2014: A Grace Odyssey: GETTING THE HANG OF THINGS

The Sabbath! It was on a Saturday! So cool. We had 400+ people at Sacrament meeting because there were a ton of tour groups coming through. For Sunday school, they organized a small Mission Prep class for the few of us waiting for calls or getting ready to turn in our papers. Our teachers are so great - just in that one class period, I feel like I got some really great advice. After church, I got to play guitar for a little bit and was later joined by my awesome roommate Eliza Smith. She's a commercial music major and has an incredible voice as well as a ton of natural talent with the piano and guitar. We already have a little repertoire of songs we can play and sing together! We ended up playing on the terrace for a few hours.

Yesterday was our first "free day" where we had complete freedom to do whatever we wanted. I went with a group to explore the Jewish quarter. We visited the Four Sephardic Synagogues , the Cardo Reconstructions, the Hurva Synagogue, and the Temple Mount. It was a really long day of walking around, but so worth it.

Today was the first Field Trip and we took buses around Jerusalem to become more oriented with the area. We went to the Augusta Victoria Hospital, which is a Lutheran church built by the German kaiser Wilhelm II and has some of the most beautiful mosaics I have ever seen. We went to the giant Jewish cemetery which, from far away, is so densely packed that it looks like solid rock. Next, we drove to Nabi Samwil - the site that several religions recognize as the burial place of the prophet Samuel. We were given a few extra minutes,so I went downstairs to see the "tomb" of Samuel and there were tons of women weeping and praying. One thing that I'm starting to notice about the Jewish people is how emotional and expressive they are. I was dying to take a picture, but that clearly wouldn't have been a good choice. I went back outside and started reading in the book of Samuel where he tells the story of his mother Hannah. He tells of her faith and devotion to make and keep a covenant with the Lord in order to have a son: Samuel (which means "God hears" in Hebrew). Mother's Day is coming right up and reading these scriptures just reminded me of how grateful I am for my mother. I know that a lot of the family will be reading this, so all of you know how much my mom cares about people. She has been so invested in the success and happiness of each of her children. I know that I have been blessed because of the example she has set for me. Long story short, I love you Mom!

Anyway. Next we went south to the first point at which Abraham would have been able to see Jerusalem when he was traveling to Mount Moriah to sacrifice his only son, Isaac. President Woods gave an incredible lesson on Abraham's (and Isaac's - as he wasn't a child at the time) faithfulness and obedience. Then it was back to the JC for dinner and Family Home Evening. I just finished practicing guitar for an hour or two. My callouses are coming back!

I'm so in love with this place. I'm so grateful that I get to be here. PAPERS ARE SUBMITTED IN 10 DAYS EVERYONE. The anticipation is killing me. In the happiest way possible. Love