Eid Mubarak!

As of right now, it is officially Eid Mubarak (meaning literally, "blessed festival") for my Muslim friends. They have spent the past month fasting from sunrise to sundown, and the Eid is the end of the fast. They spend about 3 days enjoying the festival.

I will be working the next three days while my Muslim neighbors party. They have earned it, though. Their fasting is commendable, and they spend a good deal of time praying and discussing the Koran during this time. On top of that, this month is possibly the hottest month of the year. Many of them work outside and can only drink water in the hot summer sun. They break the fast at 7:30PM and eat to their heart's content.

As a personal update, I miss my family and friends. Sometimes I make jokes or comments that I know people back home would think was funny, but nobody here laughs. And sometimes I say things that shouldn't be that funny, and people laugh. Over the next year, we'll get to understand each other better, though.

I do love the people here. Some of the volunteers and I went to church on Sunday and afterwards one of them bought coffee for all of us people she barely even knows. Another person has helped me decorating my classroom (You may guess that decorating isn't really a skill of mine). Another has taken me and others to the "Wal-mart" of Jerusalem to do some shopping. A friend from my old school, JUC, brought something very important for me in her luggage. I've just been blessed from the kindness of so many here, and I'm challenged to find creative ways to share the kindness with others!

I miss you all. If you think of it, don't be shy about texting me or leaving a message on facebook. Sometimes your comments are the brightest parts of my day! And I apologize ahead of time for my response time. It can get busy here, and I am trying to spend as much time as possible getting to know people here, so it may take a while. God bless!