Thankful People

One of my favorite aspects of Thanksgiving this year was that I celebrated it at the same time that you all did. Now, true, by the time we ate dinner, you were all in bed, but I still consider it the same day. Since Thanksgiving is an American holiday, our Israeli friends from church didn't have Thursday off to come celebrate so we celebrated on Friday.

The preparation was almost as fun as the eating. We were able to avoid the turkey whose selling description was "wrapped and frozen in its natural state." I'm not exactly sure what "natural state" means, but it sounds a lot like feathers so we decided to look elsewhere. As it turned out, there was still some minor plucking to do on the bird that we bought, but it was far from being in its "natural state."

After a day of baking and preparing, we had enough food to feed an army, not to mention the side dishes that our guests brought. That's all part of the fun of Thanksgiving, right?! Our tables were set, including the tiny table for the little people, the food was ready, and our guests arrived.

Thanksgiving food is wonderful, and it's fun to cook and get everything ready, but the best part about Thanksgiving is taking time to fellowship with other believers and praise the Lord for all His mercy and blessings. At home, it's the Thanksgiving service and the fellowship with the Goodriches, Dutts, and Johnstons afterward. Here, it was our in-home service and our fellowship with the Maozes, the Zadoks, Natasha, and Lorina. Thankfulness should be the believer's daily attitude, especially since my memory is too poor to remember all of God's goodness for the whole year. I'm glad we have that one day to set aside entirely to thanking God and enjoying His provision.

Blood Brothers

If you have never read the book Blood Brothers by Elias Chacour, I would highly recommend it. It is written by a Christian Palestinian who was a boy at the time the state of Israel was established. It is a first hand account of the conditions between Israel and Palestine, from a Palestinian's perspective, from around 1948 to the present. If there is one thing that I have learned since coming here it is that there are always two sides to every argument. This book talks of Chacour's internal and spiritual struggle and this dream to help his people. Today he is the Archbishop of Galilee-Israel and has established an elementary, highschool, university, and church in the Arab village of Ibillin, Galilee. We stopped by this property on our way back from the Galilee.

After our tour of the building and the church, on whose stairs were written in English, Hebrew, Arabic and Latin, Chacour's theme verses, Matt 5:3-8, we met with the man who oversees the entire work, whose name is also Elias. (If you read the book, he is the son of Elias's best friend who travels with him to study to be a priest.) Elias told us of their work in Israel and how they were trying to educate Palestinian children in order to give them hope and a future. Theirs is one of the few private schools in Israel and is very highly acclaimed for its education. From the elementary to the University, the enrollment is 4,500 students from all over Israel. Their university is a foreign branch of the University of Indianapolis, but they are in the process of making it the first private Arab University in Israel. He said, "The promise[to recognize it as a private University in Israel] has been given, but we live in the land of promise so who knows how long." He is praying for this college to be established so that they can offer Christian young people a future in their own land. "Christianity for Arabs is being squeezed out between the Jews and the Muslims. Arabs must go out of the country for a good education and jobs and so our Christian young people are leaving and not coming back. With them, they are taking our hope and our future. We need help," he said. "We are shouting, and no one is listening."

It is a problem with no easy resolution. Both sides are justified and both sides are in the wrong. God's people have prayed for the peace of Israel since Old Testament times, and it would be a peace that would spread to all of God's children regardless of race or skin color.
"Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: they shall prosper that love thee.
Peace be within thy walls, and prosperity within thy palaces.
For my brethren and companions' sakes, I will now say, Peace be within thee.
Because of the house of the Lord our God, I will seek thy good."
Ps 122:6-9

Watch Out For Doggy Land Mines!

For many of us, piles of dog poop are little more than an annoyance - a clean up chore that we are given or a stinky mess that gets on the bottom of our shoe. But for Sara, this particular pile was much more than that. While chasing her brothers and yelling threats that make famous last words, she slipped in the infamous pile twisting her leg underneath her and falling with her full weight on it. A clean change of clothes, a night in the hospital, and a full leg cast later, she returned home diagnosed with a spiral fracture of the tibia.

The poor, little girl has been a real trooper, facing the struggles of pain, itching, and the inability to run and play with her friends. The walker she was given barely comes to my mid-thigh, but she scoots around on it very well. We told her that she would have a head start on her friends when they get old because she'll already know how to use a walker. Tomorrow, she goes in to get a lighter, Fiberglas(?) cast to replace her heavy plaster one.

