Sabbath on Saturday

For those of you that didn't know this, but because the Jewish Sabbath is Friday-Saturday, we also have our sabbath on Saturday here in the Holy Land. Sunday is the first day of the work week and it makes it possible for me to keep track of which day is which. It makes the weekend come quickly and you have to be prepared. All of the stores and gas stations close on Friday evening and don't open until Sunday. I had shopped at the grocery store on Thursday but on Friday afternoon, Janis and I panicked and ran to the market for a couple extra items we thought we might need in case of emergency until Sunday (like watermelon, chocolate, ice cream and some diet coke- very important items that you might not survive without for 48 hours. :))

Here's Jayne and Ellie at the Market. No one could understand me at the deli counter, so the guy turned to Janis who was standing with me to translate. Apparently, Janis looks way more Jewish than I do. But when they found out Janis didn't speak Hebrew, they went and got the manager, the guy in the white behind the deli counter. He helped us threw the store and was some what offended when Janis asked for tortillas and describe him, but he already knew what they were. Of coarse he knew!

We were really excited to go to church. The LDS congregation that meets here in Jerusalem is a "branch" (it's not big enough to be a ward). It consist of about 6-8 families, 6 couples that run the center, and then the 80 college students that study at the BYU Jerusalem Center. Our church meetings are held at the Center which is about a 20 minutes drive from our house. Its 20 minutes, IF you know where you are going. We left 45 minutes early and made it 10 minutes late. We had it planned out on the map we were going to go to church, but when we got to certain streets, we found that we were driving down the streets of a very Jewish orthodox neighborhood. We had to turn around because they don't drive on the Sabbath, and cars are not allow on those streets. It was not intentional, of coarse, but we found ourselves feeling very uncomfortable. Our taxi driver last fall said if you drive in those neighborhoods on the sabbath they will throw stones at your car. Those words keep ringing in my ears. So after three U turns we found our way around those neighborhoods and up the hill to church. By the time we got there I was so stressed and so relieved. Mostly because I was so excited to go to church and then we were late. You know how it feels to be far away from your friends and normal life, church somehow is like coming home. The church members are so welcoming and this branch didn't disappoint. Our kids were so excited to be with other kids at church. There is only one other boy Sam's age and the two of them make up the Young Men's program. Ellie had a couple girls close to her age, as well as Jayne. Jake went to nursery in the bomb shelter- its were they keep the toys for the nursery kids, but it is one of the two bomb shelters required for the building. We laughed all evening about Jake going to class in the bomb shelter. There were three other little ones with him. We were super fortunate because the branch was having a lunch together after church. The students were on a field trip in Turkey, leaving the branch super tiny and allowing for a lunch. A friend had told me, so we were assigned to bring some dessert. It was so nice because we got to sit and talk with every one and the kids played at the center. Here is me and the ladies-

Seth wanted me to take a couple pictures of our family at the center. For those who have been there before, I hear your sighs of love and adoration for this place. It is truly a sacred and holy place.

If you look in both of these pictures you can see the Old City walls and the Dome of the Rock. In the picture below it is right between mine and Seth's heads.

Grandma Janny and Seth

Here are the center's beautiful arches. 

Grandma Janny and Ellie in the gardens at the Jerusalem center.

To BYU Jerusalem Center is beautifully landscaped as well, as you can see.

Here's a picture of each of these crazy kids at the Jerusalem Center.

After a great Sabbath day at the Jerusalem center we headed home. Grateful to be a part of it.