208

We are very grateful that we now don’t have to go out and search for a wireless internet connection, because we have a dongle (mobile phone internet connection) at home. The only problem with the dongle is that it is not very consistent and is often slow, very slow or just cuts off entirely. We don’t have a TV, so listening to the radio is our main means of entertainment and keeping up to date with news. Because the internet is not reliable we continue to listen to the BBC world service on the radio. Our signal comes from Cyprus and in the late afternoon the signal begins to weaken and distort until it is unrecognisable in the evening. But years of listening to Radio Luxembourg 208 on my portable radio under the bed-sheets has prepared me for the fading signal that occurs every few minutes. Jane obviously didn’t listen to 208, she easily gets irritated by the distorted signal, but when you’re listening to the 2nd half football commentary from Old Trafford you just blank off the deteriorating signal and imagine Steven Gerrard scoring a hat-trick in the last 10 minutes against Manchester United. P

New Fruit

It is now two years since we first left the wild west coast of England and started living a very different life.
Everything has changed for us, the food we eat, the language we speak, the work we do, the community we live in, the way we wash and dry our clothes. The vine in our garden, not only provides us with luscious grapes and beautiful cool shade but makes an excellent drying area for shirts, which dry quickly and are protected from the harsh rays of the sun. No ironing needed.
In two years it feels like we have travelled a long way, our recent arrival in Nazareth also requires a new way of thinking, a new way to live, lots of adaptations to make - living in an Arab culture in an Israeli context. Better go and make some more falafel! J

Licence to Kneel

As you may have read in our Link Newsletter (available on request, electronically or paperererly) one of our roles is helping at the Anglican Church in Nazareth. We are slowly getting involved in different areas of work. The Bishop of Jerusalem - I had to name drop because it’s such an impressive title - has granted me a free ‘Reader’ transfer from the Bath & Wells Diocese to the Jerusalem Diocese. The Jerusalem Diocese covers a large area that includes Israel, Palestine, Jordan, Syria and Lebanon – an interesting assortment of locations. I have started assisting Father Zahi, carrying the cross and serving communion, reading the prayer book in Arabic is taking time because it is in classical and not colloquial Arabic – that’s my excuse and I’m sticking to it. Peter