Home » Discussion » ZolaBlog: Israel

Shalom from Jerusalem,

It is good to be home. I live in Texas, but my home is Israel. Part of the tour group left last night and part left this morning (very early) back to the States. The rest of the group is headed to Eilat and Petra while I am staying in Jerusalem. I am so sad when the group leaves.

I have made some new friends and the group has become my meshpacha (family)—really a good group of people from all ages: A newlywed couple all the way from Hawaii, as well as a couple celebrating fifty years of marriage; a joyous duo of ladies from Ohio (who I am keeping my eyes on); and Glynn, Eileen, and Brian from New York that I promised I would say “yo, shalom” to.

I found myself talking to several widows in the group. We really lifted each other’s spirits with our stories and prayers. The group really became one and it was a blessing to be part of it and see people helping each other and praying with and for each other. The weather was just about perfect. The high temperatures during the day are about 75 degrees with lots of sunshine and at night in the 60’s. Israel needs rain, but I am grateful it did not rain on the group.

I have not watched any television or read any newspapers, so I will catch up on the news tomorrow.

I checked into my Bed and Breakfast and was welcomed with big smiles. My room was ready and on the “quiet side.” There is a cafe on one side that gets pretty loud at night, so I always ask for a quiet room. How blessed I am to have people who care for me.

After the group left, my friends Becky, Pat and I decided to meet at Shorashim. So I unpacked and headed up the street to catch the bus. I must admit that I have gotten into a bad habit of crossing the street on the “do not walk” sign. I looked to the right, thinking it was a one way street, and as I started across the street, a car whooshed past me on the left. Two seconds earlier, and I would not be blogging now! A good lesson for me, in paying attention and obeying the laws.

Finally, I got on the bus, shaken up, but okay. As I got off the bus heading to the Jaffa Gate, I heard my name being called. I turned around and it was Moshe from Shorashim! Talk about a small world. He gave me a ride to his shop and we got to talk a bit about the Peace Conference in Annapolis and the Sabatical year for the crops. He and his brother, Dov, are just great guys. Becky and Pat arrived and we did a little shopping at Shorashim.

I left and walked to meet Will for lunch downtown (Ben Yehuda street). It is so good to walk and see all the people here. I find myself praying more and more for the people here, both Jews and Muslims. God is the real and only answer to peace. Jeruslem is such a mix of interesting people from all over the world and I love watching them. It seems like there are so many more people here and I think the traffic has gotten worse. Everyone is talking about the traffic and how long it takes to get anywhere on the bus or in the car.

There is a different pace to the city from being on the tour. So, I am adjusting to it and looking forward to what each new day may bring.

This entry was posted by Sandra on Wednesday, October 31st, 2007 at 7:43 am and is filed under From Israel. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.