THE HOUSE ON THORN STREET I’ve read loads of fairy tales the ones that end “happily ever after.” Reading blueprints is tougher. Read them? Hey I can’t even fold the things. That’s why 20-some years ago I misread the blueprints for the home we were building in Israel. I thought our street name in the neighborhood that existed then only on paper wasRechovDuvdevan Cherry Lane. I got the roof color right — the picture on the prospectus helped — and rejoiced in building a red-roofed cottage on Cherry Lane. It sounded like something out of a fairy tale and I looked forward to the “happily ever after” ending. As building progressed I discovered my mistake. CherryLane was one street over. We were building onRechovHaShitah. Shitah is an acacia a variety of thorn tree: tough hardy plants that grow under difficult conditions. And yes there were thorny difficult times in the three years it took to move from blueprint to red-roofed house.  Fluctuations in the dollar/shekel rate cost us an extra $20 000. The plumber installed pipes for a tiny Israeli washing machine instead of our massive Maytag. Port strikes held up deliveries border closures stopped workers from coming loans got held up for no reason except to ensure outrageous late fees. There were good moments too lots of them. Watching cement mixers pour out the foundations; clambering down a muddy incline that weeks later becomes a staircase; beginning friendships with new neighbors climbing their own foundations….