“More than 3 weeks have gone by,” said Tehilla in an interview with Yediot Achronot, “Everything is much harder. Our entire life has turned over.”
About her mother, who was seriously injured in the terrorist attack that killed her father, Tehile says, “She is thankfully not in a life-threatening state, but she is not in good condition. The seat belts saved all of us when the car turned out, but the bullets caused injuries to the top part of her body. She will have a complicated and long rehabilitation.
“We told her about Father, but we’re not sure what she understands and knows. Sometimes she tells us, ‘Father is at work, he’ll soon return home.’ I tell her mostly about myself, what I did today, what’s new.”
Tehilla says that her mother was a quiet, modest woman who is unusually savvy and intelligent. “She always knew how to read a situation before everyone else. She has unlimited patience for us. When I would return from school, I would enter the house and it was full of noise. So many children always need something, and Mother would sit with one over his homework, make an egg for another and toast for a third, would show our big brother something on the computer… and never get mixed up from all the requests. I’m longing today for that noisy environment and her quiet.
“My father was a very warm family man. He would come home with such a smile, open the door and say, ”Chavalah” and give a hug and kiss.” He always deferred to her decisions.
“If someone wanted something from Father, he would say, ‘Ask Mother. If she agrees, I also do.’ They mutually admired each other. They would hold a complete discussion without saying a word, just from looks.
“I heard a boom that was followed by a volley of bullets. Ima yelled, ‘They’re shooting!’ All of us yelled to squat down, and I and Pedaya squatted, but Father continued driving. The car turned over and then there was silence for a few minutes. I screamed. I tried to speak with my parents, but they were trapped in the car. I looked for a mobile phone, but couldn’t find one. Suddenly we heard kicks and we saw an Arab trying to open the doors and help us.
“My father believed in the goodness of people and always said that most people want to live in peace. I know that not all Arabs are good, and there are murderous terrorists, but you have to give a hand to one who wants peace.
“I realized what had happened from the first shot. I wasn’t confused. I was also convinced that Father and Mother had been murdered. Only when I was in the car of a Palestinian who helped us did I ask what happened to Father and Mother. The woman said that my mother was OK, and then I understood that Father was no longer with us.” Tehila recalls painfully.
“At the funeral, there were people who tried to shout ‘Death to Arabs’, but we asked them not to do it. Extremism was not our way.
“Father always said that every bullet has its address and whoever has to die will die in a car accident, next to the table in his house or on the way. We are a strong people who have gone through pogroms, massacres, a Holocaust, terrorist attacks and war, and we’re still going strong and believing it will be good.
“There are difficulties on the way, but we’ll deal with them,” she says confidently. “It’s hard, it’s painful, and we’re trying not to break. We get up and fall, cry and dry our tears.”
The public is asked to continue praying for Mrs. Mark: Chava bas Eilat Hashachar.