the time i visited the village

After we settled into the new beit, Abu Laith said he was going to the village for an hour, and I asked to come. It was something new to see; also, I half hoped to see some friends there. We picked up Rana and Bthayna, the older two kids (I met them the first night but hadn't known they were Laith's sisters). I remembered Bthayna's name right away, which was awesome because I could not get it into my head the first night and felt bad. We ran some errands, getting water and picking up snack foods (Ringos and juice boxes, plus icecream for us).

Abu Laith had to go do something, so he left me on Rawan's porch with Rawan, her friend Maram, Rana, Bthayna, and Ali. We sat there for a long time talking. Rana is about as fluent in English I am in Arabic, and likes both teaching me and showing off her English. I finally learned their ages. Rawan and her friends are 13, Rana is 11, Bthayna is 9, and Ali is 8. Ali is a ham, already one of those people everyone turns to for constant entertainment. We talked for a long time, but there are a few things particularly worth mentioning. They like having their picture taken; Maram took off her hijab for it, but I couldn't ask why well enough to get a real answer. The older girls asked me whether I was Muslim, and then whether I wore the hijab in America. While this was going on, people were Allahu-Akbar-ing (in the house?), and they asked me if I did that. I tried to ask when Rawan and her friend started wearing the hijab, but Rawan said 10 and her friend said 7, which doesn't make sense. The answer I got from Rana was that they were big while the non-veiled girls were small (this was explained extensively). That would have to do. We talked about my siblings, too. Rana remembered their names hours later...she's clearly a bright one.

When Abu Laith and I left, everyone came with us. Back at the camp, a ton of people had shown up. We all hung out around the campfire for a long time. There were probably over a dozen kids and half a dozen adults. I took pictures, which they liked. Everyone was so warm. If I ever left my camera, a kid would bring it to me. Someone was always calling me over to sit with them. Rawan's friend Hudda led a group of mostly girls asking me questions for a long time, so I missed what the adults were doing. Hudda is 13, and strikingly beautiful. Her English is fine, but she says "lovee" and such, so is sometimes hard to understand.

When they all got up to leave they said "goodbye" profusely because (we thought) it was the last time I would see them. I was a little emotional. I told Um Laith I loved her family, and at the time I didn't think she understood, but later I heard her tel Abu Laith.

The desert was beautiful that night. The trees/bushes (I keep saying "tree" because I think "shajara", but they're bushes) cast shadows in the moonlight, and the cliff-face was spectacular. My photography failed because my camera wouldn't do a long enough exposure...and I even brought my tripod! I'll just have to remember.