An Amazing Wonderful Sabbath

Today was a special day for the North Jordan Branch.  The district president and the district Relief Society president, both from Lebanon. and five other district leaders from Amman were here.  Having our leaders make the effort to come to Jordan and attend our little branch was much appreciated.  Everyone felt their love and support.

Today was significant because all the talks and lessons were in Arabic and most of the district and branch leaders are Arabic.  The branch members are starting to realize that this church is not an American church, but Jesus Christ's church.

President Assouad is the man sitting in the middle on the couch.  Everyone loves him.  It was fun to have lunch, laugh and talk after the meetings.  The Spirit we felt was amazing and wonderful.  We really feel that things are moving in the right direction.

President Assouad and other leaders are giving their support to these three Arabic young men from the North Jordan Branch as they prepare to go on missions.

President Hammond remarked that it was the best meeting he had ever attended.  He has a tendency to exaggerate, but we're happy to hear it.  It definitely was the best meeting we've ever attended in Jordan.

Visiting the Relief Society Sisters

I set a goal to visit all the branch Relief Society sisters in their homes.  Here's what we do:

1.  Pick up Huda (RS President who speaks no English) and her daughter (speaks limited English).

2.  Pray (very important!)

3.  Go through nightmare traffic for about 45 minutes depending on who we are going to visit.

4.  Sit and smile for 20-30 minutes while everyone talks in Arabic.

5.  Eat some sugary treat served by from each person we visit.

6.  Fight nightmare traffic and try to keep Lynn's head from exploding.

7.  Return home about 3-6 hours later.

8.  Pray.  We're thankful for the opportunity and grateful to be home safe.


We feel so blessed that even though we don't speak the language, we are able to understand and communicate.  It's amazing what the Spirit can do.

Work, work, work

This week we went to Ramtha every day to work on the diabetic retinopathy project.  The people who had high glucose readings on the random tests given over the last two weeks were asked to come to the clinic for a second test and an eye exam.

This man was so cute dressed in his traditional clothing, I couldn't resist taking his picture.  He brought his wife to the clinic.  

People were asked to fast before they have the second test.  Arabic people know what it means to fast.

Volunteer ophthalmologists from the JUST University examined the patients with equipment donated by  LDS Charities.  People were counseled about what to do if they need further treatment.
We have tested approximately 3500 people and close to 30% have high blood sugar.

"Chance" Meeting in the Nut Shop

On Monday we stopped at the local nut and candy shop in Husn to buy snacks.  Lynn went in ahead while I waited in the car.  The shop owner was busy waiting on two Jordanian women, so Lynn started looking at the bins filled with candy while he waited.  One of women noticed him and came over and started talking.  The first thing she said was "are you a Mormon?"   (That's a question we never hear).  He said "Yes I am."  Then she asked "do you live in Utah?"  When he said yes, she told him "My son lives in Utah.  He was a missionary."  The other woman introduced herself and said "I'm a member and I have been baptized"  What a surprise!  We have never heard of this family.  Lynn asked them why they haven't been to church and they said they stopped because there was some bad people in the church.  We don't know what that was about, but apparently it was something that happened several years ago.

Just then I walked into the shop and met them.  Lynn asked if they knew Amer, the branch president but they said no.  When he  asked them if they knew Huda the Relief Society president, their faces lit up and they said yes!!  When Lynn invited them to church  they wanted to know where we meet, but we didn't know how to tell them because there aren't any addresses here.  We got their phone number and promised to have Huda give them a call.  

The shop owner overheard the conversation and asked if he could come too.  Lynn asked him if he knew Huda Tashman and he said he knew who she was.  We promised to have Huda call him too.

We walked out of the nut shop in amazement.  We know that this meeting was no accident.  It was clearly an example of how we are guided by the Lord.  We always pray for the Spirit to be with us and are so grateful when we are blessed to have an experience like this one.

Recipe for Stuffed Camel

We were walking along the street past a butcher shop and noticed this camel's head sitting outside.  We wondered what Jordanian dish would call for camel meat?  Then we found this recipe:

STUFFED CAMEL

1 medium camel
4 goats
20 chickens
80 lbs tomatoes
150 boiled eggs
300 olives
100 lbs rice, cooked
20 lbs raisins
10 lbs garlic, crushed
5 lbs pine nuts
Saffron

Stuff 2 olives into each egg, stuff the eggs into the tomatoes, stuff the tomatoes into the chickens, stuff the chickens into the goats, stuff the goats into the camel.  Roast until tender.  Mix last 5 ingredients and shovel onto large serving platter.  Put roasted, stuffed camel on top of rice mixture.  Serves 1 tribe.  This is an Old Bedouin recipe.

