What a month March has been . . .

First, my apologies to all who have e-mailed me in the last month or two and have not received an answer back yet. Please know how much I appreciate hearing from you, and I have not been ignoring my inbox. March has been a crazy busy month--even more so than usual as I've been entrusted with yet more responsibility. I am honored to be asked, but it means a little less time for other stuff. I love to get e-mails and I will answer them, just can't say exactly when.

March started with a bang as Thursday, March 3rd was Christine's last day in the role of housekeeper for the Christ Church Guest House. We had a big party for her and then she left for home March 16th. The immediate result of this was that I was asked to step up into the housekeeper role for the remainder of my time here. It is a huge responsibility, and I am doing my best to "walk worthy of calling." Honestly, I was a bit surprised at how much of a transition this proved to be. I had worked with Christine for eight months and thought I was mostly familiar with the duties of housekeeper. But I have since realized how much more administration type duties there are to do, and I am no longer able to do as much "hands on" out in the kitchen, guest rooms, and laundry than I used to. That's been a bit of an adjustment and in some ways I miss being able to work alongside the other volunteers the way I previously did. But, there is an amazing team of volunteers here at the moment!! They are a spectacular group with great attitudes and such joyfulness. I would never have been able to make this transition without their support--I am so grateful for each one!!!

Another lesson I am learning currently is how to balance putting 100% into my job yet knowing when to call it a day. There is always something I could be doing, and I can quite easily slip into driving myself quite hard. It's easy to keep working until everything on my list for the day is done, regardless of the finishing time. While it is right to do my job 100%, there is also a healthy balance. Some days require 10-11 hours of work and I don't mind, but I need to recognize that some days don't and it's okay to stop at the 8-hour mark. :-) It would be so easy to simply immerse myself in work during my last weeks here, but I've been reminded by a dear lady here this week that that doesn't necessarily please God. He's not asking me to work my tail off here, but rather to do my responsibilities thoroughly and joyfully and enjoy each day He's given me. This works itself out in a variety of ways--stopping at meal times to sit down and enjoy the company of friends (regardless of whether I eat or not), discerning what things on my list can be left for the next day if they aren't done by 5:00ish, being alert to those around me and present to their needs, etc. Last week I felt a bit overwhelmed by all I needed to do; this week, I feel like a better balance is starting to be established and I'm content.

March has also been a bit of a difficult month emotionally. As I mentioned, Christine flew out about 10 days ago, and I'm certainly missing her presence and guidance. While the initial heartache has lessened a bit, I still feel the void deeply. If one big goodbye wasn't enough, next week will bring about another departure day. John has been here since the day I arrived (and that can only be said about two volunteers still here at the moment), and he will be flying back to the States late next week. It's another hard goodbye, and I'm not looking forward to it. Thirdly, I've now started looking ahead a bit to my own departure (about six weeks away). I've already shipped some stuff home. I know, that sounds a bit early, but if I ship it by land, it's much cheaper (3 big boxes for less than $100!) but it takes around two months. I'm going through books and winter clothes at the moment, deciding what I don't need for the remainder of my time here and what I won't need immediately when I arrive back in Colorado. While it's gratifying to go through things and start decluttering, it certainly makes the countdown until departure very real. I'm torn. I am looking forward to seeing my family again and having a bit of a holiday, but I don't think I'd ever be ready to leave this country and city. I've loved my time in Jerusalem and would be happy to stay longer. Plus, there are people here who have become very dear friends; thank goodness for such things as e-mail and skype! But, I do know this is God's perfect timing for me to leave, and who knows, I suspect I'll be back at some point! :-)

Between the extra working hours and emotional demands, I haven't had the energy very often to write e-mails or blogs. I generally finish my shift, come up to my room and either read a book or do a little cross stitch before going to bed. But, there's been opportunity for some fun recently as well . . . !

