Seeing the Light in Others

September 16, 2010

Well, I am about three weeks into my journey now and it definitely feels like I have been here for a lot longer.  I am truly living a blessed life right now that is full of so many opportunities to be a witness to God’s creation.  This week at school has been full of so much activity that I can not believe that my second week is over.  Now I am just having a hard time trying to pinpoint things from the past week to focus on.  My thought process writing this blog entry is a testament to how scrambled my brain is in trying to process everything that is happening. 

Every week there is a young adult group at the Lutheran Church of Hope, and I have been to the past two meetings.  I have thoroughly enjoyed the conversations I have had at the past few meetings, and can not wait for upcoming meetings.  The Pastor at the church has been a great guide for me on my journey, and his stories and openness have truly opened my eyes to different things occurring here in Palestine, and the United States.  This unique perspective of the world is so refreshing and thought provoking, because although we may study cross cultural views we never really understand until hearing it firsthand.  The thought of looking at the United States from a Palestinian view is something that I have thought about before, but could never put a face to the reality.  Becoming a part of a new community is so much more than going to special events in the community or learning the language, it is the process of taking on a fresh new perspective with a new set of eyes that have not been tainted by other’s opinions.  This is one of many new thought processes that I will go through this coming year, and I hope that somehow I will be able to articulate this new lens that I developed in a way that can make a positive difference for others. 

I am already seeing how the relationships that I am forming are changing me.  The students are so interested in everything about me, even my name.  After playing some soccer with the students I fully realize some of them are very good, and definitely better than me but they are just so excited for me to play with them regardless of my skill level.  Today for instance I was able to participate in a lot of classes, and the music class especially touched me today.  The teacher started singing, and then the kids followed in singing and then a great clapping combination with the song.  I could not understand any of the song, but the spirit was so alive in that classroom that I could not believe these were 5^th graders.  The cohesiveness of the 32 kids in the classroom when the music started was truly amazing to witness, and spoke mountains to how music touches everyone in some form or another. 

Everything has really fallen into place here so far, and if there was a delay in plans something positive always came from the experience.  I guess my point is that the future is not worth worrying about, because with the right people and community we will always be in trustworthy company.  I am definitely a person that has always worried about everything, and even in these first few weeks I have found a new sense of calm and peacefulness that opens me to living without worrying about everything.  I have a feeling that this view is because Palestinians deal with things on a daily basis that many people would just throw up their hands and give up, but yet they live so closely with their friends and family that as long as that is present everything else will fall in place.  The amount of support and love that I have felt from the community here and from home is probably why I feel like I do not have to worry about everything anymore.  I encourage others to look around your community of friends and family, and see the strength and compassion expressed by them and use that support to live your life more fully and confidently.

Peace Salaam Shalom,

David