EducatingMe

Day 10 Today, our last day in Israel and the feelings are mixed. On the one hand, I am ready to get home to see my husband and youngest kiddo. I know the rest of my fellow travelers feel the same. On the other hand...I have learned so much here and I could probably stay another 10 days and still not know enough. I look forward to the familiar, but I love the broken box I have escaped. We have tried new things and seen sights that our small town, small state, or large country just cannot provide. We started our day at Garden of the Tomb. This is the second candidate for where crucifixion of Jesus could be. It’s disputed because we are 2000 years later and many people have ruled this city between then and now. The Romans, Byzantine, Muslims and Crusaders all had a say in the destruction and rebuilding this land. We had an on special guide to walk us through the different markings around the site Showing why this was the actual crucifixion place and tomb. One thing he said that I love

Day 9 Today started it with a little bit of a world history lesson for Tatum. She had heard of the Holocaust but only by name alone. Debbie and Gene Presley helped me teach her about all the things she was about to see at the Holocaust museum/memorial. It wasn’t like life was floating around and all of a sudden concentration camps… There was a lot of buildup beforehand entire anti-semantic movement began. A brainwashing of a nation to decide to abolish a group of people. Walking to the museum I tried to explain the best I could to Tate why people were the way they were and what they did and how the Nazi ideology invaded country by country. The countries who excepted it were scared so they conformed to become just as brutal. There were many images I couldn’t look at and I told her not to look at them either. Not to turn a blind eye, but because it was enough. It was too much. I interviewed a couple of our church family members after and Mark had said, “...evil can sneak up on yo

Day 8- Roni took us to the Israel Museum today. When we walked in, there was an enormous 50:1 scale stone village replica of the city of Jerusalem. A person would be the size on a matchstick. I mentioned to a friend of mine, that this trip not only is an amazing experience to walk through a living textbook, but it solidified for me learning styles when it comes to a child’s education. I can read the scriptures and know that Jesus had to walk a ways with people spitting on him and hitting him. I have read that he had to carry the cross for a while and grew tired and someone helped him... I have read the research and it goes back and forth. I have taught on it even using music as an anchor. I know that I am a tactile and auditory learner...turns out living the education is a game changer. Y’all, a ways is a ways...and the hills are fierce. The streets are narrow and filled with people. This was a heart wrenching ordeal to see to scale what it was for him. In the pictures I tri

We had a 2 Hour Dr. through the countryside of Israel today. When you leave the city limits where the homes cost millions of dollars for a 2000 square-foot flat to find tarp covered 250sq ft slums. You realize what a blessing space is. I am a teacher. I have working in several types of schools and I must say that with the exception of abuse, even our poorest kids are living a good life in comparison to what I witnessed today. We passed by the City of Jericho also known as the City of Palms, on our way to Masada and the Dead Sea. Jericho is the oldest known developed city in the world. Much of today was spent at En Geti and Masada. This is a a time in the Bible when King Saul was chasing David and there was quite an exchange between the two. We read all of chapter 24, but this 1samual 24:22  And David swore this to Saul. Then Saul went home, but David and his men went up  to the stronghold. After reading we walked in the spot where it is believed that David wrote or could have wr