Saturday, January 12, 2008

You know how we always sing that song from primary. You know the one, "Saturday is a special day, it's the day we get ready for Sunday." Well, I never felt like Saturday was a special day for that reason. In fact, I kind of resented the fact that we had to leave girls' houses at midnight or that I would have to go to bed early so I could get ready for some Sunday meeting. While, I would be lying to say that my perspective has been completely altered, I can say that it has slightly shifted. Friday evening we took a trip to the Western Wall. It was probably a half hour before the beginning of Sabot. A few of the guys and I went down near the wall and listened to the people singing. It was full of Orthodox Jews. I felt a little awkward just observing, kind of like how I imagine others feeling if they came to our sacrament meeting and just walked around while we partook of the sacrament. As Sabot approached, they all turned and faced the other direction (away from the wall). Then as they sang they turned back around to face the wall. It was a pretty neat effect. A little further back we found some of the younger Jews greeting the Sabot in their own way. They formed circles and were singing a dancing. Of course when I say dancing, I really mean something akin to a mosh-pit and when I say singing I mean something more like cheers at a football game. So of course I had to join in. It was great way to welcome the Sabot. The guys there welcomed us and we all had so much fun together (regardless of the fact that we were obviously not Jewish). So from now on, I think we should standardize a party every Saturday night around 11:30 so that we can welcome the Sunday with some real style.

2 comments:

Chris Wood said...

Hey Rich-It is great to hear how things are going. MaryAnne and I love seeing that you are having a good experience. We are jealous. We had Abi and Jayne over for dinner tonight and I missed having you around. When I asked who won the BYU game this weekend and they didn't have a clue. Anyway, I think you are sure getting a unique experience to see into the culture(s) there and I look forward to reading more as you post it. As far as the Saturday night mosh pit, I'm game. We'll have to be careful not to trample the kids.
Well, we'll be in touch.
Chris

panaca said...

What a difference a "few" years make. My idea of Sunday preparation is going to bed a little earlier. For some reason the morning comes a little quicker. If there was too much activity the night before, my head droops too much while on the stand. (Every happen to you Chris?)

Anyway, it is fun to hear about your experience. Oh, as a clarification. The smells I talked about in my first comment were of the center (maybe because of all the wood, etc.) and not of the valley or the city, although those smells were different.