Day 6

I am so grateful for the opportunity I had to live here for one semester.

I'm grateful to my mom who encouraged me to go.  I think she was more excited about me going than I was.  She even opened my first letter before bringing it to my dorm.  It said I was rejected and put on the waiting list and she was definitely more disappointed than I was.  But my number came up a few months later and I got ready to leave Provo for the first time all on my own.  It was pretty scary for me at the time, but ended up being one of the most incredible experiences of my life.  I learned so much about the culture and history of this place and came home to major in International Studies with an emphasis in the Middle East.  I met 5 wonderful girls who turned out to be awesome roommates for the next 3 1/2 years and continue to be some of my dearest friends.  

 One of the greatest blessings of living and going to school in Jerusalem was the knowledge and love I gained for the Old and New Testament.  I love being able to read from those books and picture the places in my mind and remember all the time that I had there to really study the scriptures.

Even though it has been 12 years since I spent Thanksgiving at the Sea of Galilee I still think about my experiences from that semester all the time and am still so grateful for the way that semester changed my life.  I can't wait to go back one day with Aaron and my family and show them the place that I came to love so much.  It is right up at the top of places we plan to visit.  (I'm also pretty excited to go back with a digital camera and get great pics.)