the rain falls in chicago...acid rain maybe...but there is still that romantic sense of walking in the city, in the rain, in search of adventure...and also the very high likelyhood of encountering gigantic mud puddles or being splashed by cars driving through them...
but that didn't stop 3 brave girls from challenging the weather head on-equipped with flip-flops, no umbrellas, and definately no umbrella hats. for my friend's b-day we went to a little coffee shop only a few stops away on the brown line, while lightning lit up the sky, rain poured down, and clouds of dark blue and silver raced across the skyline...
rain falling,
an espresso machine
damp clothing, damp hair, water spots on eye-glasses
chai tea
hot-chocolate
a small round table by an open window
quaint
warm
comforting
a break from the routine
laughter
conversation
the fellowship of friends
(just for BNicoleJ...)
Thursday, March 31, 2005
Tuesday, March 22, 2005
Back in Chicago!
well...i had written a very detailed blog upon my return from turkey...but somehow it erased before i was able to publish this post...and the second time around is never the same, but i will do my best to redo what i undid...anyway...
it is hard to believe that only a few days ago i was eight hours on the other side of the world, and now back in chicago, life is going on as usual-except for the profound impact that place had on me...that continues to be in my mind and heart.
waking up to the call to prayer at five thirty in the morning, the sound of a soothing-unfamilliar language, turkish breakfast-fresh bread, olives, glasses of tea (once 15 glasses in one day!) chocolate cake, fetta cheese, turkish coffee (which if you are not familliar with-just try it...actual grounds, sugar, and water mixed and heated together, then poured into tiny espresso cups), minarets pointed heavenward, the clicking of prayer beads, rugs of red and brown covered with intricate designs-trod upon by bare feet, the flowing of scarves over dark hair, facing toward mecca, the eye of allah, the beautiful snow covered mountains of kayseri, the history of the hagia sophia, sunlight through stained glass of the blue mosque, the sound of children laughing, the smell of cigarette smoke mixed with tea, cobblestone streets...
...the absence of Truth
we flew into ankara on monday night, stayed with a wonderful "m" family, who put us on a bus the next morning for the city of bolu. in bolu we stayed with two turkish muslim girls, both nursing students at the nearby university-it was such a great experience with 'emel' and 'felize'. emel spoke enough english that we were able to communicate-we talked about politics, culture, religion, and family (i have to say...many turkish families put our families to shame..) the language barrier only allowed our conversations to go so deep, but it was so good to talk to them, learn from them, and talk to them a little about what we believe...
from there we went to an "m" conference in ankara-just talking with the workers, sitting in on meetings, and asking tons of questions...those amazing people just poured into us, taught us, encouraged us, and asked us challenging-thought provoking questions that even now i am still mulling over.
from ankara we took a bus to the center of turkey to kayseri-one of the most beautiful places i have ever been...we stayed with a family that my friend had stayed with before-they have three adorable children..twins-4 years old, and a 2 year old. we spent much of our time in a rug store with metin, thier uncle-hanging out, playing cards, speaking as much as we could (almost no english spoken this time) walking around...
praying...
from kayseri we took a 12 hour bus to istanbul, where, on our own-we navigated that ancient city with the greatest of ease...kind of...it is a long story, but basically-no one spoke english when we got off our bus, no map in hand-just two american girls with hiking backpacks, a duffle bag, a backpack, a plastic bag with random items, and a rug---we didn't stick out at all...
we finally figured out that the ferry we were supposed to take was not working, so we climbed into a tiny blue sardine can bus that seemed to be going to the right place...an hour later we arrived in the downtown part of istanbul-we could see the hagia sophia (once a christian church built by constantine-then a mosque-now a museum)...we walked along strange side streets, uphill..untill arriving at a decent looking hotel where we got ripped off...but it was an adventure for sure..
it was so strange to walk into the hagia sophia, to see crosses that had been scratched out, where images of the resurrection had been plastered over, painted over, covered up...and yet to still see images of jesus remaining on the walls amidst the names of allah and muhammed...to see turkish children on field trips-learning from thier teachers...the song that came into my head...
"can a nation be changed?..can a nation be saved?...can a nation be turned back to you?...we're on our knees, we're on our knees again..."
i love acts 17
"he is the God who made the world and everything in it. since he is the lord of heaven and earth, he doesn't live in man-made temples, and human hands can't serve his needs-for he has no needs. he himself gives life and breath to everything, and he satisfies every need. from one man he created all the nations throughout the whole earth.
he decided beforehand when they should rise and fall, and he determined thier boundaries. his purpose was for the nations to seek after God and perhaps find him-though he is not far from any one of us. for in him we live and move and exist..."
