Moments of Holy Ordinary

Every time I walk down the streets of Bethlehem or venture into Jerusalem, I have to remind myself that I am here. That this is the place I've longed to be, that I've dreamed about and planned for over the past six months. That this is the Holy Land, people! I don't know why, but I keep having to remind and re-remind myself of that on a daily basis. Woah.

In the midst of all of the Holy Sites, monuments, and new culture, there is a delightful ordinaryness of it all: people running errands, grabbing lunch at local cafes, walking with friends. I love that part of this place. 

I don't know what I expected; of course people walk and talk and have lunch with friends. Yet, as I told people that I was going to live & serve in the Holy Land for a year, none of those things made the list of must dos. Instead, I got a list of churches, mosques, musical ensembles, food to try, and places to visit. And I have visited some of these places-The Church of the Holy Sepulcher, Nativity Square, the Old City, the Western Wall, the Garden of Gethsemane, the Mediterranean Sea. We've made several attempts to visit the Dome of the Rock (maybe when tourist season is over!). I've tasted exquisite Palestinian food, listened to fabulous music, and have taken more tours of Jerusalem than I could have ever imagined. Yet, the simple, every day occurrences are what intrigue me the most about this place.

I love the sound of Arabic being spoken around me; I'm still only catching about every 18th word, if that, but it is a beautiful language. The fresh produce stands are among my favorite places to stop as I walk down the hill from work every day. Standing on my balcony in the morning as the rays of the sun touch Beit Jala always makes me say a little prayer of gratitude for the beautiful world I am a part of. Recognizing people on the street and exchanging pleasantries in Arabic as we pass is a major accomplishment that I get positively giddy with! Playing with my host sisters after school. Being greeted by the littlest sister as she cries (who is only a year and a half!), "Lo-la!" and getting kisses and smiles from her each day. Drinking coffee or tea with my grandparents here & hearing their stories. Starting each work day in the Botanical/Biblical garden, sitting beneath an olive tree, sipping my coffee, reading my devotional book, journaling and just taking a quiet moment before the busyness of the day sets in. None of these moments are particularly exceptional or unusual, but they are among my favorite of each day. Moments of holy ordinary.

Enuma Okoro caputures much of my love for these simple, ordinary moments in her poem "Passing Ordinary Time," a portion of which I share with you here: 

Passing Ordinary Time

It is a hard art to learn,

catching quiet

by palms raised

cupped in air

shifting locations

here and there

like trying to guess the pattern of falling leaves,

and hoping to feel

the soft descent of moments

when silence slips between sounds.

This ordinary time

is gifted with days

weeks of mundane grace

routinely following the liturgy of hours

anticipating creation

tuning its prayer and praise

to the rhythms of incarnate love.