Night Hiking in Israel

It was Shabbat.  What a better way to get off the island than go for a hike and see what's on the other side of our view.   



The top of this hillside was our goal.



We left at 3:30 in the afternoon armed with flashlights and backpacks full of water.    It was tricky finding just the right way down.  After a few dead ends, we got on a good line--probably made by some wild jackals.  Avoiding thorn bushes and marveling at wild mint growing by the side, we slid down fertile red soil and jumped off any rocks we could find.  

 

 

Reaching the top, the view was close enough to touch and with the wind blowing through the hills, we felt refreshed as only foreign air can rejuvenate you.   Our little group was made up of a camera-happy Polish guy (who, incidentally took his bike with him to Israel and has lived in Portland, OR) a Columbian who themed our hike with various stages of worship music from his phone, a quiet, but motivated, hiker of a Finnish girl and myself--the short smiley one.  

We started our descent with just enough light for our feet.   Flashlights came out soon after and the night-hiking began.   We were at the bottom of a ravine when somehow the path stopped short and we lost our way.   After trying this way and that, we had no choice but to start tromping down nature to get to some kind of opening. 
 
It's a strange feeling when you have just enough light for the step in front of you and manage to keep going.   I was amazed over and over again how a roving flashlight could not pick up a clue to a path, but a flashlight inches in front of my feet could deduce the way.  


The same hillside through the trees.



The path was maybe just 6 inches wide and only hooved out by the paws of small animals.   You got to know its pattern, shape and style.   In recognizing it, confidence grew.  When you went ahead of it, thinking you knew the way, you lost it and ended up in the bushes.  

 

When you concentrated on its features, you could find it through boulders, overgrown underbrush and all sorts of twists and turns.    You started to get a glimpse into the mind of the creature that created the path.  You noticed how it moved and how it made decisions on where to step next. 

It made me think of the path that God has marked out for us.   It all seems so dark and hidden sometimes--daunting if I look too far ahead.   Usually, I just know what's on the docket for today.   Maybe that's okay and maybe that's the way it should be.   But how exciting to find that path tonight.  How exciting to be on His Path; to recognize its markings and follow its twists and turns even through the 'darkness' of my understanding at times.     

  

That same hill viewed from the top of our hill.

 Just an encouragement if you were wondering about getting into something new but unfamiliar on the Path.   The unfamiliar can be so exciting.   After you dive on in, the water's fine!    

Yofi!

As promised, some Hebrew to keep you 'in the know '  :]  along with some of my favorite expressions.

Yofi (which I like to think of as joffi) means:  Great! 
Sababa (pronounced Saaaa-baba) means:  Cool!
Balagan:  a mess (often used to describe the Middle Eastern peace process)

Ma?:  What? 
Efo:  Where?
Lama, lama:  (we all know this one...) why, why?

Ken:  yes
Loh:  No

My first hebrew sentence-- in answer to a concern about my life here in Israel:
Ani loh rotza leot shmenah.

(I don't want to get fat.)

..and that's all for now.  
I will include a few Hebrew learning resources that I've run into.  

http://www.hebrew4christians.com/
http://zionism-israel.com/hebrew/Hebrew_Alphabet_for_Dummies_6.htm
http://eteacherhebrew.com/

Please let me know if you have heard of some other good ones.  

First Impressions

Dear Friends,

I got into my kibbutz (Yad Hashmona) last night and explored the retreat center by moonlight.   I could hear my neighbors on an opposite hillside celebrating (a wedding? bar mitzvah?) and almost caught the sunrise over the hills of Judea the next morning.    I am in HEAVEN!!  It is great!   I look out onto the hills of Jerusalem (we are like 10 minutes away) and just marvel.   On a clear day, I think I could see all the way to the Mediterranean Sea. 

(And you can!!)

I'm Back!

After a long absence--with only youtube videos to hold my place--I am back!   Can cyberspace hold all the interesting facts and news I have to tell!?   We will see.   

Here is my first newsletter.   Enjoy! 

  Hello from Yad HaShmona!    It has been great getting to know the moshav.  (It’s what they call this kind of kibbutz.)    I came by minibus at night to this beautiful resort-like place.   There were lit-up palm trees swaying in the breeze and white stone walls illustrating our drive up.   

I was escorted to my room by a little Finnish girl—my new roommate.    So new, that she was only our roommate for a couple days before she became someone else's roommate--due to language and lack of space.    One dorm room can be close-quarters for three people.    Things change around really fast.

I have had a great time swapping stories and getting to know all the other volunteers.  They are such amazing people--a diverse representation of the world.  They are from Poland, Germany, Australia, Mexico,....   My other roommate is from Columbia.   I was so excited when I saw on her desk a book called In Search Of God by Tommy Tenny but, her title was ‘En La Busqueda de DIOS'.   Devotion.    

I love my new social network and Israel is beautiful!   I am up on a Judean hillside surrounded by hillsides.    It’s like everyone can have their own hilltop if they wanted to--there are so many.   We have a view of Tel Aviv’s city lights at night but I long for glimpses of the roads up to Jerusalem!     

My mind knows I’m in Israel, but the rest of me is still having trouble comprehending it.    I’ve been to the city and have seen Orthodox Jews in their traditional black--and row after row of white stone walls should make their impression, but I’m still waiting for that singular moment when it all becomes reality.    We are going to Nazareth tomorrow.     Maybe this trip will contain that moment of realization.    I really am in Israel.   I am in the birthplace of God on earth.  

At the moshav (kibbutz) we have started our work week.  We work very hard.  Most of the jobs are house-keeping as Yad HaShmona is like a hotel that hosts banquets and parties of all kinds.    There are only a few volunteers here now, which can make the schedule a little overwhelming at times.   (Anybody want to join us?  We are now--and always--taking volunteers!)   The food is excellent!   It’s like going to a Mediterranean buffet every day.   Shabbat (Saturday) brunch?  Don’t even get me started!     Fresh squeezed orange juice, 12 different kinds of salad…an omelet bar.   

For the Middle East, it has been very cold.    Warm days and east coast-chilly nights.    You really cannot bring too many warm clothes.     A great piece of advice for winter was:  bring one WARM winter coat (wool or anything from Columbia would be great), gloves and a hat.  The other essential winter piece was 'the longest raincoat you can find!'.  

I have not regretted any fleece, long-sleeved shirts or jackets/vests that I have brought.    I wasn't able to find a long raincoat before I left, so when I found a long, light-weight puffy coat for 10 shekels at an Israeli garage sale I was blown away.   It was one of my first Israeli experiences here and a reminder of God's providence at the same time.    (FYI: 10 shekels is aproximately $3.)   

I have been practicing my Hebrew.   Some words you can learn will be in my next blog post.    Like what is joffi ? and what does ma mean?    

May He who watches over Israel watch over and keep you,

Much love,

 A Zionista

Yeshua Kadosh - A Historical Journey

This might be a better version with a great Biblical slideshow.

Kadosh קדוש

For anyone who ever wanted to learn this song..the words are pretty easy.  
Yad Hashmona (a hotel with banquet halls) hosts alot of groups.   One group in particular comes regularly:
Orthodox Jews desiring to celebrate the Shabbat.   Sometimes they will end their dinner with a song and then go into prayer.   I thought it would be neat if we, the volunteers, had a Shabbat song of our own to offer after dinner.