Today was one of those days where
you try with all of your might to keep tears in, but they squeeze out anyway and your face gets all contorted and you try to hide it behind your scarf
you give up stepping over the puddles in the street because you're soaked and your shoes are ruined already
you wish you had your mom and your best friend and a cup of good earth tea and a pint of ben and jerry's
you want to scream at your host sister even though it's not her fault or your fault that you can't communicate with one another
your western desire to do things on your own causes you to pull away from others who are trying to help (even if they are a little pushy and bossy
you don't know where you are or why you are there, you just want to leave
you get home and take a deep breath and realize all the frustration and discomfort are worth it in the end. because this is life and it's an adventure and you are here to learn from others.
(all this to say...moroccan weddings are crazy)
we were up until 4 am last night. i slept in a stranger's house, again. i ate a ton of food, again.
nobody really talked to me much, because my sister did the talking for me.
moroccans play their music at an eleven on the volume scale
the bride has not 1, but 5 wedding dresses
and only the women sit inside the canopy/wedding area...the guys sit inside the house...
why? i don't know.
i promise that i will eventually tell you about my village stay...
until then, talk to scottie callish or emi samuelstuen.
Saturday, October 9, 2010
Friday, October 8, 2010
gotta love the language barrier
Apparently “we’re going to go get henna at 3” really means:
We’re going to hang out at the house with some people and put on makeup until about 4, then take a 30 minute bus ride to Sale, and then (I think) attend the equivalent of a Moroccan bachelorette party where we will get henna, watch the bride-to-be get henna, dance, listen to really loud music, and eat a ton of food with a bunch of other women that you don’t know. Then we will sleep there and wake up at 6:30 am to go back to Rabat.
And apparently “we’re going to go get you a kaftan (moroccan dress) really means:
We’re going to go home long enough to eat and change our clothes, then we’re going to take another bus to Sale and visit a bunch of people’s houses/wander the streets until we find some places to rent a kaftan, and then take a taxi home to eat couscous because it's friday.
p.s. i told my sister once again that i don't understand french, and to speak arabic to me...so, now every time i meet someone new this is what she says (in arabic) "she's american...she doesn't know french, only english and a little arabic. no, no french"
more stories later, right now my life is occupied by moroccan nuptials.
We’re going to hang out at the house with some people and put on makeup until about 4, then take a 30 minute bus ride to Sale, and then (I think) attend the equivalent of a Moroccan bachelorette party where we will get henna, watch the bride-to-be get henna, dance, listen to really loud music, and eat a ton of food with a bunch of other women that you don’t know. Then we will sleep there and wake up at 6:30 am to go back to Rabat.
And apparently “we’re going to go get you a kaftan (moroccan dress) really means:
We’re going to go home long enough to eat and change our clothes, then we’re going to take another bus to Sale and visit a bunch of people’s houses/wander the streets until we find some places to rent a kaftan, and then take a taxi home to eat couscous because it's friday.
p.s. i told my sister once again that i don't understand french, and to speak arabic to me...so, now every time i meet someone new this is what she says (in arabic) "she's american...she doesn't know french, only english and a little arabic. no, no french"
more stories later, right now my life is occupied by moroccan nuptials.
Thursday, October 7, 2010
Back in the city.
I am back in Rabat after spending a week in a rural village by the name of Loutichina (Land of Drought)
The transition is interesting, and I am impressed with how quickly my body finds the shower, my mouth finds the coffee, and my hands find my keyboard.
I was home for literally five minutes when I found out these things:
Our dog had puppies. Five. FIVE PUPPIES. They live on the roof
Today, Thursday, I am going with my family to get henna, because
Tomorrow, Friday, We are going to my father’s sister’s daughter’s wedding in Sale, Rabat’s sister city. There will be food and music zwina, and because of this, I
Need to buy a kaftan/moroccan dress, thus
This weekend is going to be crazy.
But other than that, here are some other things before I tell you the story of the village in a separate blog and then post pictures and another blog. And then I will tell you about my weekend in Tangier from awhile ago.
