Israeli writer Etgar Keret has only drafted short notes since the war. Here's one

Transcript

ARI SHAPIRO, HOST:

The Israeli writer Etgar Keret sometimes creates fantastical worlds in his short stories. But since the war started, he told me he's lately only been able to write in brief bursts, tapping out thoughts on his iPhone. At his apartment in Tel Aviv this morning, I asked him to read one of those notes, and he offered this sort of meditation on the events of the last two weeks called "Signs Of Life."

ETGAR KERET: (Reading) "Signs Of Life" - now close your eyes, and try to stop being angry. Try to stop raging at all those who deserve your righteous fury. Close your eyes, and allow yourself, just for a moment, to simply feel the pain, to hesitate, to be confused, to feel sorrow, remorse. You still have your whole life to spend persecuting, avenging, reckoning. But for now, just close your eyes and look inward like a satellite hovering over a disaster zone searching for signs of life. A lot has been taken away from you, but you're still a human being - wounded, bloodied, angry, hurting, frightened, drowning in sorrow, but still human. Take a deep breath, and try to remember the feeling because you know that, a minute from now, when you open your eyes again, it will be gone.

SHAPIRO: You can hear my conversation with Etgar Keret in another part of the program.

(SOUNDBITE OF GAVIN LUKE'S "IN THIS MOMENT") Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.