Not the post I was planning to write

I had planned on spending my free afternoon writing all about my incredible weekend in Eilat and Petra and all the fun I've been having. But then yesterday happened and I feel like I owe a blog post to the situation. For those of you who are not aware, a package was left on the street near the central bus station in Jerusalem yesterday afternoon. It exploded and one person was killed while over 30 others were wounded. I was on Mount Scopus in class and in the library all day so I was nowhere near the site of the bombing. Neither were any of my friends. However I got to class this morning and found out from my teacher that the one person killed in the attack was a woman named Mary, who was in our class. This news, as you can imagine, hit hard. All of sudden this attack that I was beginning to cope with and get past, took on a whole new meaning. Now it's personal, close to my heart, and much more of a reality. I'll write a little more about Mary in a bit, but first I want to say a bit about what I've observed and felt since this all happened.

Naturally I was a little shaken up when I first heard about the bombing itself, if for no other reason than the thought that I ride buses and go through that station all the time. Of course I knew coming here that there's a history of violence in Jerusalem, but never once have I felt unsafe. I've ridden the bus with no hesitation and traveled all over with no second thoughts. While I still don't think I'm in any kind of real danger, having this happen so close and in a place so familiar is a chilling experience.

Seeing the reaction of everyone to the incident was almost a cultural experience in and of itself. Yesterday afternoon the university immediately sent a mass text message to all the students asking us to get in touch with certain people to confirm that we were okay, administrators came into classrooms to call roll and see that everyone was accounted for, and all throughout campus you could hear students on the phone talking to loved ones, explaining what happened, confirming their safety. I had class pretty soon after the incident happened and almost as if nothing happened, my professor went on with his lecture as normal. When administrators came into talk to my Hebrew class this morning they emphasized the importance of going forth with your routine, not letting acts of terror knock you off your normal day-to-day life. The best way to cope, everyone has been telling us, is to keep going as normal. That must be how this country has been able to endure despite everything it has gone through. It knows how to deal with tragedy and as unfortunate as it is, this kind of thing happens often enough that the country just automatically goes into crisis mode, deals with the situation, and emerges stronger. That's not to say that each time an attack happens there aren't fresh wounds, unique mourning, and new grief, but this way of reacting is just a testament to what a special place Israel is.

Additionally, people have been coming together in beautiful ways. Last night my friend Andrew organized a multi-faith prayer group for anyone and everyone who wanted to join. There were about 15-20 students there, each praying or reciting verses or singing in multiple languages from multiple traditions. A lot of people shared words of comfort, offered insight putting politics aside, and united as one, pledging to respond to the tragedy in a way that comes out positively. Praying for peace and stability amidst this turmoil. It was a really moving and impacting time and I know similar types of events were going on all across the country.

Now I want to say a little bit about Mary, to attempt as best I can to memorialize her. As I can imagine always happens to those who lose an acquaintance, it breaks my heart to think that I didn't get to know her as well as I could have. There is so much about her I never learned--her last name for instance. But here's what I do know about her:

She is from Scotland originally but has lived for the past several years in Togo, working with missionaries to teach English. She told our Ulpan class about the many many places all over the world where she traveled and worked, which only makes me think of how many lives she touched. I know she had a huge impact in her 59 years of life and am so thankful for all the good she did literally all over the world. I don't know much about her family, but I do remember that she had a lot of siblings, all of whom were also spread all across the planet. She loved travel books and Jane Austen, always wore a ribbon on her ponytail, and I cannot remember seeing her without a smile on her face. She also told us during Ulpan that she once met JK Rowling just as she was becoming famous :) She was studying here learning Hebrew as part of a bible translation program, working until the last second of her life to make the word of God accessible to people everywhere. She certainly brought a special light to our Hebrew class and it's going to be quite difficult walking into class on Monday, and every day after, only to see an empty seat.

Thanks for reading, and keep the city of Jerusalem in your thoughts and prayers. I'll conclude with a passage that was the inspiration for my blog title and has always been a favorite of mine, but now takes on a whole new meaning.

Psalm 122:
A Song of Ascents of David

¹ I rejoiced with those who said to me,

“Let us go to the house of the LORD.”
² Our feet are standing
in your gates, Jerusalem.

³ Jerusalem is built like a city
that is closely compacted together.
⁴ That is where the tribes go up—
the tribes of the LORD—
to praise the name of the LORD
according to the statute given to Israel.
⁵ There stand the thrones for judgment,
the thrones of the house of David.

⁶ Pray for the peace of Jerusalem:
“May those who love you be secure.
⁷ May there be peace within your walls
and security within your citadels.”
⁸ For the sake of my family and friends,
I will say, “Peace be within you.”
⁹ For the sake of the house of the LORD our God,
I will seek your prosperity.