My favorite places

It wasn't until Friday that I learned that David would not, in fact, be getting his passport and coming to Israel. There was a whole lot of hope from the time we first visited the passport office until then, so the news was very sad for me. I told David I wasn't going to call him Friday night because I would just end up crying on the phone, and I didn't need that at all. I was, and am, very sad about this missed opportunity. Not to mention that it was like lighting a pile of money on fire. Poof! Up in smoke.

Friday night after I found out, I made plans for my Saturday off (with some difficulty, since it was so late), and went to bed early. I was quite under-rested last week.

Saturday my awesome friend Jen drove us to the Ein Gedi Nature Preserve. She asked me if we could go there, but I was totally along for the ride and up for anything she wanted to do. Most of the USAREUR people were "too tired" and just wanted to stay in Tel Aviv. I sort of had to twist her arm to NOT go into work on Saturday like she had the week before, but at least I was successful. It was so pretty! I huffed and puffed up a trail with switchbacks. And BOY, do I miss hiking! And BOY, do I ever love the desert. Makes me want to go to the Grand Canyon again. It was a lovely little side trip.

I enjoyed the Dead Sea very much again. We went to a different beach than we had the week before. Instead of crystals, the salt was like sand. It was very neat. We swam out to a saltberg a short distance. By swam, I mean that we did upright bicycles, because you really can't swim like normal since your feet pop out. Do you know how a fishing bobber pops up after you cast the line? That's kind of what your feet do as you're lying back to float. So fun!

I read that you're only supposed to be in the Dead Sea for about 15 minutes. I think it has something to do with your ion balance in your body. So it makes sense that Jen and I were both getting muscle cramps on our little swim. Not bad, just little ones. But I could see how it could cause problems if you stayed in for too long. So interesting!

After we went swimming, we went around to take some pictures. SCORE! It was like I hired a model! While I was taking pictures, this man walked up right next to me, set up his tripod, and put his shadow right in my frame. Frustrating! I was just going to wait until he left, but then he started talking to me. "Do you like what you see?" he asked. "I like it very much," I replied. He said, "For me, it makes me very sad. 30 years ago, the water was all the way up to here." And he pointed to a spot about 15 feet away. I told him I had heard that the Dead Sea was receding, but I hadn't realized how fast it was occurring. Sadly, the Dead Sea is dying. The Israelis and the Jordanians are working on reversing it, but modernization is taking its toll. I really hope they figure it out. The Everglades have a similar problem, but the southern States have been working through it since the early 1990s. For these areas that are unique ecologically, I hope we all figure it out.

A listing of my favorite places shows a definite pattern:

1) The Grand Canyon

2) The Everglades

3) The Hoh Rain Forest

4) The Dead Sea (newly added. Before this trip, I didn't have a fourth.)

I enjoy places of ecological wonder.

I know why.

First of all, beautiful places like those are evidence for a Creator. Secondly, one of my favorite verses in the Bible is, "Be still, and know that I am God." (Psalm 46:10) At places like this, I tend to slow down and appreciate God. I tend to take a moment to be grateful that God has created something so amazing and that He has allowed me to see it. 

It's important sometimes to slow down and appreciate good things in our lives. To be still and thank God for something, anything. Perhaps you can take a moment right now to be thankful for something. Perhaps there is enough good in your life that you sometimes don't know where to start.

But perhaps not. Perhaps you feel like there is nothing in your life for which you can be thankful right now. I hope that's not the case, but if so, I want you to know that God is bigger than the nothing. He will get you through it. He will show His faithfulness and goodness to you, if only you will ask Him and let Him have charge of your life.

Ein Gedi nature preserve

Ein Gedi nature preserve

Ein Gedi nature preserve

My chance model at the Dead Sea (she is walking on what my friend Emily called a "saltberg")

Dead Sea with some color variation

View of Dead Sea from Ein Gedi nature preserve