She moves slowly and gently through the corridors of the revalidation-center on her way to one of her daily therapy-session. She is here the longest and knows everybody. They all receive a warm smile. ‘I have been lucky. I still have both of my legs, my arms and I can still see with one eye. Some of my friends here are in a much worse condition.’
Kinneret Boosany, 24 year old, was working behind the bar of ‘My Coffeeshop’ on the corner of Allenby and Bialik street, when a Palestinian suicide-bomber choose this crowded place to blow himself up. He killed one person and wounded dozens; some in very critical condition. Because of the alcohol stalled behind the bar, Kinneret’s body burned almost completely during the blast. She was unconscious for four months and nobody knew if she would live. The doctors only gave her a 16% chance. But she did survive. And now she faces her own personal battle with only one goal: getting well and back to some kind of normal life.

It happened on March 30th 2002, only 3 days after the devastating suicide attack of Palestinian militants in Netanya which put operation ‘Defense Wall’ of the Israeli army into motion. The endless spiral of escalating violence continues, day after day. It seems that only the survivors and the families and friends of all involved will remember the exact date and consequences of this specific terror-attack. Many went before and many came after. Just too many to remember them all by heart. ‘This attack was just a little one compared to so many others. Even one journalist who came here to talk to me was confused about which terrorist-attack on Allenby street I had been in’, says Kinneret, well aware of daily news reality.

Almost four months she is now undergoing treatment in the revalidation-center of Sheba hospital at Tel Hashomer near Tel Aviv. Her whole body and face are burned very bad, her left ear is almost gone, she lost sight in her right eye, parts of her fingers of her left hand had to be amputated and half of her lungs is gone.
The therapy-sessions are painful but she knows she has to go through these treatments to reach her goal. She is very determined. In about two weeks she will be going home, although she still needs to have therapy every day.
More than two years of recovery and a lot of surgeries lie ahead of her. Kinneret: ‘I am blessed with a warm family and friends and an amazing boyfriend. I am so much looking forward going home again to live with him and our two dogs. Although I know I am going to fall into a black whole. The burn-center, the revalidation-center, they have been my home. It is all I know since this happened eight months ago and everything changed. Here I am normal, one of all. But I am not normal! And people will stare at me. I don’t want pity. I just want to be normal again. It is not going to be easy. And what I love the most, the sun, the sea………. I can’t stand the heat no more. I am also not sure if I will be able to continue with my studies. I need my hands to do massage. It is not certain yet how well they will be able to fix my fingers.’

Kinneret, the youngest of three sisters, was taking a break from her study reflexology, trying to enjoy her life in Tel Aviv with her boyfriend Tal. She loved dancing. Living day by day, taking the dogs for a walk on the beach, working in the coffee-shop to pay the rent and bring food to the table. Relaxing at home and not taking the situation too heavy on her shoulders. ‘Before this terror-attack I did not really care about politics. Last elections I did not vote and my boyfriend did not ask me to go either. You just try to live your life. Okay, the economical situation got worse. So you spent a little less and eat from hand to mouth. But you choose to live like that. It is not denial of the situation. I just didn’t get into it. I still don’t.’

‘A while ago another reporter came for an interview. At the end he asked me about my political beliefs. I told him: just look at me, you ass….! I am totally burned. You think I care now about the war between the Jews and the Arabs? Every day I struggle within this personal war.’ Kinneret’s voice trembles, still a bit upset about this question.
‘I know the situation here is very, very difficult. And it doesn’t go anywhere; no perspective. Most of my friends, people of my age, don’t really know why they should stay here, if it is not for studying, because that might be easier here in Israel or they get some financial help from their family. It is not really clear to them why a person wants to be here in Israel. Life here is so hard, so tiring and taking all your energy. Of course I look at things differently since this happened. Problems I had before like quarrels with my boss, worries about getting fat because I ate too much chocolate, I don’t know……stuff like that, it is nothing compared to this! In the beginning it was only a matter of survival. Then when I came out of intensive care, I was very happy. I was alive! Everybody told me how strong I was. I wasn’t angry, I didn’t ask the question why, I was just happy to be alive. And I just took it as my destiny, my lesson. I had to make the best of it’, Kinneret says and pauses for a little while.
‘But some days you do ask why, and you are angry. Something of which I thought that I was beyond, this anger. But no, I had this period I could not even talk normal. Shouting to everybody next to me and only speaking with anger in my voice. Specially to my mother, the one the closest to me. Because you know she will never go’, laughs Kinneret.
‘It does give you a totally different perspective on life. But it is all still so very fresh. Everything is very temporary and it all changes so fast. Yet all is so very real. If you are angry, you are really angry. If you are happy, you are really happy. And right now the only thing I want, is to get better again.’

© Shirley Barenholz, 29 November 2002