Baptism Day

We were notified that today was the day for baptisms in the Jordan River, last night.  I was worried Kaleb might chicken out, but he actually got very excited about it.  So after breakfast this morning, we checked out of the hotel in Tiberias and got on our bus, which took us down through the Jordan Valley.  Our first stop was the baptismal sight that was built by some Baptists from America, and a group here in Israel. It’s located at the very south end of the Sea of Galilee just as it flows into the Jordan River.  The river there has enough water for people to actually get dunked.  Further down, there is so much water taken for irrigating crops, it might be hard to get someone’s feet totally wet near where Jesus was believed to have been baptized – not far from Jericho.  It doesn’t look much like a river at all and is difficult to see as it winds on down through the Jordan Valley into the Dead Sea.

So, Kaleb had butterflies in his stomach and his heart was racing, he said.  He was all smiles as we approached the sight.  One other woman from our group wanted to be baptized, but Kaleb went first.  Since Pastor Mark didn’t come along, he said he felt comfortable having Adrian, the Worship Pastor at Agape, do the job.  Adrian went to Bible school for three years but isn’t an ordained pastor, nor has he ever baptized anyone before, but no one seemed to mind.  Rune said that in Norway, anyone can baptize anyone else, so it was fine with us to go along with the Norwegian rules here in Israel.

The fish in the Jordan River were nipping at everyone’s feet, so it created a bit of a commotion, as Adrian and Kaleb got in the water.  The other distraction were the river otters, or nutrena, swimming near everyone (I’m not sure which critters they were but there sure were a lot of them in that area!)  Unfortunately, Kory and I both viewed the whole thing through the lens of a camera – me taking photos and Kory filming, but it was still a sight to behold.  We didn’t know that Kaleb was being filmed by the company that runs that place, so we bought a good CD of the whole thing immediately afterwards.  (One can never have too much documentation of certain events.)  It was a pretty exciting moment and my heart was racing right along with his.  It’s one of those days he will never forget – Hallelujah!  And it looked so angelic with the white robes and all.  Adrian got Nils, a beefy guy in our group to help him, as he was worried about the whole dunking part, and not getting them back up out of the water, so it did look a little funny have two big guys helping one small boy, it’s better safe than sorry.  Halvor said sometimes they have to close that baptismal sight because the water is raging so much that people could actually be swept away.  That was not the case today, though.

Kaleb wouldn’t take a shower all day, as he wanted to hold on to “water” and the memory as long as he could.  We bought him a t-shirt that said, “I was baptized in the Jordan River!” and he wore it all day.  I doubt he’ll take it off for a while, as he’s pretty proud.  We are too.  He kept saying to himself all day with a bit of an astonished tone,  “I got baptized in the Jordan River!”

So after the other baptism was done we were back on the bus again, driving toward Jericho.  We stopped quickly at one spot nearby where an arena was discovered in some guy’s back yard where many Christians were martyred – torn apart by the lions for their faith (see photo of our guide telling us about that place.)

Jericho city is now under Muslim rule so sometimes it’s “open” (not dangerous to enter) and sometimes it’s not.  We would have had to hire a Muslim driver and Muslim bus company to get us in there, just to be safe, so they opted to stick with the cool guy we already have and just take a peek from a safe distance, up on a nearby hill (see photo below).  We had to travel through a Jewish settlement to get there, which was surrounded by guards and barbed wire fences.  People here have yet to learn how to share or get along, and that is evident everywhere we go.  Sad, but Biblical.

I found out today that it was 100 degrees yesterday at Capernum.  No wonder we were melting.  Today, it was 108 when we stopped for lunch near Jericho.  Uff.  The area around Jericho is just dry and rocky, but where there’s water, it’s truly an oasis in the desert.  We passed date palm farms, we saw melons growing, turkey farms, artichoke fields, tomatoes in greenhouses, you name it, they grow it, plus citrus and many of the other crops I’ve mentioned before.  It was easy to see why there’s no water in the Jordan River.

Our guide told us today that because of the spring wild flowers (which are incredibly beautiful and plentiful), the spring crop blossoms and the blossoms in the fall, honeybee keepers are able to get three full harvest of honey a year, which is not so normal in other parts of the world.  I thought that was pretty cool, considering it’s the land FLOWING with milk and honey.  I’m not sure how well the cows produce, but it must be good.

Kaleb and I sat in the front of the bus, right behind the tour guide.  We can hear him talking to the driver in Hebrew.  Kaleb told to me that it sounds a lot like when I speak in tongues.  Kaleb got curious and we started asking Halvor if certain phrases both Kaleb and I say, mean anything in Hewbrew (Kaleb has been speaking in tongues for a few years now.)  The first thing I asked him about, he said it has no known meaning to him, but it’s exactly the same phrase he often repeats when he’s praying in tongues.  Interesting.  We asked about two of the phrases that Kaleb often uses, and one of them means a “counting”, like adding up numbers, and another is actually one of the Hebrew words for God!  How incredible is that?  Kaleb was thrilled by that bit of info.

