The Wall
November 4, 2003

Could three and a half years have passed already?  We are facing less than two more months here, astonished that our time in Zababdeh is almost up.  After we celebrate Christmas with friends and adopted family here in Zababdeh, we'll say farewells and head back to the US.  While we know we'll miss this place and these people terribly, we also know that we won't miss the frustrations and dangers.  We'll be happy to be able to travel from place to place without delay, fear, and harassment. We'll
be happy not to keep an ear out for tanks or helicopters.  We'll be happy to have predictable electricity, phones, and water. We'll be happy to have reliable access to banks, hospitals, and shops.  We'll be very happy to get mail again. And, we'll be really happy to eat some decent pizza and ice cream.

When we get back, we'll go straight to Elizabeth's (and Buddy Holly's) hometown of Lubbock, Texas, where we'll see family and begin our busy six-month final itineration. From there, we hope to visit the following places (in chronological order): San Antonio, Plano, Waco, Austin, Santa Fe, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Eugene, Portland, Seattle, Billings, Iowa, Wisconsin, Chicago, Lexington, Atlanta, Alabama, Chapel Hill, DC, Baltimore, Lebanon (PA), Philadelphia, New York, Connecticut, Boston. In a few weeks we'll post our full agenda on our webpage. Please feel free to contact us with questions or requests.

The Wall severing Qalqilia from much of its agricultural land and wells completely surrounds the town.  Access in or out is tightly restricted by soldiers at the only two gates.

Completing the film, setting our itineration schedule, and packing up the past three and a half years of our lives is keeping us more than busy. This fall, we have not been able to go olive picking, visit many people, take walks in the hills, or write as much as we'd like.  We do not anticipate composing many more email updates for some time. Instead, we invite you to visit our daily journal, which we do maintain:  And if another person's piece of writing strikes a chord, we may pass it along.  That is the case with the piece pasted at the end of this letter.

In the past month, we have been in Nablus, Jenin, Tubas, and Jalame for filming.  We have been amazed by the perseverance of the people here, particularly in the face of unbelievable difficulties and dangers of simple travel.  We have also been astonished and distressed by the progress of The Wall, which we have witnessed as it snakes a route deep into the West Bank, imprisoning local populations in villages and towns like Jalame, Qalqilia, and Tulkarem.  In places, we have seen its loops of barbed wire, ditches, and patrol roads.  In others, we have seen its watch towers and high concrete walls.  Palestinians cannot get out, and fewer and fewer internationals are allowed in to see its reality.  It is shocking and disturbing. No good can come of it.

We recommend the attached essay by our friend Katherine Maycock. We couldn't have said it better.  Please read it, and note that November 9th is designated as Stop the Wall day. Links with more information are at the end.