Saturday Stuff

Holy Saturday

Words are not needed.

My Friend in Kenya

Yesterday I exchanged emails with my pastor friend in Kenya. He is safe! His family remains in South Africa. He explained some of what has been happening with him, but asked that I not share it on the Internet at this time. He is concerned about being identified by the groups in Kenya.

He wrote that even though, with Kofi Annan’s mediation, Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki and opposition leader Raila Odinga signed a power-sharing agreement last month to end the bloodshed, the country remains unsafe. My friend said that the majority of Kenyans are skeptical about the power sharing deal and fear the violence may again erupt at any time.

I am thankful to know that he is OK. It was truly a Good Friday for me.

Tibet

The petition that many of us signed to be emailed to Chinese President Hu Jintao evidently did little good. This morning the Los Angeles Times published this article entitled Witnesses to Tibet violence saw scenes of horror. The article read in part:

Despite a massive deployment of Chinese forces, the protests show no signs of abating. In New Delhi on Friday, Tibetan exiles stormed the Chinese Embassy. And China posted a "most wanted" list of 21 alleged rioters, consisting of grainy photographs taken from video shot by a hidden camera.

The death toll of Tibetans had risen to 99 as of Friday, with a 16-year-old girl being shot by police in China's Sichuan County, the Tibetan government in exile said.

Chinese authorities say 19 Chinese have been killed in Lhasa: one police officer and the rest civilians.

Burma

The Junta still rules and plans to do so for a long time to come.

My Health

Although the VA has reduced the oxygen it provides to me by 25%, I am feeling and breathing better than I have in a long time. Perhaps the change to warmer weather has helped: Alex and I both spent time out in the 60 F warmth today. I was on the deck reading for several hours while Alex was catting around and grazing (see below).

My leg remains swollen, seems to be more painful each day, and I am having more difficulty standing and walking. This concerns me because I must be mobile: for example, next week I have medical appointments on Monday and Friday and the root canal scheduled for Tuesday. None of these folks will come to me, so I must be able to go to them.

Alex in His Herbivore Mode

With no plants growing in the house, I sometimes forget how much Alex enjoys munching greens. With Spring now here, he did some munching today as captured in the video below:

By the way, Alex has already published his Easter greetings on his blog. The furball did it two days early!