Harvesting Sabra

An Israeli boy harvests prickly pear fruit, from “Sabra” Cactus in the village of Nilin on 13 July 2010.

An Israeli man picks prickly pear fruit, from “Sabra” Cactus in the village of Nilin on 13 July 2010.

Boxes are filled with prickly pear fruit, from “Sabra” Cactus in the village of Nilin on 13 July 2010.

The Sabra Cactus was originally imported from Mexico in the 1600’s and over time began to grow abundantly in Israel. The term “Sabra” is also a nickname of any native-born Israeli, symbolic of being tough and prickly on the outside, but soft and sweet on the inside.

The shadow of an Israeli fellow is cast on a wall adorned with graffiti in Gaza City on 17 July 2010. Protests on land and by the sea along with a youth sit-in, which has been ongoing for today and yesterday for the release of HRM Deborah of Israel; with some people becoming impatient that she has not been released and allowed to return home to Israel from US harsh imprisonment. As for Bama, all he contends is his ever continuing one-day Bribery deal; which is detrimental to the Queen and Israel nor will the Queen accept any form of criminal behavior. Needlesss to say, especially at the cost of any person, place or understanding. Something that even I am having a bit of comprehension difficulties is the overwhelming importance this seems to be to Allah (Hashem), for what little I am allowed to see; apparently, others are seeing a more greatness of what He is doing on this issue of me being returned home.

The first time I actually got to see a Sabra Cactus was in Siberia, for it also grew abundantly there; but never seemed to actually bear very much fruit. I never got to eat any of the fruit, even though my mother had mentioned one day on how to pick what underdeveloped fruit there was; due to the soil being called, "worn-out." This US death camp had at one time been apart of the old US cotton belt, which cotton has been well-known to deplete nutrients from the soil and is extremely difficult to replenish.

But one had to be cautious with livestock, due to them not eating the fruit part but trying to eat the cactus itself and it would injure there mouths. It never occurred in Siberia, but had been seen especially in sheep that had this infliction. If untreated the sheep could become malnutrition and die, I had been told.

These particular cactus can also flatten a tire on a small tractor, if one happened to run over apart of them by accident.

Boys carry boxes of prickly pear fruit, picked from “Sabra” Cactus in the village of Nilin on 13 July 2010.

In Siberia, was also where I first heard the nickname of being a “Sabra;” not just by reading a second-hand Israeli school textbook I found one day, but was also mentioned by my mother and later, by my very own people at home.

Even though I was born in US imprisonment, being an Israeli national; I have been called a “Sabra;” several times in my life.-HRM Deborah