Comments from Jim:
Today we were given the opportunity to deliver food items to needy families and visit with them. The first was in a village with a Muslim family that was in fear of their property being taken away. Even though this family had great worries on their shoulders, the once again proved the hospitality of their people by making hot tea and sharing it with us. They voiced their concerns and asked that we relay what the real people are like to our people.
We then delivered food to a Bedouin family. A woman, a little girl, and a young boy that was permanently handicapped due to a failed medical treatment.
The third and fourth families were Palestinian Christians. They were very friendly and provided Arabic coffee for us with warm conversation. The Christian families were only two left in the village. They told us that they felt pressure from both Muslims and Jews.
After we ran out of food we were very fortunate to visit the church at Emmaus. We stood on a remnant of the 1st century Roman road of Emmaus. It was very exciting.
After we returned for the day we were provided a warm Arabic meal of Mashie (stuffed squash and small egg plant) by our Palestinian partner’s family. It was very filling, very welcome, and very tasty. Our friend’s mother made a statement that wrapped up much of what I felt about the different families that we had met on this day. She said, “the people here are good, our government is not very good but the people are”. These people even if from different cultures all want the same thing. They want shelter, food and water, work, and safety for their families. I think we all want that.
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