God is moving in turkey...though it may not be obvious to the visitor, this country, having between 4 and 5 thousand believers..including workers is gradually being exposed to Truth once again...the region of galatia, cappadocia, the town of antioch-where believers were first called christians, ephesus...all located in this place. pray for turkey...pray for the workers there..pray that the gospel of Jesus Christ will be heard, and that Truth will be proclaimed once again.
as for me...who knows...maybe i will be back there again someday...
it is hard to believe that only a few days ago i was eight hours on the other side of the world, and now back in chicago, life is going on as usual-except for the profound impact that place had on me...that continues to be in my mind and heart.
waking up to the call to prayer at five thirty in the morning, the sound of a soothing-unfamilliar language, turkish breakfast-fresh bread, olives, glasses of tea (once 15 glasses in one day!) chocolate cake, fetta cheese, turkish coffee (which if you are not familliar with-just try it...actual grounds, sugar, and water mixed and heated together, then poured into tiny espresso cups), minarets pointed heavenward, the clicking of prayer beads, rugs of red and brown covered with intricate designs-trod upon by bare feet, the flowing of scarves over dark hair, facing toward mecca, the eye of allah, the beautiful snow covered mountains of kayseri, the history of the hagia sophia, sunlight through stained glass of the blue mosque, the sound of children laughing, the smell of cigarette smoke mixed with tea, cobblestone streets...
...the absence of Truth
we flew into ankara on monday night, stayed with a wonderful "m" family, who put us on a bus the next morning for the city of bolu. in bolu we stayed with two turkish muslim girls, both nursing students at the nearby university-it was such a great experience with 'emel' and 'felize'. emel spoke enough english that we were able to communicate-we talked about politics, culture, religion, and family (i have to say...many turkish families put our families to shame..) the language barrier only allowed our conversations to go so deep, but it was so good to talk to them, learn from them, and talk to them a little about what we believe...
from there we went to an "m" conference in ankara-just talking with the workers, sitting in on meetings, and asking tons of questions...those amazing people just poured into us, taught us, encouraged us, and asked us challenging-thought provoking questions that even now i am still mulling over.
from ankara we took a bus to the center of turkey to kayseri-one of the most beautiful places i have ever been...we stayed with a family that my friend had stayed with before-they have three adorable children..twins-4 years old, and a 2 year old. we spent much of our time in a rug store with metin, thier uncle-hanging out, playing cards, speaking as much as we could (almost no english spoken this time) walking around...
praying...
from kayseri we took a 12 hour bus to istanbul, where, on our own-we navigated that ancient city with the greatest of ease...kind of...it is a long story, but basically-no one spoke english when we got off our bus, no map in hand-just two american girls with hiking backpacks, a duffle bag, a backpack, a plastic bag with random items, and a rug---we didn't stick out at all...
we finally figured out that the ferry we were supposed to take was not working, so we climbed into a tiny blue sardine can bus that seemed to be going to the right place...an hour later we arrived in the downtown part of istanbul-we could see the hagia sophia (once a christian church built by constantine-then a mosque-now a museum)...we walked along strange side streets, uphill..untill arriving at a decent looking hotel where we got ripped off...but it was an adventure for sure..
it was so strange to walk into the hagia sophia, to see crosses that had been scratched out, where images of the resurrection had been plastered over, painted over, covered up...and yet to still see images of jesus remaining on the walls amidst the names of allah and muhammed...to see turkish children on field trips-learning from thier teachers...the song that came into my head...
"can a nation be changed?..can a nation be saved?...can a nation be turned back to you?...we're on our knees, we're on our knees again..."
i love acts 17
"he is the God who made the world and everything in it. since he is the lord of heaven and earth, he doesn't live in man-made temples, and human hands can't serve his needs-for he has no needs. he himself gives life and breath to everything, and he satisfies every need. from one man he created all the nations throughout the whole earth.
he decided beforehand when they should rise and fall, and he determined thier boundaries. his purpose was for the nations to seek after God and perhaps find him-though he is not far from any one of us. for in him we live and move and exist..."
God is moving in turkey...though it may not be obvious to the visitor, this country, having between 4 and 5 thousand believers..including workers is gradually being exposed to Truth once again...the region of galatia, cappadocia, the town of antioch-where believers were first called christians, ephesus...all located in this place. pray for turkey...pray for the workers there..pray that the gospel of Jesus Christ will be heard, and that Truth will be proclaimed once again.
as for me...who knows...maybe i will be back there again someday...
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