Tuesday November 20, 2007

November 20, 2007
Whitney George
Waking up this morning with no school responsibility was a wonderful feeling. After a long week of studying and working hard last week, it was really nice to have a day where we could just relax! It was a great feeling, but we had a busy day today! Our itinerary was packed today, and everything was fun. One of my favorite things about field trips is when my expectations are low because I don’t know where we’re going, but when we get there I’m blown away with how cool the site is—I love that. Today was a really fun day, and we all looked forward to it and had tons of fun!
We started the day early and headed to Masada. We almost left a few students who were late to the buses, but because of a communication mix-up, the first bus went back to pick them up. So, all 80 students headed to Masada, which is right on the Dead Sea. This city is known for 2 main time periods: Herod/Roman time, and the time of the Essenes. After walking around the ruins of the city and learning more about the time and the people there, Brother Ludlow gave us a speech about the Essenes and their troubles there. For years, they had watched the Romans outside of their walls and had fought against them. Finally the day came when they knew that the Romans were going to attack the next day, and the Essenes knew that they didn’t have a chance. So, they had a choice: fight and lose, or surrender and hope for their lives. With the second choice, though, they knew that they would all be taken captive, brutally tortured, taken as slaves and prostitutes, killed, and even worse. Looking at these options, they chose the third option—to kill each other and then have one person commit suicide. Though this seems sad, we cannot judge these people for their choice. Looking at their options, they felt like this was the best way, and only one person committed suicide, which is a more than discouraged action in Jewish life. We learned a lot at Masada and the people who lived there. It was great.
After gazing at the Dead Sea from the mountain of Masada, we drove to En Gev and went swimming in the salty oasis! It was an interesting phenomenon not having to work to stay above water, having it be hard to turn and flip, and trying to keep composed and not getting any of the salty water in our eyes! It was quite a sight! We all loved frolicking in the water! One of the highlights there for me was the shoreline filled with rocks covered in salt. It’s amazing the makeup of the Dead Sea. After drying off and having lunch, we drove to the En Gedi Natural Reserve where we hiked up to a waterfall. I was amazed at how lush and green this area was, especially since all of the land around it is brown and desolate. It was a beautiful hike with waterfalls and rivers and goats. I wasn’t expecting too much out of this activity, but it ended up being really fun for all of us to be together and hike up the waterfalls.
We ended our day at Qumran, which is an ancient city of Jewish men and the site of the finding of the Dead Sea Scrolls. I’m so grateful that we are now able to place the story of the Dead Sea Scrolls, because their whole history makes so much sense! So, our day was jam-packed of fun activities which kept us going! We headed home covered in salt and dirt and smiles—signs of a wonderful field trip day!
I’m really loving studying the New Testament. This intense study was one of the main reasons why I came to Jerusalem this semester. I want to grow closer to my Savior as I study His teachings and miracles and example. Already, He has become more real to me and I revere Him to a greater degree. I know that He lived on this earth and taught the Gospel to the people here, and that He lives today. The New Testament gives me so many wonderful examples of how I need to live my life. I love the scriptures!