Playing Catch Up

Sometimes I think, hey, I should catch up on my blog...so I go to my usual spot outside the forum where everyone knows I like to hang out. I should make a sign that says "Elyse's Outlet" on the bench by where I always sit. When did I become so predictable? Bleh. Not the point though. So I go sit down, upload my camera pictures, and then stare blankly at the screen wondering how on earth to put into words everything that goes on here. But it's impossible. I think that sometimes I am under the mistaken impression that just because I am an English major, I should be able to convey exactly what I need to through words. But let's be honest, I don't command the English language that expertly quite yet. Oh well, hopefully it'll live on in my memory years from now when I'm living my dull life back in Provo. Remembering days where I got to spend my time sitting inside a mosaic duck.

So, back to Jeru then? Monday resulted in more failed attempts at homework, a quiz that I managed to luck out on with only an hour of studying (why does that keep happening?), and finally crashing and burning after 2 days of lousy sleep. I went to bed at 8:30pm and slept until 6:30am. Tuesday we had more classes and a group of us decided to reward ourselves with some brownie surprise after finishing our Egypt papers. Oh and I can't report on Tuesday without mentioning the committee meeting. All of the committee chairs had a meeting with our new director Bro. Kent Brown. Suffice it to say that words were said and it provided a memorable experience for all parties involved. Although Stefanie and I couldn't discuss it for the rest of the day without getting riled up about it. Next time that happens I'm just going to my room... On a completely different note, yesterday was our visit to Yad VaShem. I can't even begin to describe the course of emotion that swept through me as we walked through this Holocaust Memorial. Devastation, bewilderment, sadness, frustration, heart break, and hope. The things that hit me the hardest were the shoe display and the children's memorial full of candles. This quote by a Danish pastor also struck me as poignant, "I do not know what a Jew is, we only know what human beings are." I hope I never forget that visit.After the memorial we were taught by our Jewish MNE teacher and visited some other sites. Came back to the center for dinner and more class. Finished the night off with a volleyball tournament where sadly, the powerhouse team of Jessica Ralphs, Matt Morgan, Chelsea Bigney, and I, took a loss in match 3. But we still have some pride...Uzi Forever!!! Today had been a whirlwind of adventure following a rather long hour of Old Testament (it's okay Bro. Wilson, I forgive you for keeping us 20 minutes late in class). First we went to the Church of St. Mary Magdalene which was beautiful. Here's our group right after taking the "scenic route" down the mountain on our way.

Following those expeditions we visited some tombs, got lost in the city, ate some falafel, and walked to the Pools of Bethesda. While there weren't actually any pools, we did get to sing in the chapel which had the best acoustics out of all the chapels we've visited thus far. It was incredible. We also got to chat with one of the priests who was from Ghana, spoke French, and knew Mormons by sight. And for your final viewing pleasure, here's a sight of Bethesda.