It's been another fun and busy week here, starting with my birthday! I did 43 push-ups, plus one to grow on, but they are getting shallower as the years go by! Unique gifts included a book by Elder Groberg, a bouquet of flowers, packets of ranch dressing mix, hearts taped to our door, and a few hearty happy birthday songs throughout the day, one from as far away as Florida (my parents are serving at the church's ranch in St. Cloud).
We had a Relief Society Board meeting that night, and I met with members of the compassionate service committee to brainstorm ways to get to know and meet the needs of the women in our branch. The prevailing solution: cupcakes.
The next morning, bright and early, we headed to the desert on a bus with no name. The kids were out of school because of Eid el Adha, when Muslims commemorate the willingness of Abraham to sacrifice his son Ishmael to be obedient to God (celebrated with lots of delicious food and extended family togetherness). So it is fitting that we had a lot of family togetherness in the warm southern deserts where Abraham established a well (Tel Beersheva) and where Bedoin still maintain the semi-nomadic lifestyle which Abraham and his descendents knew so well. We saw several altars, but no one was offered on them. (No climbing on the antiquities!)
We dropped a rock into the well, and waited, and waited, and waited, and finally we heard it hit bottom.
Since Abraham's time, Beersheva grew to be an administrative outpost with a heavy wall and elaborate gate system. There were three layers of defense in the gate (six chambers, three on each side of the entrance to keep out unwanted intruders. Kind of makes me think about the many ways we are gatekeepers for what comes into our homes and families. Of course during times of peace, those same chambers were used for business and administrative purposes.
Amanda and Emily posed near one of those gate chambers at Tel Beersheva.
Associate Director Roy Huff and amazing professor Frank Judd stand in front of a huge storage area. This southern outpost would have hosted (and probably taxed) desert travelers. "From Dan to Beersheva" was a common phrase to describe the area controlled by Israel.
Amanda was focusing on the small picture, like a colony of snails.
Beer Sheva had a sophisticated water collection and storage system. We walked down the cistern and marvelled at their storage capacity.
Couldn't resist a picture with my sweetie in front of the altar! This altar was found in the city but disassembled, with its hewn stones in secondary use, suggesting that it had been decommissioned when Israelite worship was centralized and regulated. It's not clear exactly where the altar had originally been located in the city.
The Bedoin Weaving center we visited in past years was closed for the holiday, so we went to an overlook near the home and tomb of Ben Gurion. He was dedicated to the kibbutz movement and preferred to live out in this rather hot, dry, and lonely place.
Avdat was a new stop for us, very delightful and providing a glimpse into the trading outposts of the Nabateans, whose stronghold and capital city was the famous city of Petra. Ruins of several Christian churches were here, as well as a large enclosed area for caravans, lookout towers, tombs, and cisterns,
Cross shaped baptismal font, found near one of the Byzantine churches.
This may have been a tomb or maybe had some kind of industrial use. Residents of Avdat were able to terrace and irrigate the harsh slopes for raising grapes, and they have one of the largest winepresses I've ever seen.
Our last stop, Tel Arad, is noted for also having a decommissioned temple, but unlike Beer Sheva, the altar at Arad was made of unhewn stones. It has two incense stands and a standing stone in what would have been the holy of holies. Here is a photo from the Israel museum, where we went almost a week later.
It is very interesting to stand in these ancient structures, or ancient rock piles, you could say, and imagine what it was like for people long ago, or imagine what meaning the archaeologists can derive from the confusing jumble they find when they excavate a city.
That night, I caught a tiny lizard, and Emily enjoyed holding him for a few minutes before letting him go. Good thing my kids don't mind lizards, or else they'd be freaking out frequently.
Amanda had some fun with Lou, a friend from school. Pictionary was a successful game for these two artistic girls.
We enjoyed our private faculty family tour of the mechanical areas of the center on Thursday, ducking under beams and pipes and weaving around the pillars that support the 8 story structure.