All the kids have jumped right in to help, entertaining her with crafts, movies, and conversation. Maggie read Nathan the Curious George book in which George breaks his leg and has to get an x-ray, stay in the hospital, and get his leg cast so that Nathan could understand a little better what happened to Sara. Now he calls her cast her "x-ray, like George." Little kids get a lot more than we think.

So please pray for Sara as she heals over the next 6 weeks. It is hard for an adult to be patient, to endure the pain and the itching, and to be thankful to those who serve and entertain you, and it is even harder for a 7-year-old girl who loves to run and play. Pray for us that we would be creative, loving, and patient in order to fill the next couple months with fun, interesting activities so that they will pass by quickly. And finally, be careful of the dog piles that cross your path. They might become more than just an annoyance!

The Family Circus

I need to take a quick break from our week with Darrell and Diana to catch you up on a couple things that have happened recently. For those of you who read the comics and are familiar with the Family Circus, this particular morning's incident will hold more humor. Nathan is little Mr. Independent, doing, with his adorable cuteness, many tasks that he is still too small to do. This morning was no exception. Unbeknownst to Maggie or me, Nathan had woken up and walked down into the kitchen. Feeling thirsty all of a sudden, he headed straight for the refrigerator in search of milk. (The milk in Israel is sold in sacks instead of cartons.) To his delight, he discovered a personal-sized sack of chocolate milk. His trail told the rest. Just like the dotted line followed the little boy in Family Circus up and over obstacles, in houses, and over fences, Nathan's dotted trail of chocolate milk followed him from the refrigerator, beside the table, up and over the chair, past the drawer of plastic cups, out the kitchen, and down the stairs to the office. He was taking the sack of milk and the cup down to Maggie in the office because he wasn't able to get the milk in the cup and needed help. Now he asks for help! What he soon learned is that with big ability comes big responsibility, and he was handed the mop to help clean up. He may be busy and into a lot of things, but is he ever cute!

The Southerners Travel North

No tour of Israel is complete without a trip to the Galilee region so we all went up to Galilee to spend a couple days. Our first stop was Megiddo. While unable to walk down into the water supply tunnel because of repairs, we were able to see the rest of the Tel. The weather was a little damp, but thankfully, it held off the whole time we were there.

Capernaum was on our list of places to visit. I had never been there before. We had actually stopped there on our last visit to the Galilee, but since we had been unaware of the no shorts or capris dress code, we had to postpone our visit for another time. It is a beautiful garden area with ruins of the town's synagogue as well as houses. The ruins of the town that still exist look like a raised floor plan of the town. You can clearly see the rooms of the houses, the doorways, and the street to which the door open up. The modern church whose large windows overlook the Sea hangs like a flying saucer over the ruins of what is believe to be Peter's house and the meeting place of the early church. The octagonal shape of the interior room and its surrounding layers marks it as an early Christian building. The glass bottom center of the new church looks directly into the inner room of the house below it.

We spent the night in a hotel/hostel in the Galilee mountains where it was so beautiful. Darren had switched our Galilee trip from Mon/Tues to Thurs/Fri so that I could go with them because I had already committed to babysitting Monday night. It was really nice of him, but so as not to appear too nice, he spent the rest of the week looking for the verse in Proverbs (Prov 29:21) that says, "He who pampers his slave from childhood will in the end find him to be a son!" He's too late to start worrying about that now, the damage is already done!

The Pool of Salom

On Sunday, we took Darrell and Diana to the Jerusalem Baptist Church to meet some friends the Dukes had known from their last stay in Israel five years ago. After church, we went out to eat before walking down and around the City of David. This part of Jerusalem is different than the Old City and is, in fact, just below the Jaffa Gate and the Old City wall. It is the actual area on which the ancient city of David would have been built. While not as preserved as the Old City, the City of David boasts two great Biblical sites: Hezekiah's Tunnel and the Pool of Salom.

It was too damp and cold to go wading through Hezekiah's Tunnel so we went to the Pool instead. The excavation area lacks any of the charm found in historical Old City sites. Surrounded by the houses and streets that crowd down the valley, you would mistake it for a construction site if it were not so clearly marked as a historical site. Even with the signs, you look around a second time to make sure and think, "Ok, this must be the right place."

