I’m riding the crowded bus in Jerusalem, window open, on my way to class on Mt. Scopus. It’s the same route I take each morning. For two weeks, I’ve noticed a beyond-handsome soldier waiting across the street from the stop two stops before mine. I’ve been trying to determine a casual way to meet him. On this morning, he smiles at me. Who am I to argue with fate? I get off and walk toward him. As I stop within a foot of him, smile and say “Shalom,” an explosion knocks us to the ground. The bus has blown up.
Romance and travel writer Roberta Lerman runs prompt and workshop group Scribbler's Ink. Her latest piece, A Traveler’s Heart, appears in Bella Grace in December.