Galilee Sweet Galilee.... (John Alexander Clark's Grave!)

...Where Jesus loved so much to be.

I loved Galilee. I cannot describe it. I have no idea how to cover it all, except to say that I'm not going to attempt it while I am in the Holy Land.

We had 11 days of incredible experiences. It was great! I may do an experience here and there. Maybe I'll even get the first couple days down, but I have a feeling I'm going to be in over my head just trying to keep up on these next final weeks. So bear with me folks!

One thing I did want to write about while the feeling was fresh in my mind, and at the request of our wonderful Mother, was about visiting the grave of my ancestor, John Alexander Clark, on the last day of our trip, last stop. He is buried in a cemetary in Haifa, The Templar Cemetary.

For those Clarks out there that don't know about this amazing young man, I recommend reading his Missionary Letters. They are incredible, and provide such a great insight to who he was.

He was called on a mission to Turkey at the end of 1893 and left in February 1894. His dad, Ezra T. Clark, had two wives. He was a son by the second wife. The first wife, Mary, and Ezra had a son who had died on a mission returning from England. He died of heat stroke on a train in New York, and Ezra had a really hard time with it. When John asked to be allowed to go on a mission when he was around 24 years-old, his father was very hesitant about it. Ezra was a good Latter-day Saint, and had proven very faithful and generous in the church in years past. Kali Clark, who is a girl on this program, who is also related to John A. Clark (she is a decendent through the first wife, we are decendents through the second wife, by John's younger brother Nathan), told me that once Joseph Smith was trying to raise money for the Church and begged members at a meeting to donate of their scarce funds. After the meeting Ezra T. Clark walked up to him and gave him everything he had. Everything. Joseph Smith told him he would be blessed in his life for it, and he was. He was a very prosperous man. So you can see that the reason for Ezra's hesitancy to let his son go on a mission was not a question of faith, but more a fear of losing another son on a mission. John wanted to go so badly that he told his father he would give up his inheritance to be able to go on a mission. His father was a wealthy man. That's how badly he felt the need to serve the Lord.

When he was called to Turkey, he left in February 1894, and first went to London, and then traveled through Europe to get to Syria. He stayed there for several months and learned both German and Arabic there, waiting until he could go into the Holy Land. He mastered German, and moved to Haifa, where he continued learning Arabic. His daily routine was to wake up, study Arabic, go for a swim in the mediterranean, take lessons in Arabic, and then go out into the city to be with the Arabs and to pass out "tracts" with a message about the Church. He had no companion, and was very faithful in his studying and proselyting.

In January 1895 a plague of black smallpox broke out in the area. Sister Hilt (whom John was staying with) begged him not to go out among the Arabs, but to protect himself and stay inside. His reply was always, "Sister Hilt, I am not a child. I have the priesthood and a work to do, and I know the Lord will protect me." And off he would go, to preach the Gospel.

On January 30, 1895 he contracted Black Smallpox and was sick for 8 days, when he died on February 8, 1895. Because of the incredible contagiousness of the disease, he was buried within hours, and his body was not permitted to be brought back home to his Father. His parents and Family had a really hard time with it. They didn't learn he was sick until three and a half weeks after his death, and then learned of his death after that.

His sister, Alice, was very close with him and she took it very hard. She had mourned his death for weeks when she heard his voice in her head, very clearly, repeating the last words he had ever said to her: "Alice, you said you were happy I was going on a mission. Why now are you so sad?" After that she was comforted and knew that he had a purpose in life and had fulfilled it.

He didn't know he would die when he went on his mission, nor did his family. They may have not understood the reason for his death at the time, but now, over 100 years later, it is very clear what his mission was, and what Heavenly Father had planned for him. Because of his grave, and because of a tombstone that was paid for with money raised by a college class at the school he graduated from (which is another miraculous and wonderful story), the Church was able to prove their history in the Holy Land prior to the establishment of the State of Israel, and was able, because of that, to build the BYU Jerusalem Center for Near Easter Studies, where I currently call home.

If not for my ancestor (as well as another missionary that died 2 1/2 years before John and was related to the man responsible for starting the fundraiser for their tombstones) there couldn't be a Jerusalem Center. I feel so blessed to have read his letters, and visited his tombstone. I feel very grateful that he died doing the Lord's will, to fulfill a greater purpose, and has since blessed the lives of many students who have walked these halls and lived in this gorgeous building.

