From Kippas to Quasimodo (and everything inbetween)

Mom,















I hope it was a great one for you. We might hide if from you pretty well, but we all like you. ;-) BTW: flying halfway around the world to take a photo looking over Old Jerusalem just for you should solidify my position as your favorite child for at least the next decade, don't you think?

Where to start? The last few weeks have been filled with countless cultural and spiritual experiences. Rather than filling you in on all of them, I will choose a few highlights to share (the rest will have to wait until the seven-hour slide show presentation I have planned for August----make sure to RSVP for the event).

The most exciting event of this week had to be the invitation I received to go into a Palestinian home. I was walking home on Thursday afternoon from the city with two others when we began to talk with an Arab named Abdulah. Between his limited English and our non-existent Arabic, we didn't get very far. But he did know the words, "Welcome! Coffee!" We quickly understood he was inviting us over to his home, which we accepted.

Abdulah took us to his humble home where we met his family. Once again, the language barrier was thick, but we were able to communicate a bit. He showed us his chickens and his rabbit, and his kids shared their candy with us. Much to our surprise, his wife, Grita, then brought us dinner and a berry-drink called "Tut." The dinner was some kind of macaroni-something. Honestly, it wasn't that great, but I could tell they were proud of it. We had to decline both tea and coffee while we were there, which proved to be a bit difficult with the language barrier, but we managed.

His son, Hassan, is on my left, and the other kids are friends. The pic on the right is Abdulah and me. I don't understand because he was totally smiling and joking around right before the picture, but apparently Arabs don't smile in pics. Good man. This bottom picture is of him and his son Emil (check out Emil's mullet---pretty sweet).



The family invited us to return the next day. We returned armed with our Arabic workbooks and an Arabic dictionary, so things went much better. They fed us again, something wrapped in grape leaves called "shoka." We met another family as well (actually, the families had a little argument to determine whose home we could go to----we settled the issue by going to both). The new family pulled out the family photo albums and invited us to a family party next month, so we are obviously on the "in."

Meeting with both families was an amazing experience, and I am looking forward to returning.

On Friday we traveled to the Western Wall (the holiest site in Judaism---supposedly the closest place to where the Holiest of Holies of the temple was placed) to welcome in Shabbat (the sabbath) with the Jews. I bought my first kippa to prepare for the event.

What a party it was! The courtyard was filled with different rabbinic tribes welcoming in the Sabbath in their own ways. Men and women separated; on the men's side, we engaged in singing Hebrew songs, linking arms, and dancing in circles (which was a little crazy considering the fact that we did so with soldiers who had AK-47's around their necks). From the experience, I could easily see how much the Sabbath means to these people---they actually celebrate to begin the day. It was quite an experience.

Another exciting event occurred today when I was able to play the bells in the YMCA tower. The building was built in the 1930's by the same architect who designed the Empire State Building and is absolutely massive. Elder Whipple, a senior missionary here and talented musician, plays the bells weekly. I have become good friends with him and his wife, so he allowed me to join him (his wife actually flirts with me all the time!---whenever I see her, she either gives me hugs or hits me and says, "Love tap!"---she is a cutie). I always knew that all those painful hours spent with Lona Mae would pay off somehow and lead to something big! I played the first verse of a hymn, and then Brother Whipple played the pedals on the second verse and added his own base cleft arrangement. It was awesome! The bells ring out across all of Old Jerusalem, which was neat to think about. Since Elder Whipple and I are both from Idaho, he played his own rendition of "And Here We have Idaho" (Idaho's state song), to which both of us sang. I hope to be able to play them again soon.


To wrap up, Elder Pieper of the 70 came this weekend. He spoke in sacrament meeting and in a fireside. He grew up near Blackfoot, but went to Snake River High (he apologized to me for that----sorry Steph). Anyways, he spoke about the fact that so many sites in the Holy Land claim to be the "exact" spot where significant events of the Bible occurred (for example, I have been to one of three sites where Mary is buried, I have touched the two tombs where Christ was buried, and I have heard about three locations that have the ark of the covenant---four if you include the Nazis from Indiana Jones). And each of these places have plenty of trinkets to buy in order to "commemorate" pilgrimages there. However, Elder Pieper pointed out that our path is not to stand where Jesus stood, but rather to become as Jesus is. Good food for thought.

Until next time, alla ysalmak.

O Jerusalem, Jerusalem...

