Betsy: the Girl Who Isn't in Kansas Anymore

On Friday I woke up ready to go. Anna, one of my classmates who has lived in Israel for 12 years, offered to take a group of us on a short tour of Jerusalem!! The group had chosen a bus stop and planned to meet at 7:00 in order to make the 7:10 bus to Jerusalem by 8:40ish. Around 5:30 I was wide awake, so I got all my stuff together and decided to for a run and stop by an ATM machine just to make sure I had enough cash for our adventure. It was beautiful outside and I am looking forward to more mornings once I establish a routine of waking up early to run (: I made it back with plenty of time to get ready and read my bible before our group successful headed out the door (which is a feat of its own considering we have a habit of running late haha).

Once we arrived at the bus stop, we realized Caroline and Jack weren’t there yet, and neither were Jacob, Terry, and Sofi. Risper called them to check in and they assured us they were on the way. Right as the bus pulled up, we spotted Caroline and Jack running our way. They arrived just in time. But the Silva clan was nowhere to be seen. We had a quick (the bus was waiting with the door open!) discussion and decided to go ahead and get on. We slowly filed on and as we were doing so, they arrived!! Praise the Lord, there couldn’t have been more perfect timing (: The bus was surprisingly very full for 7am so we all had the pleasure of sitting with strangers. I was sitting by a young man in military uniform. We didn’t talk, but it was a pleasant ride. There was a girl in front of me was trying to charge her phone, but the charging cable kept coming unplugged. One time it fell back into my seat so I handed it back to her. She responded and laughed, I haven’t a clue what she said, but I smiled and that was good enough for her (: Moments like these remind me how precious human connections are.

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We arrived in Jerusalem to a busy bus station. We didn’t know exactly where we were going to meet Anna, but she showed up and found us without any trouble. We immediately got on the light train so we could travel down to the Old City. Our first stop was the Muslim quarter. We walked through their market, just as many of the shops were opening. There were beautiful clothes, pottery, lots of food, juice, and so many other things. As we were walking by all the shops, many salesmen tried to interest us in their wares. One of the owners simply commented, “Thank you for smiling” as we walked by, giving me a smile in return. I didn’t even notice I was smiling until his comment. But small things can make a big difference. Even if you can’t communicate much verbally, a smile can say more than enough. Joy is contagious. While we were there, we did stopped and get some freshly squeezed pomegranate juice. Pomegranates are in season here in Israel, and it was so yummy (: mmmmm. I would recommend it for sure.

*Photo by Lauren Knibbe (:

From there we walked around and saw the Western Wall before going to see the church of the Holy Sepulchre in the Christian Quarter of the Old City. It was an incredible site to see. I need to do my own research to truly understand all the symbolism there after the fact. It contains what is believed to be Calvary/Golgotha, where Jesus was crucified, as well as his empty tomb, which is enclosed by a shrine. Something very special about the church is that it’s controlled/shared among several Christian denominations. There was so much to see there. I will definitely be making another trip back here to try to understand exactly what I am seeing. It also felt a bit odd to be there and looking at what could possibly be these historical spaces. I started to think about how following Jesus isn’t really about the objects or the places or the earthly things. We don’t have graven images or any mandates on where or how we can get close to Jesus and talk to the Father. But in many religions, this is not the case. And while I was in this place, surrounded by all this stuff, I began to feel what a burden it must be. I’m so thankful Jesus set me free and took the debt I couldn’t pay so I don’t have to endlessly perform the hopeless task of trying to save myself. It was still mind blowing to think about potentially being in the physical place where Jesus gave his life for me.

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We then went to a section of the Western Wall where many Jewish people go to pray. Currently they are preparing for Yom Kippur, a day of fasting and praying for atonement and repentance. The section of the wall we were at required women’s shoulders be covered and pants that go down to your knees. Women and men were separated once we approached the wall. There were people praying, reading, meditating, crying, and some just sitting at the wall. People frequently write notes and leave them there. You also must perform a ritual handwashing when you leave the wall. The Western Wall is considered the holiest place in Judaism because of how close it is to the original temple site, which is no longer accessible to the Jews. Since the original temple site is in the Muslim quarter, Jews cannot pray there. If they do, they will be asked to leave and forcible removed at best. Anna also told us sometimes the Muslims throw rocks over the wall, but she reassured us that wouldn’t happen while we were there, because it was Friday. Saturday on the other hand would be a different story. Sobering, right?

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As we were leaving the wall, we could see the Golden Dome, and beyond it, the Mount of Olives was visible. I plan to make it over there on my next trip to Jerusalem. We stopped under some shade while Anna told us an old story about Masada. While she was telling us this story, a guy who was just walking by stopped and started to listen. After Anna finished, he asked if he could join our group. Anna said he could, but told him she wasn’t a tour guide, just showing her friends around. He still decided to join and walked around with us for a while. During this time, I learned he grew up in the U.S and is surprisingly a medical student like us! The main difference is he is studying up north in Haifa. He got stuck in Jerusalem last year with Covid but was moving to Haifa in a week. He has a sister who recently turned thirty and he was able to return home to the States for her birthday party (: After we made a pit stop in a little underground area for Sofi to have a diaper change, our new friend was ready to depart. We exchanged phone numbers with promises that we would contact him if we were ever in Haifa, and he would contact us if he came to Beer Sheva. Later when he messaged me, I realized he literally put his name in my phone as “Jonathan The Guy Who Showed Up on a Tour”. I had a good long laugh over this lol (: and I responded with "this is Betsy, The Girl Who Isn't In Kansas Anymore". I have gotten that comment countless times since I have arrived here, but it is truly never ending haha. I mean, no one is in the state they came from anymore lol.