I talked to my class while we were there, and I testified, as I do now, that the Lord has a plan for us. He knows our missions, He knows our lives, and He has something greater planned for each of us than we could ever imagine. We can only fulfill that potential if we let Him into our lives and hearts, to shape us like clay, and make us into those people. I know that there is a purpose for everything we go through and experience.

I love you all. I hope you all get a chance to learn more about your ancestors. They did so much for us, it is only right for us to learn about them so we can know them when we see them someday.

Me at the grave with my Missionary Letters book and my hymnal! It was so great to finally be there! I had been reading all week about John's mission, and was so excited to get there. All day I was looking forward to it!

This is me and Kali Clark, who is the one related to John also. We figured it out. He would be my great, great uncle, and her great, great half-uncle. So we are cousins...somehow. We didn't get as far as to determine our exact relation.....maybe that's a job for our moms... :)

Just a close up :) When it was me and Kali, everyone was taking pictures of us. It was really funny, actually. But it's crazy that we had two girls related to him on the program, and that there was one in each class so we could talk to our classes about him. It was perfect!

In fond remembrance of John A. Clark, Son of Ezra and Susan Clark.
Born Feb. 28, 1871 at Farmington, Utah, U.S.A.
Died Feb. 8, 1895 at Haifa, Palestine.
A missionary of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.

My Great, Great Uncle!

Eilat 11-15-09

This was the day before we went to Galilee....

You know, we just bussed down to the Red Sea for the day and went Snorkeling...just another day in the life of a BYU JC student :).

It seriously was awesome, though. The day was a little overcast and slightly cooler than it had been, but it was still really awesome. The fish were out and active. We saw a ton of cool stuff.

Let me back up. First of all, we woke up and were on the buses at 5:30 a.m. Early! It is a three and a half hour drive down to Eilat, which is the very southern tip of Israel, right by the border to Egypt. So we all got on the bus, and tons of people slept, which I did....after I watched the glorious sunrise!

This is the Sunrise over the Judean Highlands..

The progression...you can just barely see the Dead Sea now..

Sunrise over the Dead Sea!

I just couldn't help it. This one is slightly blurred, but so so beautiful!

After I took these pictures, I went to sleep. I bet I got about 2 hours of sleep....thank you ipod and the fact that I was on the bus with 30 people instead of the bus with 50 people... yay! So I spread out in an empty row in the back. Hallelujah!

When we got there we had a meeting with a guide there, who told us that we could go to "the north bridge" (aka the north dock) and swim until "the south bridge." I was skeptical because it was maybe 50 yards in between the two, and I there were only certain areas that we could swim in, and we couldn't go over the coral (cause it was only about a foot deep over the coral), and etc. But....we got in the water, and there were fish galore! It was so cool! I saw an eel, a tiger fish, puffer fish, and tons and tons more. I bet pat would know the name of them. Oh Pat, I was looking for the little fish that you love that has a little hole and sticks it's head out and then goes back in when you scare it, but I didn't see it. And THEN I was talking to one of my friends and he saw it! I was jealous. But, just so you know. They have those fishes in the Red Sea. Check and check.

This is me, Marissa, Kathryn, and Kyra with the Red Sea behind us! You can also see "the north bridge."

Just a fun picture of me....Happy!

And there is "the South Bridge."

Me, Marissa, and Kyra :)

Anyway, after about two hours of snorkeling, because it was a little chilly on the beach with the breeze, we decided to go into the city center and just look around. We went into a mall there, and I actually bought a really cute Red Coat.....I've always wanted one, and always talk myself out of it, but this time I went for it. I'm really glad I did, too. I love it! You can see pictures of it later, on the Separation Barrier field trip, which was the day after Galilee.

Love you all! Happy Snorkeling!

Oh I'd also just like to point out one small, cool fact. We snorkeled in the Red Sea, drove past the Dead Sea, Went to the Mediterranean Sea (at Caesarea Maritima), and then were at the Sea of Galilee. Awesome, awesomness. I love my life!

My week this week:

Okay. I have decided to do one big compressed blog about this week.

There are two days in particular that I would like to focus on: Wednesday and Thursday.

We had classes in the mornings on both of these days, and then we went into the City!