So on we headed, into Jerusalem today (see photo above).  We saw the old part of the city and the Mt. of Olives from a lookout on a hill, before we went to our hotel.  We were supposed to stay four nights in one place, but they ended up too full for our group so this one night only, we got upgraded to the Crowne Plaza, which has the best food in Jerusalem, we were told.  We all agreed after we ate dinner there tonight.  Kaleb said it was no “coincidence” this feast happened on the very day he was baptized, as it’s traditional to have a big meal and party after someone has been baptized in Norway.  Truly God’s hand was on this day.

We had a few hours to kill before dinner tonight so we all headed down to the “Market” near our hotel.  It’s a real locals place – no tourist traps to be found anywhere.  And it was quite the cultural experience since we were there just an hour and a half before the Sabbath began and people were crazy busy running around getting all they needed for the next 24 hours.  It was a lot like Pike’s Place Market, only with a definite foreign flare.  Nearly every male was wearing either a black hat and coat or the tradition skull cap we see in America.  Many had those long sideburns as they aren’t allowed to ever cut the “corner” of their hair so they dangle down like pigtails.  The streets and aisles of the market were jammed packed, but it started tapering off in the last half hour so it was interesting to people watch and just observe folks moving through the streets. 

Tonight after the sunset, the hotel began to observe the Sabbath.  The pool, gyms, stores and services were all shut down.  The funniest thing is that some really orthodox Jews believe that even pushing the elevator button is considered work (they are the ones that pre-tear their toilet paper on Friday because if they need any during the Sabbath, it’s forbidden to do that kind of work on Saturday), so the elevators also take a Sabbath.  All the buttons are inactivated and the elevators just run on a routine where they go up to the 21^st floor, then stop on every other floor on the way down, so we get off as close to our floor as we can and then take the stairs  to our room.  I noticed the couple in the room next to us had all their lights off when I came back tonight, as it’s also forbidden to turn on lights.  The streets of Jerusalem are also silent – no cars can even be driven if one is an orthodox Jew.  But I’m sure they will be closing their doors, and hopefully flushing their toilets, so how they get away with some things being considered work, and other things not, I can’t really tell.  It’s a good picture of the ineffectiveness of man trying to please God by following legalistic laws, and missing the whole point of grace.  Jesus, their Messiah, came to abolish those laws, yet they still don’t recognize that.  Sadly, they aren’t the only ones.

Time Goes By Too Quickly

This was our last full day in Spain. We head back “home” to Norway tomorrow. We had never stayed with Tante Berit before so we wanted to be sure not to overstay our welcome. Three full days was certainly not long enough for us, but maybe it was too long for her – she’s not used to having a rambunctious kid in the house. She hasn’t complained at all, but I’m a bit worried she is losing steam. She’s a very gracious hostess and took us to the beach again today, and in to town to do more shopping. Kaleb wanted a new Wii game that would play on the European version of Wii (we found out the games he brought from home aren’t interchangeable with the Wii systems here.) Berit took us to a very large store that is sort of a Super Wal-Mart on steroids. They have 54 cash registers and entire aisles of just one product, like dried pig legs (with the feet still attached) hanging from hooks. I also noticed the bagged salad was just around the corner from the ladies bras and underwear - that’s the kind of thing that happens when stores sell everything under one roof.




Kaleb and I were looking for Spanish candies to take back to his school chums in Norway. Most of the candy was the same as can be bought all over Europe, so it was hard to find something unique. Finally, as we were leaving the store, we saw a little boutique near the entrance to the store that sold all kinds of candy in bulk. It was called a candy store (Dulce), it looked like a candy store, but it sure didn’t smell like a candy store. The minute we walked in, our nostrils were assaulted with the acrid smell of various and sundry types of olives in their brine – sitting among the mounds of gummy candy we came to buy. It was the strangest thing, and for what reason candy and olives are sold in the same store, I have no idea. Apparently olives in this part of the world are a real treat. We managed to breathe through our mouths so we could stay long enough to pick out some real sweets, and then left in a hurry. Weird.



Tante Berit took us to an International Park in the center of town so we walked around there a bit and I naturally, took dozens of photos. It was all quite picturesque with fountains dotting the landscape and the entire park surrounded by various colors of bougainvillea woven in and out of the fencing. The center of the park has a huge pond that represents the Atlantic Ocean. The outline of the map of Europe created one of the pond’s edges (best seen from the air). Flags representing each of the European countries were properly planted in their spot. It was a clever idea and certainly one that celebrates the unity that much of Europe feels toward their neighboring lands.



Before we ventured back home again (see photo of Kaleb in Berit’s backyard), we stopped at a neighborhood restaurant for some lunch. I requested the left over Baccalou for dinner tonight so we opted to take it easy and go out for lunch. There was a British Pub not far from Berit’s house, so of all things, we ate English food while staying in Spain. Kaleb loved his “Bangers and Mash” (sausages and potatoes), Kory ate some poor little lamb and I had fish cakes. Can’t go wrong with British food and a cold beer on a hot day (Berit drinks the kind without alcohol because she’s the driver).