Mansif for lunch

Lunch at the United Muslim Relief office in Mafraq was Mansif.  Everyone in Jordan loves Mansif--in fact it's the national dish.  This is what it looks like:

 If you look closely, you can see a sheep's head, the mouth open, the rows of teeth and the tongue sticking out.  It's all sitting on a bed of rice.  Actually the rice is quite good.  The meat--not so much to our liking.

Grab a handful of rice and meat, squish it up and plop it into your mouth.  Jamal pulled out the tongue and gave a piece to Lynn to eat.  I couldn't look.

Emergency Delivery in Mafraq

It was a "snow day" in Jordan yesterday and all the schools and government offices were closed in anticipation of a big winter blizzard.  In northern Jordan it was rainy and cold.

The bad weather didn't stop Jamal from his plans to deliver emergency supplies to the Syrian refugees in Mafraq.  We were invited to go along for the delivery and decided the weather wasn't bad enough to cancel.  We're really glad we went.

We joined Jamal and Dr. Abed Ayoub,CEO of United Muslim Relief who was visiting from the U.S. along with one of his associates, Osama.

Recently a group of local Bedouins have moved into the area where the Syrian refugees are camped.  The Bedouins moved their tents in  close to the newcomers to make them feel welcome.  the Bedouins are nomads and look very much like characters in a movie about the Arabian Nights.  They are very poor and uneducated.

Two weeks ago we delivered food boxes to these people.  This time we delivered mattresses, heaters, mats and blankets.  It's going to be a cold night and the families receiving the warm items were very grateful.

Jamal always has candy for the children.  

Dr. Ayoub talked to some of the children about their desire to go to school.  

Warm shoes for the little ones

We love the little children.

This teenage boy is an example of what everyone is worried about--uneducated bored teenagers sitting around who becoming targets for extremist groups.  He should be in school and thinking about being a productive member of society.

COMPARE THIS GROUP TO THE ONE WE JUST SAW:

The "chicken coop" camp (we call it that because they are housed in an old abandoned chicken coop and barn yard).  The people who live here have obviously come from a community in Syria where education is available.  The parents can read and write and it's important for their children to go to school.  Since there isn't a school nearby, the parents came up with a solution:  one person gave up a tent he didn't need so the kids could have a school.  Another man is a teacher and he has 40 students of various ages in his class.

 

We distributed backpacks, pencils, notebooks and other items to the children.  Then everyone went outside to be fitted for shoes.

While the children were outside we laid down new warm blankets and pads for the children to sit on.

This happy teacher got a new whiteboard and other supplies.  He receives no pay, but donates his time to the school.  Note:  see the picture of King Abdullah of Jordan on the wall.

This man is the community leader.  He carries a stick in his hand that we think is a symbol of his status, like a scepter.  He keeps order in the camp and any disputes are settled by him.  He is obviously very proud of the children and the school.

In our opinion, education for the Syrian children is a very important priority. 

 

The members of the community lined up to receive heaters, blankets and mats.  

     

No Church

It was so cold and stormy last night we slept in our jackets and under four layers of blankets to keep warm.  When we woke up there was about 2 inches of heavy snow on the ground.  The olive trees in our back yard were covered.

Since today is the Sabbath, we wondered if we should cancel church.  Then we got this cute message from President Amer who is out of town.  

Hello dear leaders

I follow  with u  the weather in the north of Jordan

In these moments has been the accumulation of snow on the streets

Thus the meeting was canceled today

To maintain the integrity of the member

Please encourage members to maintain the Lord's Day holy

Prayer and family set up inside the house

 Please contact with Sister Virginia

And I contact with all members

Grateful to you

P. Amer

(Sister Virginia is an American who is married to a Muslim man.  It would not be appropriate or acceptable for President Amer to phone her)

We're Too Old To Be This Young

We have been spending every day (except for the Sabbath) for the past two weeks in Ramtha working on the diabetic retinopathy campaign.  It's been a very busy time and we're starting to realize how much the Lord has blessed us with good health and strength so we can do it. Most of the time we feel 20 years younger than we did before we came here.  It's amazing and we are very, very grateful.

Here's what we do:

8:30 a.m. We meet the student volunteers from Jordan University of Science and Technology (JUST) in Ramtha, about a 35 minute drive from here.

We get a new group of about 20 medical students every day, eager to help test the blood sugar for people who come into the clinics.

The students all get a quick training on how to use the glucometers and to poke fingers for blood. We go over the procedures and then pile into our cars to go to the assigned clinics.  Aren't they cute!!

We drop off the volunteers at clinics around the city, but don't leave until they demonstrate that they know how to use the glucomoters and test strips.

The rest of the day is spent going around checking on everyone, delivering supplies and falafel (rhymes with "awful") sandwiches and water.

Today Brother Tolley faced up to some very arrogant men at the government hospital and won them over.  It made me proud.

In the afternoon we pick them up, take them back to meet the bus, thank everyone, kiss on both cheeks, shake hands, take pictures, tell them we're proud of them, hug hug etc. etc. etc.  "Shucran!!" "Basalama!!"

