There’s nothing like waking up and heading straight to the Old City of Jerusalem. The sky is blue, the weather is warm, the trees and flowers are in bloom and they show off their colors against the stones of gold. The entire city looks like a painting. The colors are so vivid they bring tears to our eyes.
Our first stop was in the Christian Quarter of the old city, visiting David’s Tomb and the room where The Last Supper was held. Then we headed to the Jewish Quarter for a breathtaking view of the Western Wall and the opportunity to touch its precious stones and take time for private prayer and reflection. After all that we’ve been given over the past couple of days, there wasn’t time to give the right amount of thanks – it would have taken weeks.
Our afternoon was an emotional one. We met Governor Mike Huckabee at the Tel Hashomer Rehabilitation Center at Sheba Medical Center in Tel Aviv. We minted a special coin for the occasion that has the ‘Purple Heart’ on one side and the Heroes to Heroes logo on the other. We visited many Israeli soldiers who were recently wounded in combat in Gaza. They’re so young and in so much pain. Having their American counterparts visit brought tears to their eyes and tears to ours. Governor Huckabee showed his love and caring for everyone involved. The segment may be aired as part of The Huckabee Show this weekend. The Governor’s support means so much to us.
Emotionally exhausted, we headed back to the center of Jerusalem for a couple of hours of shopping and dinner before heading back to the hotel. Our Israeli fraternity brothers from our partner organization, AEPi, joined us for the afternoon and decided to stay for the evening. Fun, upbeat, and full of great stories, none of the guys wanted the day to end. Reality finally hit – it’s soon time to wake up and start all over again.
We’ll be back with more tomorrow. Possibly more awake and energetic…and with pictures!
