Holidays of all shapes and sizes

Last week was eventful with field trips, a birthday, two lost teeth, and two holidays.  I think the tooth fairy didn't have our address in her GPS, because she was tardy for the first tooth but finally delivered the goods.  The second tooth came out a few days later, and the tooth fairy had no problems that time.

We celebrated Christmas on October 31 in Shepherd’s fields (timed to coincide with the class discussion of the Savior’s birth).  But first we toured the ruins of the Herodian, King Herod’s retreat, fortress, and burial site.  In the photo below, we are sitting on an "island" in the middle of Herod's immense swimming pool at the foot of the volcano-shaped Herodian--no water in the swimming pool any more.

The juxtaposition of King Herod and Jesus Christ made a vivid contrast:  The first, a monument builder whose paranoia and excesses destroyed the lives of his kinsmen and subjects, was buried in an elaborate tomb of his own design, which was later defaced by vandals; his infamy has outlived all his beautiful buildings.  On the other hand, the King of Kings came to earth in humble circumstances, served and saved all mankind, and lay in a borrowed tomb until His glorious resurrection.  His life changed the world, and His life continues on. 

We shared testimonies and sang Christmas carols (Lisa sang Guard Him, Joseph) until well after dark.

The other holiday was Halloween, which we celebrated on November 2 after the students' exams ended.  So for once in his life, Frank's birthday was actually after Christmas and before Halloween! His students surprised him with a party, complete with an original song and a framed photo of a shepherd with sheep by Kevork Kahvedjian (He may sell his photos in Utah next conference.  Mr. Kahvedjian is pictured in the Faces of Jerusalem link below).

   After trick-or-treating and a dinner of cornbread and chili, we enjoyed a carnival with facepainting, veggie carving, and a cakewalk.  

We visited the Kotel Tunnel, "Kotel" referring to the Western Wall, which is the beginning point of the tour.  The tunnel goes north along the west side of the temple mount, passing through ancient arches, cisterns, excavations, and even a reservoir full of water.   One cool feature was to see the massive stones that support the foundation of the temple mount.  Lisa is pointing to one end of the monolith, and the stone extends just as far in the other direction!

Here the tunnel is at the level of the ancient street.  Lisa and Amanda are sitting on a rock that should have been fitted into the street, but construction suddenly stopped for some reason, even leaving the rock behind them partially chipped away.  We followed the tunnel all the way to the reservoir at the north end, then we returned the way we had come back to the Western Wall.