WALKING WATER

I woke up early around 6:00 right when the sun had come up. Grace arrived at about 6:50 and thats when we started walking. We walked up Olive down to the rose garden. The grass was cold and wet and our feet got so dirty. We started thinking about how people in places like Africa don't have shoes. When we passed the rose garden we arrived at Rocky Nook Park late and very cold. We filled up our water jugs then started walking up the steep winding road. It warmed up after a few minutes and it became hot and sweaty. I walked with Grace, Brian, and Bradley. After 30 minutes we began to complain and wondered when we would be at school. Sweat dripped down all our faces there was not a great smell in the air and there was blood dripping down my foot from a piece of glass that I had stepped on. We got to A.P.S and Graces bottle started leaking so we finally got a drink of water form the water spilling out. We stopped for a break in the shade under a giant tree that I began to love. I could hear sighs of relief when we sat down. Every step we took everyones neck and back became soar and we were almost at school but couldn't take the heat for much longer. Once we got to school we were so excited to wash our feet with our remaining water. Grace and I decided to take a few minutes to scrape of the dirt in the girls bathroom. Grace and I had so much fun but where glad the heat and pain was over.

PAY IT FORWARD, MY VISIT WITH SABAH

When the sun had just rose to its fullest, Sabah quietly and hastily woke me up.  She explained to me that we were going on a hike to The Seven Hills of Amman, where one could watch the sun go down on top of an amazing hill. I was so excited. I quickly found my hiking boots and skipped to the living room to find two wraps on the table. I sat down and took a big bite. It was fantastic. I'm pretty sure it had egg hummus and some sort of spicy meat. It was really good and I finished all of it before Sabah was even half way done. 

After breakfast we walked through town to a trail leading off into the distance. Sabah started walking up and I followed, and followed, and followed until it felt like years of walking. Sweat was dripping down my face. I felt like I was panting like a dog and my side ache had grown from hurt to serious pain. We started to slow down and I was relieved when we actually stopped to take a break. We sat down near a small lake with a distant water fall, I could hear the loud pounding of the waterfall on the rocks in the back ground. Sabah opened the brown sack she had carried up the hill and handed me something round wrapped in brown paper. I thought and hoped desperately that it was food but I was completely off. It was a small silver coin that looked like a oversized chocolate coin you get in a candy store. Sabah held it up to the sun light, walked over to the lake, and tossed it in. She came back and said "It's your turn". She told me that it was considered good luck to toss a Silver Isfahan Kran into any river on The Seven Hills of Amman. I thought about it for a moment, then took the coin, closed my eyes, and hoped that we would get to the top soon. After I heard the plop of the coin and was satisfied with my wish we grabbed our backpacks and hiked on up the hill. 

During the hike Sabah taught me a song in her language called Mezdeke By Mashallah, it was her daughter's favorite song and she learned the lyrics quickly because her daughter sang it all the time. We also went over the words she taught me in her language to refresh my memory. Before I knew it we where at the top looking over the entire village. I ran to a drinking fountain and stuck my face under it until I felt refreshed and relaxed. Sabah and I found a spot under a large tree and ate pasta with spicy sauce and peas. We finished the whole pot. I sat back with a big sigh knowing I was full. On the way back down we took a shortcut and got back before it was too dark, but just dark enough that we could hear the creatures coming out at night. Once we got home I was so full of ideas and stories I wrote them down in a journal and did not get much sleep that night. 

PAY IT FORWARD, MY VISIT WITH SABAH

I woke up on a small creaky rough wooden bed. My back cracked as I slowly sat up and smiled. Sabah walked into the room holding a tray full of food and invited me to sit down. We had sweet sugary rolls with marmalade in them. They were creamy and just brown enough. Sabah made them from scratch and never came up with a name for them. They were delicious. 


After breakfast we set off to the small nearby town. We took three busses to arrive in a small enclosed area with vibrant color and small stands. I stopped at one stand that had big pots with amazing drawings on them. They also sold jewelry. There was a small stone neckless that caught my eye right away. It was just the right size with blue stones on it and three pieces of wire holding it together. I was about to ask how much it was but before I could say a word Sabah handed the man behind the stand a few bills. He boxed up the neckless as I stared in silence. "Thank you" I said. "Don't worry." Sabah said, "You have made me happier than before and I am so excited to share these memories." 


