I have lots to do tonight: I'm on my way to Merced tomorrow morning for Simchat Torah and a weekend of work at Congregation Etz Chaim. But the news is pressing on me, and I thought I'd write about it a little and see if it will help my heavy heart.

Bombings at a resort in Egypt just over the border from Israel have killed at least 30 people. Three explosions took place, right at the conclusion of the Sukkot holiday, when the resorts were full of Israelis. The Egyptian public line is that they are not sure that it is terrorism. To that, all I know to say is, they must be kidding.

The world is bomb-crazy. Little children and their families are dead under holiday hotels in Egypt. Terrorists shoot missiles from Gaza over the border into Israel, killing children, which draws the Israeli army into Gaza, to try to stop the murderers, in the process killing more children. (For details of that convoluted sentence, check out the story in Haaretz.)

In Afghanistan, they are going to try to hold elections, but there are bombs going off there, too. And of course, there are the constant bombings and violence in Iraq -- I am mystified that anyone thinks that anything there is "going well."

Meantime, I'm studying. The prophets are shaking me to my bones, not that that is a bad thing, but neither is it a pleasant thing. Talmud is an intricate mental exercise. I can feel my mind becoming more limber and strong. In my other classes, I am learning wonderful things and in a constant state of frustration about the limits of time and my abilities. There is so much to learn, all of it important.

Time to move the laundry from the washer to the dryer.