Wednesday first. I really wanted to go to the Israeli Museum, but I didn't know what group I should get together. Kathryn wanted to go with me, but we needed a third person. So, we kind of hooked up with a group who was going to the Israeli museum but in a different way than we initially intended to do. We walked to the Temple Treasures Museum, which I had been to on Sunday. They wanted to go to this, and so I decided to pay again to go see it, since the Israeli Museum was free with our museum cards (go go Jerusalem Center!) and because it only costs five dollars. So, I went again, and that was great, cause I learned a little more and got a little more of a cultural experience together. There was also a group of southern Christians from the states that was in our group. Their take of Mormons seemed to be not so favorable. It was interesting. Although they were perfectly nice to us, the leader of their group said that he had a view of Mormons and said we were very pretty, and that he "would leave it at that." So there you go. We're used to people loving us here, and we got both sides, as we usually do.

After that we decided to walk to the Israeli Museum. It's way out in West Jerusalem. I had intended to take a cab, but it wasn't that bad of a walk. It only took 30 minutes or so, and it was kind of a fun adventure to get back that way. So we went there, and we wandered around and looked at different exhibits. They had a huge model of Jerusalem during the second temple period. It was so sweet! I loved it. We also got free headsets to listen to as we walked around. I liked it a lot.

Me, Kathryn, Tessa, and Amanda. Alyssa was taking the picture, too :)

Me with my little headset :)

The model of the temple!

View from the South of Jerusalem during the second temple period.

Also there was a huge exhibit of dead sea scrolls there, which was sweet! The Isaiah scroll was there, although they have stopped displaying the whole thing because it is so intact and so marvelous that they want to preserve it. So, they have a replica up. It's so so long! Maybe 3 meters long? Maybe more? It's sweet! It's the book of Isaiah in its fullness. It was incredible!

This is the roof of the Dead Sea Scrolls exhibit. It's a big fountain! We couldn't take pictures inside.

After that we saw a youth display / traveling displays that change a lot, and there were a bunch of African masks that I thought were pretty cool. All in all, I was really excited about it. I want to go back, since it's free and everything. Maybe I'll get to, but if push comes to shove, it wont' be on my top list of things I HAVE to do before I go, just because I've been. It was great!

The next day, on Thursday, I went with a group that had planned to go to the Israeli Supreme Court and the Knesset, which is the Israeli Legislature. First we went to the Supreme Court.

There were a lot of neat things about the building. First, the same architect that designed the Jerusalem Center designed the Supreme Court building. He used a lot of symbolism tying in the ancient roots of Israel and the city of Jerusalem and everything. It was really cool. I learned that there are 14 justices, and that they never meet all at the same time, and the most that have ever gathered at once is nine justices. So there you go. Here are some pictures from that :)

This is what you see when you first walk in. It's symbolic of a street in the Old City. (the wall on the right) And then modern Israel comes in in the wall on the left.

This is one of the courtrooms! We actually got to sit in on a case. It was a crimminal case, but it was all in Hebrew, so we couldn't understand a thing.

This courtyard goes out in a path that leads directly to the Knesset, symbolizing their link. Kind of sweet :).

Fountain symbolic of...I think the Israelites crossing the desert ? Can't remember. Whoops! That's Lexi though :)

This is me and the fountain :)

The next thing we did was the Knesset. That was kind of cool because it is the Legislature, and we had to take our passports and check all our stuff, no cameras were allowed, etc. It was really cool. They first had us watch a movie that was very patriotic and etc, and then we went into the actual room where they meet, and they explained all the symbolism. Their chairs are set up in the shape of a Menorah...that's kind of cool. Oh and they are also a unicameral legislature.

My favorite part was what they call "The Chagall Hall." Yep! I got to see more of Chagall's works! I couldn't sneak pictures this time cause they didn't even let me have my camera. I guess they knew that if I had it, I'd sneak pictures. I wouldn't have been able to resist. All of you should google "The Chagall Hall - Knesset" though, and see some images. They are beautiful. There are three huge tapestries that look painted, but really he drew them and then 100 artists or weavers or something hand-wove them! They were incredible! There are 12 mosaics on the floors for the 12 sons of Abraham, and then a huge mural on one wall that is a War Memorial! The colors and everything are incredible. It's gorgeous work. I think he might be one of my favorite artists.

This is all of us outside the Knesset. You can see it in the background :) Starting in the back: Lexi, Emily, Nathan, Matt, then me, Tonya, and Kathleen.