Wakha? Mezyan?
Compare and contrast the city and the village
Both smell of smoke- one is the camp-firey smell of twigs and pine cones, one is of cigarettes and exhaust
Both have a lot of waste on the ground- one is the natural, organic waste of animals (including people), the other is plastic bags, chicken feathers, paper, etc.
In both places you are never hungry.
In both places toilet paper is scarce.
The transition is interesting, and I am impressed with how quickly my body finds the shower, my mouth finds the coffee, and my hands find my keyboard.
I was home for literally five minutes when I found out these things:
Our dog had puppies. Five. FIVE PUPPIES. They live on the roof
Today, Thursday, I am going with my family to get henna, because
Tomorrow, Friday, We are going to my father’s sister’s daughter’s wedding in Sale, Rabat’s sister city. There will be food and music zwina, and because of this, I
Need to buy a kaftan/moroccan dress, thus
This weekend is going to be crazy.
But other than that, here are some other things before I tell you the story of the village in a separate blog and then post pictures and another blog. And then I will tell you about my weekend in Tangier from awhile ago.
Wakha? Mezyan?
Compare and contrast the city and the village
Both smell of smoke- one is the camp-firey smell of twigs and pine cones, one is of cigarettes and exhaust
Both have a lot of waste on the ground- one is the natural, organic waste of animals (including people), the other is plastic bags, chicken feathers, paper, etc.
In both places you are never hungry.
In both places toilet paper is scarce.
pics. of fez. and volubilis.
winding streets. old buildings. markets. tanneries. ancient ruins. places of worship. extravagance. simplicity. special occasions. daily life. all of these things:
Wednesday, October 6, 2010
this is my happy place.
you and me,
in miss augustine greene's mansion.
sitting in the library upstairs. us taking turns reading aloud. the chronicles of narnia, the last battle.
there is vanilla incense burning and joel p. west playing.
we had egg sandwiches for lunch, with carrots and hummus.
we finished with abuelita
our bikes are parked outside, with no locks because there is no need.
next destination: caffe italia, for esplatto. with mint chip gelato.
this is my happy place.
in miss augustine greene's mansion.
sitting in the library upstairs. us taking turns reading aloud. the chronicles of narnia, the last battle.
there is vanilla incense burning and joel p. west playing.
we had egg sandwiches for lunch, with carrots and hummus.
we finished with abuelita
our bikes are parked outside, with no locks because there is no need.
next destination: caffe italia, for esplatto. with mint chip gelato.
this is my happy place.
i tried to post this a week ago.
Today I am thankful for friends who remind me why I am in this place.
specifically, Charlie Merritt, Bethany Tipton, Courtney Pate, and Michael Lodahl. although they may not be aware of it.
Tomorrow I leave for the village for one week.
I will not shower, I will not touch a computer, I will not flush a toilet.
I realize I have many things to catch you up one, but it will have to wait.
I leave you with this for now (re-blogged from miss tipton):
-Dr. Michael Lodahl, Professor of theology and world religions [Professor for Life of Holiness during Urban Term]
Contributor
I am pleased that Florida pastor Terry Jones, who had planned to burn copies of the Koran on the 9/11 anniversary, now says his church will “not today, not ever” engage in such an inflammatory act.
But this only prompts the question as to why this pastor — or any Christian — would deem it a good idea to desecrate the sacred texts of any other religious tradition. “Love your neighbor as yourself” comes immediately to mind. (We Christians ought to remember, by the way, that this command is found first of all in the Scriptures of the people who congregate in synagogues on the Sabbath, i.e., Jews.)
On NBC’s “Today” show, Jones stated that his and his congregation’s goal had been “to expose that there is an element in Islam that is very dangerous and very radical.”
I suspect that he has read precious little of the Koran. Yes, there are a few isolated passages that give specific instructions about putting infidels to the sword. But read those passages in context, and it is immediately obvious that they pertain to a particular time in Muhammad’s career as the spiritual and political leader of his Muslim followers, and to the particular geographical area around the city of Mecca.
