Not The Right News For A Hysterical Mother

My two sons are trekking in Central America. They're in their mid-twenties and ended up with two years of overlapping IDF Israeli army service, not in desk jobs.

Believe me, I was calmer when they were in the army!

This morning the IBA English Radio news featured two stories of Israelis killed/missing abroad.

Israeli killed in India traffic accident

Israeli missing after Laos boat accident

Of course, vacation time is dangerous here, too.

Five die in fatal weekend at beaches

Life is dangerous. Both sons encouraged my paranoid tendencies. The older one was hit by a "small truck" when riding a bike at the age of nine. The most serious of his injuries was a dislocated hip. We were told that "either he'd be a cripple or OK, nothing in between." Baruch Hashem, he's OK, but the "nothing in between" isn't totally true but can't be measured. My baby somehow ended up with osteomeilitis, an infection of the bone at the age of two weeks. The bacteria had probably gotten into his system as a newborn in the hospital. It was already in his blood and the doctors suspected brain damage. Baruch Hashem after six weeks of IV antibiotics he had recovered.

And as I just wrote, they were frontline soldiers and Baruch Hashem came home safely. And my older son already trekked in South America for many long months.

And yes, I worry. I'll always worry. I worry about all my kids.