We walked on in silence until she grabbed my hand and told me she wanted to show me something. We walked up creaking stairs and ended up on a rooftop looking out on the small town. We could see so many sheep and people walking around on the bare grounds. There was no tree in sight and you could only see the thin horizon behind all the sheep. Sabah and I sat there for a while until we got hungry and she took me to her favorite restaurant that her son owned. There where small tables and a small cooking room in the back. She hugged a tall man then went back into the kitchen. When she returned she had two hot trays of chili with chick peas and hot bread. Sabah and I talked and got to know each other a lot. She told me about her three sons and about her daughter. I showed her pictures of California and she told me she would love to go there some day. After dinner we went back to the house and I fell asleep right away.

PAY IT FORWARD, MY VISIT WITH SABAH

1 US Dollar = 0.71080 Jordanian Dinar

5 US Dollar = 3.55400 Jordanian Dinar

10 US Dollar = 7.10800 Jordanian Dinar

20 US Dollar = 14.21600 Jordanian Dinar

100 US Dollar = 71.08000 Jordanian Dinar

PAY IT FORWARD, MY VISIT WITH SABAH

1.  حياة life 
2.سلام meaning peace
3. حب love 
4. تحدث speak 
5. موقف stand 
6. مرحبا hello
7. خطأ mistake
8. حر free
9. الناس people
10. وداا goodbye

PAY IT FORWARD, MY VISIT WITH SABAH

I woke up excited and ready for the day ahead of me. As I slipped on some clothes I think of the great memories I will have and the great people I will meet. "I can't wait!" I thought to myself. I was so happy and ecstatic that I could barely focus. 

I started the day by taking a cab to the LAX airport and taking the 7:28 am plane to Chicago, IL. The plane ride felt like forever and it was bumpy, cold, and extremely loud. I eventually fell asleep during the last 2 hours flight. When I finally  arrived I ran through security just in time to eat some food before boarding the second connecting flight to Frankfurt, Germany. I arrived to a beautiful sunrise at 6:50 am. My last flight was completely exhausting and I was ready to collapse knowing that I would have a horrible time "trying" to fall asleep on the next airplane. I found a place to sleep away the hours I had to wait until the flight to Amman left at 8:25 p.m. I arrived at about 1:35 am, woken by the light of the large city of Amman. I was so excited remembering I had one more bus ride to arrive in Sabah's village. The airport was dusty and very dirty, creating little puffs of smoke every time you kicked the airport ground. I was so mesmerized by the amazing area I almost missed the bus. After a short drive I arrived at my bus stop. Sabah was waiting for me with a big smile on her face so excited and happy. 

My Visit With Maruge

I woke up and saw as the sun slowly seeped out from the mountains. I looked for Maruge realizing that he left to milk the cow, kindly letting me sleep. I slipped out of bed feeling cold shivers down my spine as I slipped on my clothes I saw Maruge in the distance and I felt so happy to see him so confident that this trip was a great idea and that I would always have these little moments when I would feel so good to be here with Maruge. Maruge and I decided to go to his mothers old garden that he tends every day, he sat there and we burnt a stick to celebrate her death, a old costume/tradition  every time you think of a dead loved one. Maruge and I sat there for hours planting and harvesting we even carved little elephants out of the hard sticks that fell down from holding up heavy plants.  by the end of the day we had corn, wooden elephants, lettuce, and rice from his garden. We got colorful baskets from Maruge's shed and walked down a large river to the local market. It was so crowded with many large cars stopping and yelling in all sorts of different languages. The markets were full of color the clothes were full of color even the food was full of color. I saw so much colture and I could see the different people and what environment they were raised in. Maruge and I stopped at a small restaurant and had fried corn dipped in butter we told stories about when we were little, my favorite was when he told me that he would help his mother in his garden and he would hand her tools when she asked her for them and he would pretend he was the richest person in the world.  My night with Maruge was great but the best of all was when I plopped Into bed without saying a word.