Oh my goodness. Life is sooo busy here! But so wonderful, so I can’t complain :) I wish I could blog more, but it’s impossible to find time for everything as it is...I’ll try to do some quick summarizing of the last week or so, because tomorrow we leave for Turkey for a week!!! Soooo excited, and I’m sure I’ll have lots to post about when we get back. Let me try and talk about some of the highlights of this last week :)
Monday we had an all day field trip. It was neat but it was long and hot and we were all so tired from the beach day the day before. Still though, we saw a lot of neat sites and even got to watch some Bedouin women weaving rugs (Funny story - while we were there...they offered us these little shot-glasses of lemonade looking liquid...when I went to grab it, it was hot! Turns out it was tea. We all looked at each other super awkwardly cuz we didn’t know if it was okay to drink...it tasted...interesting!) It was so long ago (weeks here feel like years) so I don’t remember much else about that day...sorry!
The rest of the week has been pretty stressful with classes. Had my first two quizzes/tests and didn’t do nearly as well as I needed to/would have liked. I definitely need to crack down more and study harder...it’s rough. But I do enjoy what I’m learning...especially in Old Testament!
Wednesday we had a couple of orientations about Turkey, so we can know what to expect. I’m soooo excited! I had no ideas we would be visiting so many incredible sites. It’s going to be amazing.
Today was an absolutely amazing day. I love Sabbaths here. I love singing in the choir in church. I love having church meetings with incredible people from all over the world. I love walking around the Old City in our church clothes and having everyone say “Hi Mormons!” I love feeling the spirit soo strongly here.
A group of us went to St. Anne’s (a church next to the Pools of Bethesda that was built in honor of St. Anne - Mary’s Mother) because the acoustics there are amazing. We sang hymns, and listened to other groups sing hymns as well. It was soo powerful. The Spirit was so strong. One Italian group sang “Amazing Grace” - I love feeling the testimony of other people and other faiths, especially through music...it really touches me. I love how even if our beliefs are different in many ways, so many people love and appreciate Jesus Christ and His role in our lives the way I do.
Then we went to the Garden of Gethsemane again. I got to speak with the gardner again (he remembered me from two weeks ago which meant so much to me!) I love walking through the city, and I love getting to experience it with all of my friends whom I have grown to love so much!
Tonight we got to watch a CES fireside by Elder Holland that was re-broadcast. It was AMAZING...my favorite part was when he said something along the lines of “When He comes again, I want to be caught right in the act of living the gospel and sharing the truth. I want Him to recognize me not by my title but by my life.” This really touched me. It got me thinking...What if Christ were to come again here, now? Would He see me serving and loving His other children? Would He be proud of me? Would I truly know Him? It was just an overall amazing talk, but that was the part that stuck out to me the most and really got me thinking....
I had two amazing conversations tonight, with two different amazing girls here at the center. It’s amazing how even after such a short time, we are all family here and I truly have a deep love for every single student. I want so much for everyone to be happy, and I want so much to know and love each of them! It’s an incredible feeling, and I know it’s because the closer I am to Christ, the more I am filled with Christ-like love. I hope to always be filled with that kind of love and concern for others...it makes life so much more meaningful.
Erin, Alyssa, Sarah, Madi and I :)
The Orson Hyde Park had a gorgeous view of the city (and the Dome of the Rock).
Madi and I :)
Jacqe and I :)
There’s so much more I want to say, but it’s REALLY late here now (cuz of the conversations I had) so I’m going to add a few pictures and call it good!
No comments:
Post a Comment