Lead up to Christmas

I'm working very hard to try to get to a Christmas concert this Advent. My schedule did not allow me to get to the Friends of Jordan concert and I tried to find my way to a more sophisticated one last night. I traveled street after street to locate the Greek Orthodox Cathedral. A friend even arranged to meet me but a U.S. phone call gave me a late start.

I was surprised my GPS had this particular location. As I set off, I discovered I was on Jebel Amman, far away from the district my friend told me the Cathedral was located. I drove down to that area and could not find the place. No websites offer directions. Phone calls are generally not returned and you generally cannot reach the organization by phone at least the first five times you call.

Apparently, Christians are responsible for the configuration of streets in Amman. The city was designed to be confusing as defense against invaders.  Modern Amman is deliberately designed to be difficult to drive in as defense against local uprisings and rebellions, especially after Palestinian rebellion in 70's. Easy access is not a value.

One thing that warmed my heart the other day was that I saw two young woman communicating in sign language. I thought that if they could learn sign language in Arabic, I can do better with my language skills. It is odd my heart drops when I see a person with such a disability. I want them to live a normal life.

One good thing about being in Amman for Advent, we don't get much candy or sweets sitting out in the open for people to enjoy. In the States, every time you go into a store, candy is one of the first things you encounter. I like the absence of it because in the States it kind of feels pushed upon you. If you don't have great resolve, you will taste a chocolately morsel here and there. Then you get fat.

Also, I noticed we don't use much butter here. Everything is olive oil based. The diet certainly is different. This morning I picked up a huge vat of olive oil that comes directly from a parishioner's farm. It is not processed in the commercial way so it looks a little cloudy, but it is very good. It is the best oil I've tasted. Yum.

We also don't get excessive Christmas carols on the radio. I play Advent and pre-Christmas songs often and I'm singing them daily. In a few markets, you'll hear an instrumental secular song or two. It makes me feel good, but it does not go overboard. There's a balance here. I just can't stop singing.