We ended our day at the main market in Jerusalem. IT WAS CRAZY!!! So so busy and packed. There were incredible foods and other items there. We weren’t really able to do much actual shopping because of how busy it was. We had a group of ten making it hard to stay together at times. But we made it through! I also had been given a mission from one of the third-year students, Evan, to find a very specific snack, Rugulach, from very specific shop in the market. I’m happy to say I accomplished my mission! (I got a box for myself and can I say, WOW!! I understand why it was such a big deal to him) We all split up to get lunch. Jack had his heart set on Shawarma (which I LOVE), so I accompanied Jack and Caroline until we successful filled our stomachs with shawarma deliciousness. All too soon, was time to head back. We wanted to make the 1:40pm bus back to Beer Sheva, because all public transportation stops for Shabbat around 4:20pm on Friday. I have been warned NOT to be on the last bus of the day and risk getting stranded. We were all very tired and probably slightly dehydrated, but we made it!! It was a fantastic day with even better people. I cannot tell you enough good things about the people in my class. I am constantly amazed by just how incredible each person is.

We had been invited to a Shabbat dinner with a family from the U.S. that evening. Once we got back from Jerusalem, we rested for a couple hours before heading out to begin our walk to Shabbat Dinner with Anthony, Irene, their family, and other guests. Unfortunately, we got terribly lost. We didn’t know we would have to go through campus security and campus to get to their house (completely unreasonable right? haha), but we discovered the hard way that we couldn’t go around to the north. So after 30 minutes, we ended up about where we started haha. At this point we considered giving up, but we decided to give it one more try. Thankfully, we happened to cross paths with our friend Bruce who was heading to the same place and was also 30 minutes late. Praise the Lord, I was SO GLAD to see him. We were able to follow him the rest of the way there and boy were we happy to be there. They had amazing food. My mouth is watering just thinking about it. There was steak, chicken kabobs, turkey kabobs, vegetable kabobs, French fries, peta and all the fillings (had to keep it Israeli somehow lol). Anthony and Irene have 5 children, who proved to be excellent company. It was a blessing to feel like I was in an American family home, just hanging out. Their kids were so sweet and after the meal, they went around and cooked marshmallows for everyone who wanted them. Lauren and I hung out with them for a while and got to discuss their favorite books, favorite car models, and most importantly their favorite parks (: I’m looking forward to hanging out with them again. We were doubly blessed when at the end of the night, another new friend offered to drive us home. Wow, God truly provides exactly what we need (:

Church has been officially moved to Saturday morning at 9:30 and 11:30 so we could split due to COVID regulations. Since 9:30 is the time designated for those who need translation, that is when we went. Having it in the morning is a bit of a bummer because it is a hot and sweaty walk both ways, but it is sooo worth it. Risper and a new friend named Samuel joined Caroline and I. Church just doesn’t disappoint. We went through the end of 2 Timothy 4:9-22. I didn’t realize how rich this passage is. Paul reminds us that community is important, but it is not enough. No one came to stand by Paul during this time, everyone deserted him. If my relationship with Jesus isn’t enough on it’s own, then I am holding on to the wrong things and people will fail me. This is comforting and also sobering. I miss my community back home, even though I still am able to be in contact with most people. But Jesus truly is enough if I am willing to let him into every part of my live. At the same time, when Paul is near the end, he wanted Timothy, his closest friend on Earth, to come to him. I was reminded that it’s okay to have human desires, if they don’t contradict Jesus’s calling on our lives. What is even more incredible is while Paul was suffering and simply wanted the company and comfort of his friend, he didn’t act rashly or selfishly but thought enough in advance to send Tychicus to Ephesus, Timothy’s church, so they wouldn’t be left without a leader. We are called to see the bigger picture even in the midst of our own needs.

God is so good. I have been struggling with what God’s calling is on my life and the contradiction of my human desires to be with my friends and family back home. Matthew and Josiah recently moved, my dear friend Kaedyn was about to get engaged, and many of my other friends are going through big life transitions and changes. It feels hard and heavy to not be there. But I know God is providing for them in ways I never could. But in those moments of sadness, God has continued to comfort my human heart by allowing me small pieces of inclusion. I got to talk to both Matthew and Josiah on the phone as they drove to their new homes. Some of my closest friends told me Kaedyn was getting engaged before it happened so I could feel included. I have been learning it isn’t wrong for me to have those desires and moments of feeling helplessly far away. These experiences show me the depths of God’s love and goodness in the most unexpected ways. They draw me closer to him. If I were to dwell on these emotions and try to place blame, it would be quite toxic. But Christ has continued to gently point me back to him and surround me with his love. I hope and pray each of you has found ways to see the beauty, in the good moments and the hard moments we sometimes wish we didn’t have to experience, especially with everything going on in the world. Also another take-away from me week is to remember a smile goes a longgg way. It can make a huge difference. Plus, I love all of your smiles, so please, share them with those around you (: I love you all and miss you!!