This is me with my official sticker from the Knesset on :)

After that we went wandering about west Jerusalem, which was really fun cause I don't get to do that very often. We found this amazing walking bridge that they have constructed. It's famous, I guess, and very urban looking. It was fun!

Me and the bridge! It's like a big sail from far away, with all the suspension wires and stuff.

After that we went through the Suuk, which is an open marketplace. I'd never been before and it was amazing! There were people everywhere, selling everything! I bought a pastry, and it was sooo good. I want to go back there. After that we split up and I went to Ben-Yehuda street, which was super fun, and I bought a skirt :) and then I went and got soft-serve at McDonald's because that is where the Center sends us taxis to pick us up if we call for one.

This reminded me of Clayton. It was a bike shop before we got to the Suuk !

This is the outdoor suuk...

and me....

This is the indoor part of the Suuk! It was so sweet! People people everywhere!

So, those were the highlights of my week!

Ein Getti ! The Dead Sea baby!

Alright, so the day after our Herodian fortress fieldtrip, there was a group of us that got permission to go to Ein Getti on November 9, 2009.

Ein Getti is a town and National Park by the Dead Sea. So there were sixteen of us, and we left at 8:30 in the morning, and all got in a van that took us first to the National Park.

Me and Tonya in the van :)

This is the view from the Van...not much, but there's the Dead Sea!

We went to the National Park first because we didn't want to be super salty when we were hiking, for after all, that was the activity to do in the National Park. It was sweet though.

When we got there, there was a group of Jewish girls that had come on a school field trip, I believe. And when I say group I mean more like a mob/throng/crowd/entire school population. It was crazy. So we spent the day with them. But they'd all switch around the pools, so it didn't end up being too big of a deal.

We first hiked to David's Falls.



This is an example of our schoolgirl invasion..

But this is David's Falls! It was beautiful!

Kathryn, me, and Kelly in front of David's Falls!

Our fun group we went with...too many people to list, apologies!

After that we went to some other falls. They were just called the lower falls, but we found one with little crabs in it, and we jumped off a ledge that was.....level with the water haha. It wasn't that deep, but it was still fun.

The next pool we went to there was a little better of a ledge to jump, and we did. We had it all to ourselves, and then the schoolchildren invasion came. That was okay, until Kyle, a guy in our group, jumped in the pool with us, and the teachers came over and were talking to us in Hebrew. We couldn't understand, obviously, but the gist was that they didn't want him in the water at the same time as the girls swimming, so he got out and we left after that.

Invasion...But before that, this was our own private pool!

Swimming hair.... :)


After that we all kind of split up, and some of us went on a hike and some of us went right down to the Dead Sea. I went on the hike! Aren't you proud of me? I usually am not one for hiking, but I decided that since we'd have time later to do the Dead Sea, that I was going to go on the hike and have fun. So I did.

This is Megan, Kathryn, and Tonya. We were the four on the hike.

And me :) Gotta love the self-portraits haha

At the top of the mountain! We hiked to an ancient temple of some sort, from the people that used to live in the area. Kind of cool.

We also hiked to a really cool spring! The water was so gorgeous and clear. It was beautiful!

And this is the Spring again...

I think we were trying to figure out which way to go.

Haha...Danger! Open Pits!

After this we walked down to the Dead Sea at Ein Getti Beach, and we hopped right in! I honestly have to say, I was so surprised at the boyancy in the Dead Sea. I know, I know, everyone says you float. But seriously. You Float. Almost to the point that if you put your bum down in the water and sit in it, it tries to flip you over. It's crazy! Here are some sweet pictures!

This is Megan, me, and Kathryn floating in the Dead Sea! Literally, floating!

And here is me! I'm trying so hard to hold my hands and feet up high without letting the Dead Sea flip me over! It was hard work. And you can see how clear and beautiful the water was when we were there! you can see the stones and everything. But don't be fooled...the salt water does make certain areas uncomfortable.... We had to wash off before doing mud :)

Just Exfoliating our skin with some Dead Sea mud :)



I am the one on the far left in this one :)

After that we cleaned off very carefully (Word to the wise: don't get dead sea water in your mouth or eyes. Gross!), and then washed off with the freshwater from the beach showers, and then we all hopped back on the bus and headed for the center!

Dead Sea, Check! :)