This has been an incredible trip! I have so much to be thankful for in being safe, healthy, and well. The blessing of forgetting about this problem for awhile and to see the Holy Land is something I am SOOOO grateful for! The people have been so fun, and I have made incredible friends. I am grateful for the chance to play the flute here, teach at different sites and from the scriptures, and to lead our group in singing in the gorgeous acoustics of St. Anne's Cathedral. I love the stories connected with all the sites, and can't wait for the best day of all tomorrow when we will see the Garden of Gethsemane, the Orson Hyde Memorial, and my favorite- The Garden Tomb.
Church at BYU Jerusalem yesterday was so sweet. The students are about to head home for the end of the semester, and their sincere testimonies of the Savior were so full of the Spirit. I felt the great power of the Atonement through their heartfelt words. With all they have seen and learned here, I love that their testimonies were all focused on Jesus Christ. I had an incredible experience partaking of the sacrament and thinking about Jesus' suffering and sacrifice for me. He truly is a worker of miracles, able to forgive me for my many mistakes. I loved the hymn that says "I have loved thee as thy friend, with a love that cannot end." I love knowing and feeling He truly is my friend.
Our tour guide, Bassam (Sam) has taught me more than ever. I've taken a lot of notes again, and know I have much more to still learn! Everything has been so fascinating, even though it's the third time I've seen many of these places!
We also had an incredible experience when a few of us were able to eat dinner with an Armenian family that live right in the Old City in Jerusalem! The father was our bus driver last year. I loved seeing what their home looked like, especially living inside the old city. The family speaks Armenian, and they also learn English, Arabic, and Hebrew! I loved seeing the cute kids, talking to the mom about their lifestyle, and eating an AMAZING home cooked meal! What a neat experience to learn more about the culture from the people here.
We went to the Western Wall and the Temple Mount as well as seeing the South Temple steps today. The sincerity of the people in their faith is pretty amazing. And I love seeing how many honor and respect the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. It was fun learning about the temple from our non-LDS tourist guide from Israel too. :) The Old City was so fun to go jogging in this morning and walking through as we were shopping today!
I think things will probably be a whirlwind when I get home. My mom mentioned a lot of paperwork to fill out, and I'm sure I'll need to take care of regular-life things like crazy for a couple days before I go in for surgery on Friday! But what a true blessing to be here, and I'm so thankfor for everyone allowing it to be possible for me to be here! I'm so thankful for the beautiful weather, wonderful people, and good health I've enjoyed. Oh, and I haven't gone broke on shopping either! Glad I rationed out my money day-by-day. That helped!
Love to all the family, sweet friends, and students at home! I'm still thinking about and praying for you!
6 comments:
I am so glad that you seized the opportunity to visit the Holy Land again. I am sure the decision was made through much prayer and contemplation. You will cherish the time you have spent in Israel as you recuperate from your surgery. We are praying for you continually. Let me know when you are back so we can talk school. I will help you however I am able! Love you, Janelle!
Enjoyed reading your blog and "virtually" enjoying your trip. We are thinking of and praying for you. Safe travels and best wishes with the upcoming surgery.
I'm glad you are having fun! And that you are safe ... Liz's facebook post sure gave us a scare. Good luck this week getting everything finalized before the surgery. We are ALL praying for you!
Hi Janelle! I found your blog through Facebook... so glad that you are feeling ok and having a good time! We're praying for you! You are such an example of faith and inspriation and I thank you for that!
Hi Janelle! I'm so glad you're having a terrific time in Israel! You needed this nice break, away from all your troubles & worries. And good luck with your surgery on Friday. I'm pulling for you and hope your family will keep us all updated on how you are post-surgery. Enjoy your last day there, say hello to all the cute available Israeli men for me and don't break too many hearts when you leave! ;) Love ya!
Thanks for sharing your wonderful experience in Israel and I'm glad you've felt well! When I asked my kids what they thought we could do for you, Austin thought $10 might be helpful :) and Allie thought we could pray for you. They remember you in almost every prayer--even with our meals. Now if $10 would only make a dent with hospital bills... We sure do love you and hope everything goes as smoothly as possible with your surgery and recovery. If there is a way to find out from your family how you are doing, without bugging them too much, we would love to know. Thanks for your amazing example and have no doubt you are being watched over!
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