US AIRWAYS...

Oh, how I loathe thee. Thank you for making me stay in the Philadelphia Airport, WITHOUT a cell phone, for 10 hrs. In order to remember this day I bought this...

Thank you for the warm welcome America.

Hello Amerrrrrica.

Woah, where did the time go?
I'm currently sitting in the Philadelphia airport, on a white rocking chair, on the outskirts of the food court people watching. There are some things that I like. For instance, clean floors, normal fast food, people that speak english, and no creepy men winking at me. However, it shocked me when I saw so many "large" people. I had forgotten how BIG America is. Boy, I've only been away from Israel for about 16 hrs and I miss it so much. It kind of feels like I'm on a long field trip and that I'll be going back to the JC soon, but I know that reality will kick in soon and it will be hard.
It was hard to leave all of the amazing people I had met and come so close to and lived with for 4 months. It was hard to see the Dome of the Rock fade into the distance for the last time until I have no clue when. It was hard to say good bye to the beautiful Israeli architecture and the limestone they use for all of their buildings. It was hard to say good bye to the land I had traveled this whole semester and had come to know.
Not gonna lie, I'm way excited to see my family and be with them for 3 weeks and start school again in the fall, but it's hard to come back to reality. I'm starting a new phase in my life and that is just down right scary. I hope and pray I'll never forget this place. I'm pretty sure I won't because I will wear my ring everyday with the inscription in Hebrew that says ," Until We Meet Again." So Israel, I'll be seeing you. America, don't let me down.

3 days...

3 days until I leave this beautiful place. the amazing people I have met. shwarmas. Sam Booki Bakery. seeing fireworks every night. watching late night movies. my twin bed. the Call to Prayer. walking through the streets of the Old City. gelato. the Western Wall. The Dome of the Rock. $5 t-shirts. car horns. walking up hells hill. Mount Scopus. riding the bus around town. bargaining with shopkeepers. mint lemonade. the NU store. waffle bar & burger bar. sunsets over the city. breakfast's with Kim Chadwick. pillow talk. long bus rides. riding bus 75 for 5 shekels. walking up a million stairs just to get around the building. the land Jesus walked on. the place where the Savior suffered and died for my sins. the place that changed my life forever.

My Last Days...

I can't believe that I'm in the single digits until I fly back to the states. It seems like it was only yesterday that I was getting super excited to come to this beautiful place and live here for 4 months. It feels like I blinked and now I'm getting ready to come home. Since I have been here I have learned so much concerning the archaeology, geography, and history of the Holy Land and how it connects to the Bible. It is through this experience that just shows me even more how true the Bible is. For those who don't believe it just need to come here, give it a chance and study it, and I'm sure they will be convinced.

Besides going on amazing field trips and traveling all over the Near East from Turkey to Jordan, through the West Bank and all up and down Israel, it is the people that have made my experience so much more special. The professors here are GENIUS and without them I'm sure I wouldn't have learned as much as I have, but it's also the amazing students I have lived with these past 4 months. Everyday, 24 hrs a day, I am surrounded by these amazing people who teach me something new everyday. Whether its just to chill out and enjoy the sunset over the city or pushing me to learn more, I have changed because of them. Granted, all of us has butted heads from time to time, but over all we love each other and I'm sure we all feel that we were all supposed to be here at this time.

I will never forget Jerusalem and the way it has changed my spirit.