Taking such exceedingly rare instructions in the Koran out of context to demonstrate the “dangerous” element in Islam would be like taking Psalm 137:8 — “Happy shall the people be who take your little children, O Babylon, and dash them against the rock!” — as evidence for how bloody and violent Christianity is. I assume none of us today would follow “You must destroy them totally … and show them no mercy,” instructions given to the Israelites when they entered the Promised Land, as solid Christian teaching regarding how to deal with those who oppose or persecute us.
Jesus gave a radically different set of instructions to his disciples in Matt. 5:43-48, where he says, “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.”
The Koran has passages that deal beautifully with the inevitable reality of human differences: “O humanity! Truly [God has] created you from a male and a female, and made you into peoples and types [tribes] so that you may recognize [come to know] one another” (Q49:13).
This text affirms that God has made human beings into a variety of ethnicities and cultures, precisely with the intent that those differences would impel us to try to overcome our fears of “the other” and come to know one another. It reminds me of this surprising command in Leviticus: “Love the stranger as yourself, for you yourselves once were strangers in the land of Egypt” (19:34).
It just seems difficult to conceive of loving strangers, or even enemies, as including the burning of books most dear to them.
– Dr. Michael Lodahl, Professor of theology and world religions
specifically, Charlie Merritt, Bethany Tipton, Courtney Pate, and Michael Lodahl. although they may not be aware of it.
Tomorrow I leave for the village for one week.
I will not shower, I will not touch a computer, I will not flush a toilet.
I realize I have many things to catch you up one, but it will have to wait.
I leave you with this for now (re-blogged from miss tipton):
-Dr. Michael Lodahl, Professor of theology and world religions [Professor for Life of Holiness during Urban Term]
Contributor
I am pleased that Florida pastor Terry Jones, who had planned to burn copies of the Koran on the 9/11 anniversary, now says his church will “not today, not ever” engage in such an inflammatory act.
But this only prompts the question as to why this pastor — or any Christian — would deem it a good idea to desecrate the sacred texts of any other religious tradition. “Love your neighbor as yourself” comes immediately to mind. (We Christians ought to remember, by the way, that this command is found first of all in the Scriptures of the people who congregate in synagogues on the Sabbath, i.e., Jews.)
On NBC’s “Today” show, Jones stated that his and his congregation’s goal had been “to expose that there is an element in Islam that is very dangerous and very radical.”
I suspect that he has read precious little of the Koran. Yes, there are a few isolated passages that give specific instructions about putting infidels to the sword. But read those passages in context, and it is immediately obvious that they pertain to a particular time in Muhammad’s career as the spiritual and political leader of his Muslim followers, and to the particular geographical area around the city of Mecca.
Taking such exceedingly rare instructions in the Koran out of context to demonstrate the “dangerous” element in Islam would be like taking Psalm 137:8 — “Happy shall the people be who take your little children, O Babylon, and dash them against the rock!” — as evidence for how bloody and violent Christianity is. I assume none of us today would follow “You must destroy them totally … and show them no mercy,” instructions given to the Israelites when they entered the Promised Land, as solid Christian teaching regarding how to deal with those who oppose or persecute us.
Jesus gave a radically different set of instructions to his disciples in Matt. 5:43-48, where he says, “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.”
The Koran has passages that deal beautifully with the inevitable reality of human differences: “O humanity! Truly [God has] created you from a male and a female, and made you into peoples and types [tribes] so that you may recognize [come to know] one another” (Q49:13).
This text affirms that God has made human beings into a variety of ethnicities and cultures, precisely with the intent that those differences would impel us to try to overcome our fears of “the other” and come to know one another. It reminds me of this surprising command in Leviticus: “Love the stranger as yourself, for you yourselves once were strangers in the land of Egypt” (19:34).
It just seems difficult to conceive of loving strangers, or even enemies, as including the burning of books most dear to them.
– Dr. Michael Lodahl, Professor of theology and world religions
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