Graduation, do you really exist?

I kinda always thought that Senioritis was this thing that people made up, for whatever reason. School is fun, right? Homework isn't usually that bad, am I wrong? I like having a set schedule every day, don't you?

No. Not anymore. I officially have Senioritis and I am vouching that it is a very real mental (and I guess, physical) ailment. Don't get me wrong - I still like going to my classes, learning new things, gaining a greater appreciation for literature and the English language (for those who don't know, I'm studying English Literaure and Editing).... But I just don't know if I can do this school/homework thing anymore. I have almost zero motivation most of the time to do my homework. I don't graduate until August 2012. That sounds like an eternity. I know I will make it, but how I make it is another story.

*sigh* Aaaannndd.... back to the homework. I guess it's not all bad: I'm reading poetry by John Keats :)

The joys of being home

This morning I woke up and met up with a highschool friend, my "sister", if you will. Her name is Kayla Fadenrecht and I LOVE her. To death. She has the biggest heart and always knows what to say to me to make me happy and feel great about life. She just finished up her first year of college. She works harder than most people I know, and has earned about $20,000 in scholarships for school from multiple different sources for this next year. Too bad that doesn't quite cover the cost of tuition for a year... She is also madly in love with this guy she met here at home this summer. He sounds like he treats her like the angel she is. My little sis is all grown up and falling in love! I love it.

After catching up with Kade I met up with Kathleen for breakfast and then we both went back to my house to hang out some more. She brought her 10 month old baby boy, Joshua, along. He is a doll- so chubby and has red hair! Kathleen and I have been good friends for years. We even considered each other our best friend for a long time, still kinda do, and I got to be her bridesmaid three years ago this month!

Good day so far, but now I must be diligent and do as much of my homework right now that I can before the wedding reception in my back yard tonight! My best friend Hannah's brother got married last weekend, and they decided to have their Oregon reception here. So convenient, I just have to walk out my door! K gotta go... homework. Blah.

Oh and my dad, having no idea about my last blog post, randomly decided last night to mention how he strongly dislikes Muslims... "religion of peace, yeah right"... "how are we expected to have respect for people that do things like this" (we were watching a news story). Pretty sure the news also focuses on all bad things, Dad. Please don't overgeneralize.... it breaks my heart.

Blogging!

I am thinking about writing in my blog again. What do you all think? Would I have any readers still?

Yes, probably, and even if I don't, I like writing, so what does it matter who reads?

My blog will probably be a set of contemplations about the state of my life, possibly focused on how my life is different and better because of my experience in Jerusalem, which is only natural as Jerusalem is the center of my life. I'll try not to let it get annoying though, since I know none of you really care since you haven't been there.

I'm sure if I get back into it, I will have many things to write about. So... why not start with one right now?

I have been thinking a lot lately about the Muslims I know in Jerusalem. I hate the negative image they have here in America. I want you all to know that they are wonderful people. If you were to randomly pick one out of the street and asked if they believed in a 6th pillar of Islam (Jihad), they would say no. And mean it. They are so kind. They welcome you gladly into their homes (granted this is part of their Arab/Palestinian culture too) and want to give you anything you want to make you feel comfortable. If you say you love something in their home, they will sometimes try and give it to you. That didn't happen to me personally but it did to a few others. The children are so cute and love to say everything they can in English, and love it when we play games with them or play music for them. They are so sweet.

How cute are they? Just a sampling of the little kids that would try and talk to us in the Old City.

Our neighborhood children. Adorable. The little girl with red hair liked that we had the same hair color... so precious. She was so shy though! It was all I could do to get her to sit through a picture.

Muslims are so devoted to God. It is the same God we worship, their scripture and understanding of Him is just a bit different, but in a lot of ways they are the same as us. Islam is a part of them, as our gospel is a part of us.

Muslim women about to enter the Al Aqsa Mosque on the Temple Mount.

I love them, and I am trying to be a little bit more like them. As I do, I become a little bit more Christlike.

Oh how I love Christmas songs!

I'm a member of the student choir here in my ward and we've been preparing songs for our Christmas concert next week. Our director is fluent in polish and is having us do 4 traditional polish carols, even though we're singing them in english. One of them happens to be my new current favorite Christmas carol. It's called At Quiet Midnight. The third verse is especially what pulls at my heart:

Welcome, o Savior, long desired of old
Four thousand years your coming was foretold
Kings and prophets are elated
For this night they long have waited
Christ is born, rejoice! Christ is born, rejoice!

It's beautiful, especially when you sing it with a choir at night looking from our auditorium onto the lit up city of Jerusalem. This is the most popular, beloved Christmas carol in Poland- and for good reason too.

Another one we're singing (not a polish one) is Lo, How a Rose. It's more well known I believe. It's beautiful, I recommend finding a recording of it somehow.

Lessons

So here I am, sitting on the 6th floor of this beautiful building I call home in the East City of Jerusalem, and I'm beginning to reminisce a little on the last 3 months. I still have three weeks left here, but it's never too soon to think back on even recent memories and appreciate what I have, right?

