forward to it! Shabbat shalom...
Pat