Yezzun is on my right.
Flafl!

Still being jet-lagged, I hope that this text is comprehensible for you all. I started this blog as a school project, so a few random blogs appear below. Some aren't too bad, others are downright boring, so don't feel any pressure to read them.

My day began yesterday morning at 4 am with the Islam call to prayer. The sound is similar to a spooky, wailing sound and lasts for about 15 minutes. My first thought was "Why didn't they make this place soundproof?!", but it actually turned out to be a neat experience for me. I couldn't get back to sleep (neither of my roommates woke up----I have no idea how they slept through it), so I spent a few hours reading and then watched from my balcony as Jerusalem woke up. Lots of honking, roosters crowing, and a kind of peaceful beauty as light slowly crept over the city.

This morning I woke up to the call of prayer once again (I swear there is a mosque right outside my window) while my roomies kept snoozing. Once again, I couldn't get back to sleep, so I read for a while and then went to the gym for a bit. I think I will take some advil pm tonight and hopefully sleep through the call to prayer. Heck, if I am getting up that early every day, I may as well convert.

We took a tour of Jerusalem yesterday, starting on the East side (the Palestinian/Arab/ Muslim/DIRTY side), making our way into Old Jerusalem (which is divided into quarters---Jewish, Christian, Palestinian, and Armenian), and eventually made our into West Jerusalem, which is the Jewish side and is very clean. I saw the Kidron Valley, where Christ will return, the road to the Garden TOmb, the Sal Adin wall (which surrounds the old city and was built around 1000 AD by the crusaders), the Via Dolorosa (the 14 "stations" of Christ's path to Golgotha, and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, which was absolutely crazy. Seven different Christian churches claim part of the church. The church was built in 325 AD by the orders of Emperor Constantine. 1700 years old. Just crazy.

I was very intrigued by the faithful "pilgrims" all along the Via Dolorosa and in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Many were crying as they touched certain places or went in certain areas. Although this kind of ritual is completely foreign to me (as well as eccentric), to these people, it was very real, which made it touching. Obviously Christ's life had great significance to them, just as it does for me. Watching them, it was very clear to me that faith spans across denominations and religions.

Today we had free time to go throughout the city. I had my first flafl (sp?---it sounds like flaw-full), which is fried, chickpea balls in a pita with tomatoes and other stuff. I liked it. I ended up talking with a 15 year old Palestinian named Yezzun for quite a while. He is from the West Bank and actually spoke English well. I think that interacting with the people here will make this adventure more exciting. We also went to the Western Wall, which is the wall closest to where the Holy of Holies was in the Temple of Solomon. We watched from a distance as hundreds of Jews, divided by gender, went close to the wall and seemed to do some kind of prayer ritual while shaking back and forth. Very interesting.

The food is great (I have tried a lot of new things), and I have made many new friends. I may even come back with a little meat on my bones! We will see. Until next time, ma as-salaamah!

Pathway to a Positive Self-Image

1 You cannot control the external circumstances of your life, but you can control your reactions to them.

2 Optimal health is the product of both physical and mental factors.

3 You could think of yourself as healthy.

4 Things change.

5 Your beliefs are incredibly powerful.

6 The only escape from stress, fear, and doubt is to confront them directly and see them for what they are.

7 Emotions fall into two broad categories: fear and love.

8 Would you rather be right or would you rather experience peace?

9 Accept yourself as you are.

10 Practice forgiveness, letting go.

11 Stay open to life's teachings.

12 Be patient. Patience means mindful awareness. (Borysenko, 1988)

Principles

After being a missionary for about six months, I was transferred to a town near the coast of California with an elder who was also very young. We started working and developed a lasting relationship. As we got to know each other, I began to make observations about the young elder's priorities and desires. I realized that he often talked about principles---that from such-and-such experience he had learned a certain principle or in a certain situation, he thought that such-and-such principle would help to resolve the problem. I was intrigued by his usage of principles and the importance that they played in his life.

I have learned that principles are small and simple values/priorities that can determine conduct in any number of situations. As I have learned to set my own principles and apply them, I have been able to make better decisions. Elder Richard G. Scott once taught, "With such standards you will not make the wrong decisions on the basis of the circumstances or the pressures of the day. Principles that you are determined to live by will keep you on track...Never compromise your principles. Strength and safety come from making no exceptions to them."