A couple weeks ago, I felt a desire to go somewhere for the afternoon and just be normal Amanda, not housekeeper Amanda, supervisor Amanda, or even supervisor trainer Amanda. It was a cool and rainy day so outside activities were out; I ended up boarding a bus to the Jerusalem mall. I spent a fun afternoon wandering in and out of shops where labels are in both Hebrew and English. I spent some time in the H&M store all the Europeans talk about. I looked at hair clips, earrings, shoes, and more in multiple stores. You would all be impressed to know I only purchased one new pair of earrings that day! I did come home with a collection of hair accessories and a costume prop for Purim (its identity will be revealed lower down(-: ). Before I reboarded a bus to come home, I stopped for a snack--a hot dog and parve ice cream. For my American friends back home, this would be something completely foreign. (pun intended) Parve is the Hebrew term used for something that does not contain any meat or dairy ingredients. Thus, it can be eaten with meat and/or dairy foods and not break the kosher laws. In this way, restaurants can serve meat and ice cream. It certainly tastes different than your normal McDonalds ice cream cone, but not in a bad way.

At one department store in the mall, I saw purple sauce pans!
And in the same store, a little nook set up in almost entirely purple! It was great! :-)

The bus arrived back outside Jerusalem's Old City a bit after the sun set; it was still cloudy/rainy and the views were beautiful. This is Jaffa Gate and the Tower of David from the neighborhood across the Hinnom Valley to the west.
Looking south, down the Hinnom Valley
The Tower of David and western city wall from just outside Jaffa Gate (looking southeast)
The Jewish holiday of Purim was last weekend; Christ Church threw an American-themed Purim party complete with barbecued hamburgers and the story of Esther retold in a western saloon setting. It was quite funny to see Israelis, Aussies, Brits, and more trying to be American. The theme was in honor of John as the gathering doubled as a farewell party for him. There were some house guests booked in for dinner, and as they probably hadn't brought Purim costumes with them, we supplied cowboy hats so they could get in the spirit of things. I went out and bought about 20 hats the day before, and the volunteers in the kitchen that day had some fun.

Here is Nick doing breakfast prep wild west style. Nick is from Nebraska, so he didn't have to work real hard at looking American. :-)
Then, Nathan got into the act. He is from Oxford, England, so it took a bit more acting. And, there were no guns around, so a pie server had to do . . .
The three kitchen cowboys: Nick, Nathan, Sarah

I wasn't free to put a lot of time and effort into a Purim costume, but like Nick, I don't have to work real hard at being American either. A plaid blouse, denim skirt, and boots worked just fine. I also stepped out of my normal safe and reserved circle for the night and colored my hair. I didn't dare risk any sort of permanent color, so bought an inexpensive can of purple spray. It's very pinky-purple and didn't show in all lighting, but it was fun for the night! (And thankfully it washed out!!!!)

Here's my purplish hair . . .Virtually all of the Americans at the Purim party -- John, Nick, myself, Beno
In the middle of the "western Esther" play ... Joe as an Indian serving the drinks, John as Haman, Aaron as Ahasuerus (the saloon owner), and Elsa as Esther (the new entertainer). It was done very well and quite entertaining!

This past week included a combined birthday party for Lucille and Shane at Waffle Bar ...

Shane, Kathryn and Stephen

Tobias, James, Lucille

Elsa, Rebecca, Sarah

Nick and Joe

John and NathanMy butterscotch waffle . . . I ate half, and then Nathan, Shane, and Stephen all contributed to finishing it :)

... and a fun evening tea at the King David hotel with John. Can you believe it--I drank two cups of English Breakfast Tea?? And liked it!!
What would tea be without lemon/white chocolate cake? (Didn't think to take a picture until after we had taken some bites . . .)


This past week also saw the first bomb of its kind go off in Jerusalem since 2004. The location of the explosion is about a half-hour's walk from the Christ Church Guest House. I had just stepped out of the hair salon when the calm Jerusalem afternoon exploded into a cacophony of sirens. We heard what had happened within 5-10 minutes, and the next hour was largely spent following reports online, checking in with all our volunteers (two had gone out of town for the day and a third was on a bus in the area), and trying to grasp the fact that after quite a while with a measure of peace a bomb had detonated in Jerusalem. We found out the next day that the daughter of one of our staff members had actually been on one of the buses but was unharmed. One lady was killed by the explosion--I have friends who knew her well. To be honest, the atmosphere around the city since Wednesday afternoon has largely been life as normal . . .

Hope you've enjoyed this glimpse into my past month . . . It's been a bit of a hard one (I HATE saying farewells!!!), but definitely had its special moments as well. Spring is slowly arriving in Jerusalem (we've had some beautiful days), Lent is in full swing, and next month will bring both Pesach and Holy Week in Jerusalem. I'm really looking forward to these . . .