Tarek is head of security and also a fitness buff. Just like Spencer.
At one point in the tour, it is customary to write your name on the walls. We found our names from the past and many names of people we knew.
Also on Thursday, Lisa performed a flute solo at the Formal Talent Show. She did a fabulous job with Entr'Acte by Bizet, and I was glad she asked me to accompany her, although I made mistakes, but it was fun to be able to play the grand piano in the auditorium. Like driving a Cadillac. Which I have never actually done, but I imagine it would be both thrilling and terrifying.
After a PTA meeting at the school on Friday, we walked to the nearby West Jerusalem open air market called the Shuk. Kayle Branson showed us some of her favorite stores in the area. It is nice to know that we can find many things we need or want, it just might take longer than back home in the one-stop-shopping mart.
The Shuk was full of people scurrying about, many getting ready for the Sabbath which would begin at sundown. Beautiful braided challah breads, chocolate croissants, delicious nuts and fruits made it worth braving the press of humanity. We tasted halva, dried cantaloupe, dried watermelon, and spicy dried bananas (almost better than doritos!) I bought roasted cashews and almonds, bread studded with walnuts and seeds, and two burritos from a kosher burrito cafe. We added our own cheddar cheese at home.
Pushing through the Shuk became more difficult the longer we shopped. The narrow alleys became more congested as our bags got bulkier. I was bumping into my friends and strangers and people were hurrying me forward or cutting me off. I thought of the Savior walking through a crowded street with many people pressing around him, yet in the midst of all the sensory distractions he was sensitive enough to discern the touch of the woman who was healed of an issue of blood. Amazing!
The kids had a playdate at Eva's house. Her mom made them mozzarella-stuffed soft pretzels--heavenly! As I lingered to enjoy a pretzel, the kids started an indoor water fight. They look so innocent, but they were all soaking wet when it was time to get in the car.
Slightly out of order, these silly pictures are from the previous Friday when Brother and Sister Esplin went to a synagogue with students. We hung out with the kids and made sticky playdough, then we got carried away with chocolate cupcakes on the porch.
Trying to carpe every diem, we spent a few hours on Sunday afternoon at the Israel museum with the Ludlows and the Esplins' oldest daughter. The Judd's and Ludlow's oldest daughters were both home writing essays.
We followed the student's scavenger hunt written by Jeff Chadwick, and while there were three or four things that we couldn't find, overall the kids had a great time. We bribed them just a little to get the three-page scavenger hunt started, but after they got the momentum going they stayed until close checking off all the items, from a tiny ancient scroll of priestly blessings to a huge basalt lion. We saw treasures from all over the country, from Dan to Beersheva.
The model of the old city of Jerusalem helped us visualize what it would have looked like two millenia ago.
From the ancient to the cutting edge of modern technology: After viewing the Dead Sea Scroll display, we checked out the Nano Bible. Suspended in the tube in front of Amanda is a square the size of a grain of sugar on which is incised the entire Hebrew Bible. I found out later you can buy your own nano bible for $99 mounted in a pendant, but of course it won't do you much good without an electron microscope capable of 10,000x magnification.
Ancient papyrus letters were sealed with string and tiny bullae or blobs of dried clay which were imprinted with an official seal. These bullae were like tamper-evident seals and also proved the sender was authentic. These particular bullae contain names found in the book of Jeremiah and 1 Chronicles.
Amulets inscribed with the priestly blessing, "The Lord bless you and keep you..." These were dated to the late 7th century BCE, the oldest quote from the Bible outside of the Bible itself.
This sculpture turns your reflection completely upside down.
Of course, we couldn't take any of the treasures home with us, but we took home a head full of shared memories, an appreciation for the craftsmen, artists, and historians of the past, and the archaeologists and curators who interpret and preserve these treasures. The scavenger hunt taught us that our kids will do anything for the promise of a few Bugles corn chips. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.
