SHALOM!

The Western Wall- "Wailing Wall"

Shalom from the Holy Land!

I don’t think I have any shout outs…but my mom and dad I love you guys! No offence but I don’t really miss anyone but Sophie! I am going through Sophie withdrawls!! Please send pics or videos mom please! (of you too of course and my bear bear)

It’s a lame one because we have just had tests this week! And we have tests all week this next week as well. On our free day some girls and I went to the Citadel museum. It is the tower of David and I am pretty sure its also king Herod’s Palace… don’t quote me on that. It was very interesting none the less. So inside Damascus gate they sometimes have fresh strawberries. We bought a box of them and downed them. They tasted so amazing!

The field trip we took this week was amazing! We literally walked on the same stones that Christ walked on! We first went through the Western Wall tunnels. It was really interesting and we saw the rest of the Western Wall under ground. It is considered more holy down there because it is closer to the center. I am not sure how to describe this field trip. We walked all over the city just seeing places that dated back to the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans. We learned about Solomon’s temple and Herod’s temple. I loved it and I loved imagining myself back in the time of Christ.

Honestly the rest of this week consisted of me and everyone else studying and studying and going to class…and studying haha quite an eventfull week!

It has been so stormy and so rainy! I have loved it.



FUNNY TIMES IN THE OLD CITY

We had some free time so my friends Dan and Carrie and I decided to take a stroll into the old city. (preface: it has been lightning and storming all day! There was a break in the storm so we thought it would be ok) right when we are walking up the hill to the city gates it states pouring no no dumping rain! Those of you who know me well know that I absolutely LOVE the rain! It was coming down in huge sheets so we began running through the rivers flowing down the street. We were trying to find the money exchanger but most everything was closed because the sun was setting for the Sabbath. We found some stairs and explored up above the shops then meet some guys on the corner of the street. They had a fire and graciously shared with us.
 We were telling them about us and when I said I was 20 he corrected me and told me I was 14…wow even here people think I am a baby. Haha oh well. We then went jogging through the old city. We were so soggy and took cover in our good friend Shaban’s shop. He always gives us juice and is so sweet! The sun was going down so we ran back to the center (about 20 min away) and warmed up with hot hot showers.



This week we has an isralie folk dance class. Everyone really enjoyed it and we had so much fun! We then had one of our weekly crazy dance parties! People are getting creative with their attire. Some guys dressed as girls and the girls in turn dressed as them. One kid was hilarious and had some nerd get up.

Sabbath was so amazing today!

** Our plans for our lives are so lame compared to the Lord’s plans for our lives –beautifully stated by my friend Emmy

*In relief society we got a beautiful lesson from my friend Becca. The lesson was on Neal Andersons talk “Repent That I May Heal You” First of all this is one of my favorite talked EVER.  I have read it like 12 times since I have been here.  I encourage everyone who reads my blog to read it right now! We must know that repentance is a DAILY process.  We are not going to all of a sudden repent one night and have everything be perfect the next day.  We must feel sorrow and regret for our sin. We must be humble and offer ourselves unto the Lord. You must do your best each day. Anderson gives a beautiful though about repentance.  It is like coming back unto the Lord and being spiritually wrapped in his arms. Our Savior and Heavenly Father are always opening their arms to us.  Many people, when thinking of repentance, think of it like you have done something negative, so you in return  repent. In that sense it seems quite negative. We should think of it as coming back into the saviors love and being able to feel that love daily. In the Old Testament the Lord is basically pleading with the children of Israel to come back. (almost through the WHOLE O.T.) When they finally turn back towards Christ, he accepts them with open arms, no matter what they do. Often times people have a hard time forgiving themselves. Christ went through that pain so we could take advantage of it. If we do not use the atonement, we are being prideful. We must use this blessing that God and Christ have given us. They want us to repent and to return to them.


When I think of repentance and the atonement it takes me back to when I was 15. My boyfriend at the time brought over his…motorized bike.  He was taking  me and my girlfriends on rides. I was supposed to be in my house and he wasn’t suppose to take his bike out of his neighborhood. We were all just talking and I sat on it. I had no idea how to ride it and all of a sudden it was moving. I tightly grabbed the handles and pulled back (thinking I could stop it) I was now dragging behind it. I didn’t know where to go and I was squished between the bike and a parked car. I heard my dad calling my name and shamefully walked towards my house. My uncovered legs and feet were smothered in asphalt, dirt and blood. I told my dad that I would pay for the whole thing and he said “yes you will” so I began doing file work for him at the hospital. My legs were still healing so it was still hard to walk but I worked and earned my money to pay for the bike.  I personally feel that our Savior watches us through our repentance process and is happy inside. He sees us growing and learning from our past mistakes. It’s the typical story of the daughter saving all she has and still doesn’t have enough. The father teaches of the Atonement by making up the amount she could not pay. That is exactly what my father did for me. He did not do it in a spiteful way showing that he easily had the money I didn’t have - or make me feel small about not being able to pay for all of it. He lovingly took what I had and made up the rest.


We will not always feel forgiveness immediately. This is normal. The Lord is in tune with our personal struggles. Even if we don’t feel forgiven, if we have done all that we could we will be forgiven. We need to keep praying and one day begin to feel that we have been forgiven.



Well I love you all. Keep writing I would love to hear from you!

.:/katie