15 June 2011

The Jerusalem Center is a walking infestation. What was first thought to be a small bout of food poisoning among three or four students has escalated into a stomach flu that is affecting over fifteen members of the student population. Soap and hand-sanitizer became my best friends as the day wore on and as the severity of the disease accelerated. When I get the stomach flu, my body temperature skyrockets; I would rather not have the Doctors’ Jackson admitting me to the hospital for a high fever. (I have had abnormally high fevers since I was a baby; they don’t put me in any danger.) I am hoping that my immune system is strong enough to combat this disease.

We were introduced to the country of Jordan this morning in a two hour long orientation meeting. We leave for Jordan on Monday, June 20^th and will return on Thursday, June 23^rd. It is going to be such an amazing field trip! We get to visit such places as Amman and Petra. The weather is going to be a bit hot. The words Sister Huntington chose were “blazing hot”, for Tuesday at least. While we are in Petra, it will be 102 degrees. Add in the desert sun and Mediterranean humidity, and you have a sweltering day. It will be hot, but it will be worth it. As the Jordan trip gets closer and closer, I am reminded that my time in Jerusalem is nearing its end. My flight back to the United States is in 58 days. That is 58 days to say goodbye to a city I have barely known; 58 days to create lifelong relationships; 58 days to experience all that Jerusalem has to offer and more. I have said this many times before, and you will probably hear me say it over and over again. Time flies. Take advantage of it. You never know when you are going to be out of time, when something is going to change. Make the most of the time that you have. Don’t procrastinate. Meet new people. Try new things. Get out of your homes, your apartments, your hometowns. Experience what this world, this universe has to offer. There is a lot out there. Get out and experience it.

This afternoon we were privilege to meet with Danny Seideman, an international lawyer living in Israel. He spoke to us for forty-five minutes or so about the logistics of the Separation Wall, a wall that was constructed from 2003-2006 between the Israeli state and the West Bank. This wall was created to ebb terrorist activity in Jerusalem and other parts of Israel. While it has ridden Jerusalem of terrorist activity, i.e. suicide bombers, and save the lives of many innocent peoples, it has altered the lives of thousands of individuals. Employment was lost as access to Jerusalem was cut-off. Children were forced to change schools. Families lost contact as a wall came to separate them from seeing one another. However, as put by Seideman, would you rather know your family was alive on the other side of that wall or would you rather be in constant panic that they would be the next victim of a suicide bomber? After his lecture, we loaded buses to take a visit to the Separation Wall. Different phrases, such as “the hands that build can also tear down”, are written on multiple parts of this wall. This opportunity really opened my eyes to the conflict raging between Palestine and Israel. It isn’t merely about land control and administrative power; it’s about love and safety, about independence and equality. In addition to Danny Seideman, we were able to hear from a member of the U.S. Embassy stationed in Tel Aviv during an evening forum. Similarly to Mr. Seideman, she spoke on the conflict raging between Israel and Palestine. It was interesting to hear another view of the conflict and the possibilities that face the two peoples in the future.

To flee the increasing illness within the J.C., I left the building for a couple of hours this afternoon with Kori and Wayna. We didn’t do much, but we had fun walking around. At one point, we decided to take a street that none of us had before travelled. The reason behind that became increasingly clearer to me as we made our way down the street. The smell was unbelievable, as we were surrounded by different meats and poultry, livers and hearts, and even intestines and stomachs. It was a relief when we reached the end of the street. We spent our time in the Jewish Quarter of the city, where Wayna and I purchased small paintings of different areas of Jerusalem and where we worked on an assignment for Old Testament. It was nice to relax and sip a Diet Coke while listening to the people pass by. On our walk back to the Jerusalem Center, we saw many kites flying in the sky. Many kids were on top of the city walls taking advantage of the warm but windy day. It was indeed a sight to see.

I spent an hour working out in the gym. I have never been one to enjoy stationary bikes, but they have begun to grow on me. It was nice to work off some steam and listen to some good music. I have truly missed being able to go to the gym every morning and run to my heart’s desire. For now, I will just have to settle for what I have and use it with a smile. With my Islam paper completed, printed out, and turned in, I am going to say goodnight. Pray that I stay well and am not plagued with the illness that has plagued so many of my classmates.