School begins!

Wednesday morning, bright and early (actually 10:15 pm Utah time) eight beautiful kids are ready for their first day at the Anglican International School of Jerusalem.  A contracted shuttle bus drove them through the busy streets (thanks, Hassan!) and we heard good reports of meeting new kids, seeing old friends, and getting on the librarian's good side.  Lisa was praised for remembering how to write in Arabic.  Amanda learned several letters and words in Hebrew.  Emily was happy to have chocolate cake in honor of her teacher's birthday.

While the kids were in school, the mommies went out in the city to explore.  It's always an adventure!

From left to right, Janice Esplin, Tommy, Margaret Ludlow, and myself.  Jeanna Huff was behind the camera.

Zuni's has excellent French toast and omelettes.  It is an upscale restaurant in the Israeli section of town, and one of the few places that will serve bacon.  A glass of orange juice cost $3.50.

After breakfast, we checked out the mall and shopped at Super Deal, where they sell taco shells, guacamole mix, and Pringles.  Like many stores here, Super Deal doesn't refrigerate their eggs, you can buy milk in bags, and labels are mostly in Hebrew.    

I am grateful for the use of a car to bring home all our groceries.  Most people here take public transportation and have their large grocery orders delivered to their homes.  Even if that were an option, I would still need to schlep it all down two flights of stairs, which is not too bad because the elevator reaches my floor.  Last time we were here we had the luxury suite on the first floor, so it was seven flights of stairs, five without elevator access.  

By the way, if you want to learn the Hebrew letter of the day,  It's shin/sin ("sheen" or "seen") and it says "sh" or "s" depending on the placement of a dot, which is usually omitted.  Shin looks like this: ש.  Shin is the first letter in the word Shalom, and also shampoo, which makes it a very useful letter when you're in the shower trying to decide between two bottles of creamy colorful stuff.  

Also on Wednesday, I had the pleasure of meeting Rana Qumsiyeh, the cousin of my dear friend Sahar.  Sahar is usually is a pillar in the branch and district, but she is currently teaching at BYU-Idaho (and I hear she is working on a book!).  Rana (whose name in Arabic means to gaze ahead)  works just a few blocks away at World Vision gathering funds to help children in distress in Gaza and the West Bank.  Rana enjoyed seeing the view and asked me take a photo in the same spot where Sahar had stood years before.  She also enjoyed the ancient olive press on the grounds.  Olives are still a way of life here for many, only now the machinery is stainless steel and fully automated.  I felt like I had know Rana for a long time, she reminded me so much of Sahar and had such a gracious personality.  We had a lovely visit  with the promise of more to come.

 We look forward to the students coming soon!  It is fun to have this big beautiful building (and amazingly complex city) to explore, but it will really come to life next week when our seventy new best friends arrive.  It will help fill some of the emptiness of our best friends in the States being so far away.  It really is in our relationships with people that we feel the love of Heavenly Father, both for us personally, and for those we reach out to.  Maybe reaching out to other people here on earth fills some of that celestial aching that our spirits feel being so far away from our Heavenly Father.