Then we rush home to do e-mails, visit branch members and take care of other humanitarian projects.  Then we crash.....

It's a good thing we're still young!!

Relief Society Valentines Barbecue

What do you do in the North Jordan Branch Relief Society to celebrate Valentines day?  Have a barbecue of course!

We had hot dogs, chicken wings, onions, french fries, tomatoes, salad, pita, rolls and chicken patties.  If that sounds like a recipe for weight gain, you're right! But oh, the food was SO GOOD!!

Everyone pitched in and helped with the food preparation

The Jordanians really know how to put on a feast!  They are not only good cooks, but the dishes they make are masterful works of art--and very delicious. 

  

There were 26 sisters in attendance at the activity, which is quite remarkable because there are only 19 members of the church in our branch.  Several of the women who attended are "members without baptism" which means they attend church regularly, have testimonies, but cannot or will not join because of the society they live in.  There's nothing like a party with good food to bring people out no matter where the church is located.

They wanted to play a game, so we asked everyone wrote down something about themselves that nobody else knows on a piece of paper.  Then we read the comments and had to guess who wrote them.  It was loads of fun.  Everyone laughed and laughed. Next, all the sisters were each given a blank valentine which they passed around so everyone could wrote something nice and loving about each one.
"What did you like the best about the party?" we asked Hudda (the president) after it was over.  She said it was the fact that everyone pitched in, helped and had a good time together.  We call that "Unity" and "Sisterhood."

   

The grand finale!!!  Two heart shaped cakes for dessert!!!  You gotta love it. 

The Boiler

This is what you do when your boiler goes out:

Heat water on the stove...(about 10-12 pots a day)

Take a bath in a tub

Sit in front of the propane heater . . .but not too close

Hangin' With The Guys At The Car Wash

The waiting room at the local car wash was full of Arabic men.  They were all eating lunch and invited us to join them.  We said no but they insisted.  I rubbed my tummy to show I was full and sat in the corner but Lynn pulled up a chair and joined the group.  The men sat around eating faliful (humus) and pitas, drinking Pepsi, talking Arabic and smoking cigarettes (not Elder Tolley).  Hilarious!!   Lynn knows the Arabic words for "thank you," "friend," "my name is Lynn" and "good."  The few words he knew carried the conversation and they all were good friends when we left.


  

There But for the Grace of God Go I

Whenever we go on a food distribution, we can't help but think of the talk Elder Holland gave in the October conference last year.  His beautiful words express exactly how we feel:

". . .I openly acknowledge the unearned, undeserved, unending blessings in my life, both temporal and spiritual.  . . . I have had to worry about finances on occasion, but I have never been poor, nor do I even know how the poor feel.  Furthermore, I do not know all the reasons why the circumstances of birth, health, education and economic opportunities vary so widely here in mortality, but when I see the want among so many, I do know that "there but for the grace of God go I."  I also know that although I may not be my brother's keeper, I am my brother's brother, and "because I have been given much, I too must give." (underlining added by us)

What's it like to be a refugee?  We can't even begin to imagine.  How do they survive and go on living?  We don't know how, but they do.

Many live in tents out in the desert....

Their homes have very little--a rug on the floor, some mats and blankets and a little wood burning stove.

Others find housing wherever they can..

In an olive grove

Or an abandoned chicken coop (cleaned out of course)

Or crowded into tiny one-room "apartments"

They try to carry on life as best they can.....

Babies are born

Loved ones pass away . . .(her son died yesterday)

They heal from the physical effects of war . . . (this man is recovering after being shot in the back)

And the psychological effects  

Widows care for their own children as well as the children of family members who have died or been killed.

They depend on others for almost everything.  Many kind-hearted people and charities have done much to help.  LDS Charities donated these food boxes containing enough food to feed a family of 5 for a month.  Jamal Iqtish, our United Muslim Relief partner, throws in a few cleaning supplies and some hygiene kits.  We often see him reaching into his pocket for a few dinars and quietly handing the money to someone he thinks needs extra help. 

There's always candy for the children.  This little boy is blind.  His sister made sure he got his share.

The education of their children is very important..  This school-in-a-tent has no desks or chairs or multi-media presentations.  Just well-mannered children sitting on the ground listening to their teacher.  They sang a cute song in Arabic for us.  One little 3-year old girl sang the ABC song in perfect English!!

These are not homeless that have been run out of their country.  They have fled their country and become homeless.  Many have lost everything--their homes, their careers, their bank accounts, and many loved ones.  Some have been middle class or upper middle class professionals. 

We will be forever changed by the experiences we are having, and we are so grateful.  It is our sincere desire to represent the Savior in every way.  Our hearts are full of love and compassion for our brothers and sisters in this land.

" I may not be my brother's keeper but I am my brother's brother"

Here's a link to a video of our visit:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ROfBxyOxqM&sns=em