The steps that lead into the pool are slowly being uncovered. Much of the stone has been buried since the city was destroyed and is still being uncovered. The number of steps and the size of the area shows just how large the pool would have been. Now as they uncover the area, they are uncovering a staircase that leads right up to the temple mount. These would have been the stairs the priests walked down to collect water from the fresh water spring that still flows near that pool and bring it back up to the temple. It was kind of eerie walking into the excavation tunnel that wasn't roped off, warning signs everywhere, safety insured like what would have been required in the states. I was surprised how far down they had to dig to uncover the stones of the stairway. The stones that make up the wall bear the Herodian margin and date the age of the staircase. They plan to continue the excavation as far up the hill as they can, uncovering the pathway to the Temple.

Last Sunday, Darren's parents, Darrell and Diana returned to Arkansas after a wonderful, week and a half stay with us. It was such a blessing to have them here, to tour with them and to just relax and hang out with them. I had met them in Maryland briefly but had not had any opportunity to get to know them. Their coming made me a little nervous - meeting the "real" family of my "adopted" family. I kind of felt like I was meeting "the future in-laws" for the first time - would they like me, would their close family fellowship make me really miss my family or would I feel a part of the family? As it turned out, I had nothing to worry about. Darrell and Diana are friendly and loving - two of the most wonderful people - and we had a great time.

The first place that we took them touring was Caesarea. It was a beautiful day to be outside and explore. The kids played on the rocks and in the sand while Maggie and I relaxed in the sun nearby. Darrell and Diana spent more time exploring the ruins, reading the information boards and taking pictures before coming back to play with us.

A large group of Japanese tourists were enjoying the ruins with us that day. I don't know what day they were celebrating, but right before they left, they all gathered in the amphitheatre, each with a helium balloon in his hand. Cheering and whistling, they released their 80 or more balloons at the same time. As much as Nathan enjoyed watching the balloon cloud whip around in the air, he would have preferred to keep a couple on the ground for him to play with. To hold onto a balloon and continue his ineffective struggle to keep his lollipop out of the sand would have proved too difficult for the little guy so it's just as well that they all floated up into the sky.

You First, I'll Follow

If God had given me the tannable skin of a Middle Easterner, I would have spent more time laying out in the sun in between dives. As it was, I was searching for that delicate balance of getting my skin to be off-white and not-burnt. That search sent me looking for other uses for the top, sun-soaked decks. The turquoise water was cool and inviting under the desert sun, and we took advantage of the lounging time between dives to play in the water. While treading water just off the boat, Ann Marie and I looked up to the smallest, tallest deck perched above the bridge.
"Have you ever jumped off the high jump?"
"No, it always scared me too much. How high do you think that is?"
"Maybe 25 feet."
"I'll do it if you do it."
After making sure it was allowed, we climbed the two ladder-like stairs to the upper deck. Tiptoeing up to the edge, we peered down into the clear water that seemed much farther away than it had looked from the water.
"Who's idea was this?"
Just then, two members of the crew scrambled up the ladder to us smiling and chattering in Arabic. Their gestures and laughter made it clear that they wanted us to jump and that they would jump with us. I needed ALOT of time to prepare myself for the leap so Ann Marie and I gladly let them show us how it was done. Not enough prep time had elapsed by the time they returned for another jump. The water still looked a long way down! Holding out his hand, Mohammad offered to jump off with us. It was now or never so off we went. It was a long way down, and the water that rushed up to meet us was hard and salty. A couple times off the top deck cured Ann Marie and I of any remaining desire to jump, but Mohammad and his friend jump over and over. The universal language of a smile and a laugh was the only way we were able to communicate with them, but that was fun and that was enough.

Beauty From the Boat

Underwater wasn't the only place of beauty. The harsh, desert mountains surrounded the brilliant blue waters of the Red Sea. I could have sat for hours just looking at the sea and land that surrounded us. At one point, we could look out and see the tip of the Sinai peninsula, and at another time, we could look over to Saudi Arabia. The desert mountains looked so remote, it was hard to imagine what type of people lived there, what their culture was like, and how they lived out their days.

The boat had a lower deck with rooms and bathrooms, but other than using those rooms to change and to store our stuff, we were rarely there. The main deck with the dining/lounging room and the upper deck to stretch out and relax were the most popular hang out areas. At night, we dragged our mats and blankets and slept on the upper deck under the stars. The rocking ship and the water slapping the decks below lulled us quickly to sleep which was a blessing because the sun rose between 5-5:30a. The lightening sky teased our eyelids open, and we sat up to see the water surrounding the boat and the sun beginning to peak out from behind the mountains. It was breathtaking.

