I am still at the hostel in Mikhmoret. It has been rainy so I am taking the opportunity to ice my ankles with the fervent wish that they will rally forth and be able to stay the course. My stomach flutters at the thought. The days with Kermit the car taking Jen and I wherever we wanted, carrying loads of delicious food and water without hardship, combined with the fact that I have been cocooned (with water and power at my fingertips) here in this resort hostel seems to have filed off the hard edge of my resolve that was so well honed in the desert. Tootie (one of the young students) told me that I still need to rest, that I am carrying too much weight (maybe she means around my hips). The food here is awesome. The picture is a representation of the food staples that Jen and I enjoyed every day.

  
Jen arrived back in Edmonton safely and received a warm welcome from her family, who are thrilled to have her home. Her leg is doing weird things with intermittent periods of numbness so she will make a doctors appointment to check that out and catch up on needed sleep before starting work again. I am sure she is enjoying not having to blow up her bed every night. She will send my solar charger back to the company in California and once they receive it, they will send me another one here in Israel. Her feelings about leaving are still mixed and I very much miss her company but we both feel she made the right decision

Last night in the rain, my sleeping bag wrapped around me, I scampered under a tarp sheltering a couple of couches, where I slept until morning. The owner of this establishment is returning in the next few days. The students living here have said that my being here will be no problem but in the same breath they say, “he is an asshole to put it gently”. I think I would rather be gone when he arrives.

I am eager to get back on the trail and find out that all will be well. I feel restless and soft but I’m grateful to have had this place to physically and emotionally prepare for the second leg of this journey, whatever that will look like. My plan is to leave tomorrow but I will let the final decision of when to emerge from the chrysalis rest with the weather. If it is raining in the morning, I will stay for yet another fitful day of leisure and continue to ice my feet. If not, I will quell my stomach flutterings and cautiously test my wings.