Kaleb has had trouble this week focusing much on school work, but I’ve gotten him to do a few things. I keep reminding him these little trips are why we homeschool him and just because we aren’t home, doesn’t mean there is no school. Have school, will travel.



Berit’s swimming pool feels better every time we jump in. Kaleb and I played in it for a few hours after we got home, and I couldn’t be more sunburned, but I’m not complaining. Except for the itching, it feels good to be warm. Kory split his time between napping and installing a garden hose hanger for Berit. He just can’t get away from his handy-man fix-it life because he’s the kind of man that needs to fix problems all the time and he gave up on fixing me a long time ago.



We wrapped up the evening watching another hilarious version of “Alt for Norge” (Everything for Norway), the “Survivor”/”Amazing Race” sort of reality show that was filmed last summer in Norway with a bunch of Americans hoping to find their Norwegian roots. It’s full of incredible Norwegian competitions and it certainly contrasts the hardy lifestyle Norwegians live versus the wimpy sheltered life the basic American has. (I think it’s possible to see clips from this show on this website: http://www.tvnorge.no/programmer-tvn/alt-for-norge .) It’s worth having a TV in Norway, just to watch that show. I’m sure, after every episode, the Norwegian national pride goes up just a little bit. To think they can make Americans look like such idiots without even trying has got to be the highlight of their week.



(For some reason, it wouldn't upload a photo today - I'll try again later.  I feel like such an idiot!  Ha.)

A Very Gray Day

We’ve had more rain the last few days than we’ve had all year. I guess the weather has been exceptionally wonderful (and not A4) since we've been here. I’m quite sure we wouldn’t have enjoyed it half as much if we had the kind of rain we’ve had the last few days, for the entire year. Kory was in Norway for five months in 1971 and all the time he was in Aalesund that summer he only remembers a few days of sunshine. That would get old. But the whole global warming thing is to Norway’s advantage on the one hand, because the weather is so nice now, but on the other hand, life is changing fast north of the Arctic Circle with everything melting so quickly. Days like today are just great for getting indoor projects done, so I’m not complaining. We just haven’t seen the mountains out our window for about three days now and the big grey wall of clouds hiding them, isn’t nearly as entertaining.

At school today The Good Teacher Inga gave us all a practice “speaking” test by asking us each to describe our “dream house.” Since I already have that back home, it wasn’t a hard assignment, and surprisingly, I passed the test, so woo hoo again! I only went to school for half a day then skipped out early to go be with The Praying Women. We had another refreshing time of prayer and talking about all the answers to prayers we’ve seen lately. Gotta love that. I used my afternoon and evening at home planning more things for our upcoming road trip. I was reading up on things to do in the areas we will be traveling, trying to get a good mix of history, culture and fun so we all remain happy campers.

Kory spent his morning down at the auto shop getting our van inspected. He found out a few things he didn’t know, like the fuse was out for the tail lights and turn signals, so it’s a good thing he got the inspection. Then he spent the rest of the day chasing after parts to fix all that he can fix himself before he schedules time at a repair shop. He has to get the car re-inspected before we can get the little sticker to put on our car showing it’s safe to be on the road. He thinks we’ll need new brakes, too, so hopefully everything can get done in the next few weeks. All it takes is time and money.

Kaleb didn’t have a very good day at school today. He got shoved and knocked around a little more, but didn’t seem as upset by it as he was yesterday. He didn’t pray for any of the boys before or after it happened, but I was praying for him all day. On one hand, I feel badly for him, but on the other, I’m glad he’s able to experience this kind of stuff because most of it is just normal boy stuff – they are rough with each other and he doesn’t have siblings to knock him around so he doesn’t realize it’s just part of life. The only thing I hate is he comes home and wants to demonstrate to me, exactly what happened to him at school, and often he hurts me in the process. I keep telling him he doesn’t need to carry through with things, he can stop short of actually smacking me, but I really think he gets pleasure out of knowing I feel his pain. I had him do a little extra homework today because he was bored and a little irritating. He wanted so much to go up to the neighborhood where all his friends live so I told him he could go if he got his homework done before two o’clock. Just as he was sitting down to do it, he dropped a glass that shattered into a million pieces, so he had to clean it up. Once he gets something like a vacuum cleaner in his hand, he completely tunes out to everything else. He must have played with that thing for a good 30 minutes, so he missed his window of opportunity to go, for which he was crabby about the rest of the day. Finally he put on his rain gear and rode his bike down to another kid’s house that lives by the school, as he had prearranged a meeting time with him, but when he got there, the kid wasn’t home. So he struck out all the way around. He came home feeling rather dejected, then played math games on his computer and read a Norwegian children’s book. I told him I would give him extra time on his Nintendo for every page he reads in Norwegian. He picked up a very advanced book and sat down and read three chapters. I had him tell us the synopsis of what happened in each chapter then Kory pointed to very difficult words and asked him what they meant. He knew everyone. If Kory asked him the word by itself, he couldn’t say what it meant, but when he read it in context with a sentence, he knew the meaning right away. We were both stunned as some of the words Kory didn’t even know and he had to look them up in the dictionary. I guess we don’t have to worry about his ability to learn things school – just his ability to roll with the punches – literally.