nearing the end

2 more days and ill be back in the states. yesterday the girls and i went for our last shakshuka brunch.

mia and zo walking back home on king george st (where we live)

after brunch i took a core class at the gym with tals, after that i stayed and rode the bike so by the time i got back it was 6ish. i packed a bit and then got ready for our last night out as a group since most people are leaving tomorrow.

the last night was at galina-where the girls and i usually end up on a night out. there were probably 60 of us there from the program and most of the night was spent out on the patio area chatting....and drinking.

we came back around 3:30am and fell asleep. mia and i had our last day of volunteer so we woke up at the early hour of 11am (this is a habit that will need to change the second i get home, however this is israeli sleeping habits as well so cheers to transformation). we got to the "day care" and there were about 4 new babies so it was jam packed. for some reason today the true impact of what these kids and their families have to go through really hit me. maybe it was the heat and the uncomfortable conditions and the crowded room and knowing it was my last time seeing these kids.

we only stayed for about 45 minutes today because we had to get going and pack, tie up other loose ends, etc. i held michael most of the time and some of the new babies. constans (who runs the place and is from ethiopia) gave us a huge hug as we were saying goodbye and kept thanking us for everything. then...

"i dont have gold, or money to give you, i wish i did. but i do have prayer. you are christian's right?"-constans

mia and i are quite for a second but it feels like 15 seconds. then i hear mia say "yes" very quietly.

"you are?"-constans

"yes yes" mia and i say as we dont look at her. haha. it was one of those moments where you just had to go along with it. she assumed we were, and we know she is very very religious, so we just went with yes to make it less awkward.

then constants took our hands and starts praying "OOOO JESUS LORD OF NAZARETH. THANK YOU FOR BRINGING MIA AND SARA TO US. WE DONT KNOW THEIR FAMILIES BUT BLESS THEM. I DONT HAVE SILVER, I DONT HAVE GOLD, I DONT HAVE DOLLARS, BUT I DO HAVE PRAYER. THANK YOU LORD FOR EVERYTHING. THANK YOU LORD JESUS FOR ALL OF YOUR LOVE. THANK YOU FOR SENDING US MIA AND SARA. THESE ICONS OF LIGHT. THESE ICONSSSS OF HOPE. THESE ICONSSS......"

you get the picture. it sounded like we were in one of those gospels where the preacher yells at the top of their lungs and everyone is crying and screaming. i had my head down and my eyes closed but mia was laughing non stop. luckily her head was turned so it really just looked like she was crying.

anyway, i kept my eyes closed and opened them every once in awhile to look at constans who was lost in her prayer. it was an interesting moment because it was comedic since it was SO intense, but also was sad because this is what she leans on and this is what she has in her life. i attempted to be as respectful as possible and feel the power she was sending however it was so hot in there, and the prayer went on for a good 5 minutes, and i had sweat dripping down my face so i was starting to get distracted/wanted it to end. when she did finish and we said our amens, she hugged us again and was crying. it was an extremely emotional, surreal moment and one that neither mia and i NEVER thought would be a part of our lives.

once we left mia and i couldnt stop laughing since we declared ourselves as christian our last day in israel.

after that mia and i met the girls at benedicts (our favorite 24 hour breakfast place) for our last meal there. eating there is like an event because you get unlimited bread and spreads. we were there for about 2 hours. at the end of our meal we started talking about how much we mean to each other which led us all to start crying at the table together. i said something along the lines of "my future would never has been as good if i didnt have you all enter my life". its true and i think one of the hardest parts about leaving israel will be not being able to see them whenever i want, everyday.

anywho, enough sappiness. i've been packing and i took a break to write this. i have to get back to packing. tonight we will probably go sit on the beach and reflect together on the last 5 months. and life goes on, and on, and on...