As I was reading the Book of Mormon this past week, I read of the Nephite nation as it was almost destroyed. Mormon makes the observation as he writes a letter to his son, Moroni, that the Nephites had gotten to the point that they were "without principle", which left Mormon with little hope of their survival.

Realizing more and more the importance of principles, I am in the process of making a list of my own principles which I consider to be most important. I hope that this list will be a guiding light for me as I strive to live in harmony with Gospel teachings.

Identity

I have been thinking lately about identity. As humans, we often characterize, or identify, ourselves by the positions we may have, activities that we are involved in, or groups we belong to. For example, "I'm a soccer player." "I'm an accountant." "I'm Catholic." All three could be accurate representations of certain aspects of a person, but without these things, who would the person be? Anyone of importance?

The late Neal A. Maxwell said, "The validation of our worth really comes from knowing who we are, not solely from what we do." If someone were to ask you today, "Who are you?", what would you say?

We might be tempted to say our name (a mere title that can change), our job, our hobbies----we could literally say any number of things without touching who we really are. Really "knowing who we are" may be the process of a lifetime, but I believe that we can look for help from The Book of Mormon. In the book of first Nephi, Nephi states "...the Lord hath created the earth that it should be inhabited; and He hath created His children that they should possess it."

Could it be that we place too much emphasis in our society on the awards, titles, talents, and positions without understanding our true identity? I think so. As children of God, we are endowed with infinite potential and abilities. We should be able to find our chief source of identity in our divine heritage as a son or daughter of a heavenly, immortal, perfect being. In reality, it is the only thing we all have in common; we may be divided by race, gender, age, positions, economic status, sexual orientation, etc. But at the root of it all, we are still brothers and sisters, children of God.

Walking Around Inside Myself

When I was a missionary in the California, my mission president would often recite a quote he read once from a church magazine: "One must spend time walking around inside himself to answer the hard questions in life." I love the imagery of the quote; it denotes pondering, meditating, and carefully planned thought processes in order to find the answers.

As I was reading The Book of Mormon this past week, the story of the brother of Jared caught my attention. In the first few chapters of Ether, Jared and his family have traveled to the water's edge where the Lord commands them to build ships. Upon building the ships, they discover that there is no way to have light while in them, so the brother of Jared goes to the Lord to find out what they should do. The Lord's response is almost surprising. Instead of giving the brother of Jared the solution or a direction to go, He simply asks, "What will ye that I should do that ye may have light in your vessels?"---essentially asking, "Well, what do you think?"

The brother of Jared came up with a solution of special, clear rocks that permeated light once touched by the Lord. The solution he came up with was acceptable by the Lord. By the same token, I believe that sometimes, instead of searching for God to give me an answer to a problem, I need to take a step back, ponder on what could be a solution, and then go to the Him, asking for confirmation that the solution is correct. In this fashion, I am able to progress and learn as I "walk around inside myself" searching for what the Lord would have me do.

Judging

When I was first beginning kindergarten, I was excited by the opportunity to meet new kids and have new friends. One day, as I was riding home on the school bus, I remember a young boy sitting in front of me. Desiring to make new friends, I introduced myself. Without any warning, and to my surprise, instead of welcoming my greeting, this young boy punched me in the nose!

From that experience, and numerous others, I have learned of the consequences that can stem from rash judgments. In The Book of Mormon, we learn that "...the same that judgeth rashly shall be judged rashly again..." The word "rashly" signifies acting hastily without due consideration. In our world of comparisons, competition, and ambition, it is often difficult for me to avoid judging. When I do so, I often picture myself as the middle-man. For example, I consider myself to be sufficiently social. Anyone who is more social than me, in my mind, is only seeking attention. Anyone less social than I am is anti-social. Another example: I consider myself to be happy. Anyone more happy than I am is hyper, while anyone less happy than I am, I consider to be depressed. I think one can easily see the irony and rashness of my judgments and comparisons.

In The Book of Mormon, I believe that we can find the best method of judging others. From Moroni 7: 19 we read, "...lay hold upon every good thing, and condemn it not..." For me, this passage of scripture signifies my responsibility as a son of God to search out the good in everyone. As I focus more on the good in others rather than the "obvious" faults I may see, I am able to free myself from judging rashly, and ultimately from being judged rashly myself.

I know that Christ, as our ultimate judge, will judge us in a loving manner. He will look at the good that each of us attempted and will understand with perfect clarity the faults, weaknesses, tendencies, and temptations that we experienced in this mortal life.