Day Book Entry

FOR TODAY, December 15, 2008 ...

Outside My Window...
It is dark. It's 6:00pm and I can see the Dome of the Rock at the end of the street (a mere block away). Otherwise, I see the 50 people from my tour group hanging out in the lobby waiting to head back home to America.

I am thinking...
That my choice to wear a skirt the day I rode on a camel was NOT my most brilliant choice.

I am thankful for...
My soft and comfortable pillow and bed that I have missed these many days.

From the kitchen...
Instead of 'from the kitchen', I'm having food from the roadside. LAMB KABOBS and FALAFEL!! I have some new favorite foods. And a strange man cooking kabobs with his dirty hands and serving it in a fresh pita is oddly heavenly. YUM!

I am wearing...
Dirty clothes. I want clean clothes - these will have to last me a 12 hour flight to Newark / a two hour flight to Houston / a 5 hour layover in Houston / and a 2 hour flight home where I will fall into bed after kissing my babies!!

I am creating...
Memories!

I am going...
To teach my family to play Crowns when I get home. This is just a fun, simple game that I've played with some old ladies in the evenings. Good times!

I am reading...
Physik. I know. I should be reading the Bible or something like that. But I'm still the 'human- fault-ridden-Wendy', who can't be religiously minded 24/7.

I am hoping...
The plane doesn't crash (I don't have the right pants on) and that I don't sit by the annoying voice lady on the plane ride home.

I am hearing...
The Muslim call to prayer. (A church volunteer at the BYU Center takes it as his opportunity to express his love to his wife every time he hears it - kind of a good idea, because after a while it gets a little tedious).

Around the house...
Hopefully around my house the kids are anxiously awaiting my arrival tomorrow. And hopefully around my house my parents are still alive and sane. (Is that even possible if they weren't sane before they came to my house?)

One of my favorite things...
One of my favorite things about Israel has been interacting with the people. Today, for example, I met an old woman who runs an orphanage in Palestinian Bethany. She is kind, humble and poor. Yet she is someone who adds much to the society she lives in. How gratifying to give aid to her orphanage and interact with her. COOL!

A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week...
Enjoy my kids and the holiday season. Nothing has put me more in the holiday spirit than missing my kids and being here. I am ready for some Christmas!

Here is picture thought I am sharing...


(The bad idea skirt wearing day! Luckily I'm posting the photo where the least amount of leg and underwear is showing.)