I've been thinking a little about what I've learned here. I've learned more deeply that there is opposition in all things. There is so much hate in this world. I have seen that first hand, and been ushered out of the Old City of Jerusalem by phone calls from our security because of it. I have seen it on the internet news updates as I sit about a mile from the heart and most central location of this hate- the Temple Mount. But because there is so much hate, there is that much, if not more love in this city, this country. I see it in the eyes and actions of each student here as we make friends on the streets with shopkeepers or arab children. I see it in the words of our teachers and church leaders here as they urge us to be educated so that we may be unbiased to the situation. I also see it in people like Daniel Seidamann, our guest teacher today, a Jew, (albeit an American one) who spends his entire life in effort of helping to bring about peace in Jerusalem, including giving Palestinians, the enemies to Jews, back some of their land. The Lord is our light, there is in His sight no darkness at all. I've learned that there is no such thing as "hopeless" in this world.

I have also learned better what it means to be a disciple of Christ, and I'm trying every day to become one. It's following Jesus no matter what you want, it's loving the people around you no matter how they feel about you, it's quickly forgiving someone who made you care and then made you cry by showing they don't care nearly as much as you thought. These are things I hope I can continue to implement in my life even when I am away from this place.

I guess most of all though that I've learned for myself, so strongly that I could never begin to deny it, that Jesus Christ is real. I haven't learned that from visiting a place like the Garden Tomb, I've learned it from prayer, proper scripture study, reading my patriarchal blessing, singing hymns, all in places like the Garden Tomb. Because I have shown I want to know, the spirit has given me such sweet witnesses of what I already believe to be true, but can now feel like a fire within me.

Being in the Holy Land, literally walking in some places He did, spending personal time by the shores of Galilee, the place He loved so much, I have had the opportunity to focus my entire life these last months on my relationship with my Savior, and that is why I know He lives. He loves me and knows me personally. I had an experience at Galilee where I went to pray at night aloud by the shore, tears streaming down my face, and the part of my prayer that I was hoping and needing to be answered most at the time was answered, literally minutes later. It wasn't a coincidence, or that someone happened to be in a happier mood, my Heavenly Father just decided to give me a small, tender mercy- I like to think as a blessing for knowing so strongly that He hears and answers prayers.

Friends! I've learned to love this gospel, my Savior, and my Heavenly Father more than I thought was possible these last three months. I guess that's really all I wanted to share. My friend asked me at our Thanksgiving dinner what I was thankful for this year, and what came to mind most clearly was my testimony. I'm so thankful for my testimony, and may I always have the chance to share it, even without words as we've had to learn to do here.

This is my new favorite hymn. It came to mind every time I walked to the shore of Galilee and looked at its waters and thought of the literally countless miracles Christ performed there. Hymn #86. I encourage you to open up your hymnbook and study the words, don't just read them.

How did I deserve this?

So last night I FINALLY made it to Jerusalem. Words truly cannot explain the love I have for this city and not only what I feel when I look at it, but everything that comes to mind when I do. I love its diversity. It obviously causes conflicts, but it's just so dang cool to walk down the street and see Orthodox this and that, including people like monks, and start to understand things about them and their religion that is completely the center of their lives. No wonder they live in Jerusalem.

Our dorms all have balconies that overlook the city. As do all the other floors and rooms on that side of the building. Last night when we got to the Center we had dinner and then a lot of us went out onto a big balcony outside our cafeteria, stood in a line so that we each had a great view, and reverently looked in awe at the city as the sun set behind it. Right as the sun went down the call to prayer for that time of day started. One of the loudspeakers that someone does it through is just a short walk away from us to the south. It's the most incredible thing to listen to a male voice chanting the call to prayer over a loudspeaker for the whole city to hear. It lasts a good long while, so we continued to watch the city grow dark as we as all had that incredible experience. I wish you were here to at least see that. It made 27 hours of traveling worth it in an instant. I'm sure every single one of us had goosebumps at some point that night (if not the whole night), as we looked at Jerusalem and walked through our completely gorgeous, incredible new home.

I just finished doing a little studying for Old Testament, and now I'm going to go out on my own personal balcony and write a little more in my journal as I look over arguably the most incredible city ever built.

I love it. I love it, I love it, I love it. There are no words.
I am truly blessed.

Old Books

My family has inherited a bunch of old books belonging to my great-grandparents ever since my last grandparent died a year ago February. We have probably 50 or 60 of them, some of them printed as recently as the '50s and '60s, but some very close to the beginning of last century. They're beautiful, all hardcovers like books used to be made, almost all have cool black and white illustrations, and the pages on many books are yellowing. I love it. I got to go through all the books and mark which ones I would be interested in having passed into my possesion. They have to go to quite a few grandkids and other family members so I won't get all of the ones I want... luckily my oldest brother and I are the ones most interested in all these old books.

One of my favorites is the Grimms' Fairy Tales. Disney and modern culture have taken some of these stories and made them happier with less frightful occurances than the original Grimm stories. They have gone through some changes since the original stories were written to make them less scary and gory, but much to my pleasure, this version seems to be very close to the original story. For example Cinderella's step-sisters cut off their heels and toes to fit into the slipper, and there is blood everywhere. How silly. But it makes a much better story, I think, and that's the version told in this 1945 published copy. I NEED this one! Keep your fingers crossed that I get to own it one day.

In honor of my new camera and my love of the written word, I just wanted to make this nice little post about them and take some pictures to document their loveliness. Enjoy.