There were ten of us on the trip: Matt and Ann Maria Yocum, Alex and Navah, Victoria Rubio (Gunny wasn't able to make it because of an inspection at the Marine house that weekend), and four others from the American Embassy. Since Alex was there on vacation, Romel was our scuba instructor who planned and led the dives. This was the first trip that Alex and Navah enjoyed together since they started their family five years earlier. They had met as diving instructor and student and were looking forward to spending the weekend diving together again.

Beauty in Sinai

Now that we are certified to scuba dive in the open water, Ann Marie and I could join Matt, Alex, his wife Navah, and a few others on a boat trip in the Sinai. For three days all we did was eat, sleep, and dive. The diving was incredible. The coral and fish were even more numerous and stunning than in Eliat. Our underwater camera developed completely empty so Romel sent me some of his pictures - we didn't actually get to see the shark (and the squid was for dinner!). The colors underwater were unbelievable. Bright colors covered the fish in intricate designs and patterns. I could have spent all day just looking at the detail that both decorated and camouflaged them.


Underwater wasn't the only place we were able to see beautiful sea creatures. Early in the evening, the boat was gliding over the waves to our new dive site when a pod of dolphins surfaced around us. They jumped and raced as the crew whistled encouragingly. The cutest of the 30(ish) dolphins were the mom and baby that jumped and raced nose to nose with the boat. They held us mesmerized for a few minutes and then disappeared as silently as they had come. The next day we had anchored near a huge column of coral that rose over 30 meters from the sea floor to make a shallow coral reef. About 10 other day-trip, dive boats were anchored near us when we heard shouts and saw people pointing at the water. A sea turtle had surfaced and was making its way through the maze of boats and divers. A few people swam after it, but they were warned not to touch or "ride" it.

What Makes a Jew?

My friend, Tamar is getting married this December to Marcus, an American who lives in Everett, Washington. She told me that when her friends find out that she is getting married, their first question is, "Is he Jewish?" Even if they are not religious, the answer is important to them. One evening, she and I took a taxi to a doctor's appointment that was required for her visa processing. In discussing where we were going and why, the taxi driver found out that she was getting married and, guess what question he asked next - "Is he Jewish?" She turned to me with a "See, I told you!" expression and told the driver that no, her fiance is American. "Why you not marry an Israeli?" he demanded. "Israeli men not good enough for you?" And they went at it with him firing accusations and predictions and her defending and explaining her choice.

She asked him if he was religious and since he wasn't, why did he care about keeping the Jewish race pure and contained among the Jews. He said they were a threatened and diminishing race with everyone trying to wipe them off the face of the earth.

He said that Jewish men would never think of marrying non-Jewish women, but all the Jewish women were trying to marry American men for their money and so they can move to America. She told him not to generalize - that may be them, but this is her and she is marrying the man that she is in love with.

He said that her kids would not be Jewish but that they would become American because they would be in American schools and around American kids. She said that family history and tradition was important to both her and Marcus and that they would observe the holidays and teach the Jewish histories and traditions. He said it didn't matter, the kids would still be American.

I was confused because isn't Israel a nation of immigrants - Russian Jew, Ethiopian Jew, European Jew, American Jew - with very few Israel born citizens? How then does cultural mentality define a Jew if they come to Israel with the cultural mentality of their own country? It was interesting to hear how this man's definition of a Jew wasn't that he was descended from Abraham but that he had the tough, survival mentality of someone living in Israel. Then was not the time for Tamar to explain that all children of God are true children of Abraham. You could understand the national pride that he was trying to preserve, but, ironically, if Marcus had been an American Jew who was an American culturally but had Jewish blood in his viens, this man would not have objected. It seems to me that the better question would be whether her fiance is Israeli not whether he is a Jew.

Also interesting in this conversation was my chance to watch the Israeli mentality that this man was arguing for at work. Israelis have very tough skin. They are warm and hospitable, but they say exactly what they think and don't waste time with false friendliness or social politeness. They put all their issues out on the table and argue passionately, but they seem to move on after the argument without holding grudges. After arguing the whole way there, this taxi driver smiled and shook our hands, showed us just where the clinic was, and gave Tamar his card if she ever needed to call a taxi in the area again. That was a taxi ride I will never forget.