The New Mundane

When I first came to Israel, it seemed like everything was new and foreign to me. The language, the culture, the little idiosyncracies of the country. It has now been nearly three months, and it seems like the things that used to suprise me or overwhelm, or even inspire, have become part of ordinary life. It took two sets of visitors to open my eyes afresh to some of these things. They saw things that I have ceased to notice - the "new mundane" for me. Some simple things would include the hummos aisle in the grocery store. There are over 200 types of hummos and dips to go with pita at my grocery store, and yet only 10 different varieties of baby food (if that). They noticed the cats on every car, on every doorstep, the cat sleeping in my sons stroller (I hope he isnt allergic), and the hundreds more to be found in most nooks and crannies of the city. They commented on our apartment life. The way I have to take the garbage out and down the street to dump it. Or the kosher kitchen - how it is exausting to do but keeping the dairy and meat utensils and dishes, sinks and pans separate has become the new norm. I can now walk into my grocery store, the McDonalds or the mall, hand my purse to the armed security guard and walk through the metal detector without giving it a second thought. Our guests noticed. My mother had two particulary unique experiences here that I would now consider normal. We were at a city park walking to the Old City and we stopped at the public restrooms. As we were standing in line (now as women, this is normal all over the world), a young woman came out wearing a rifle over her shoulder, washed her hands and left. She was one of the required armed guards for a field trip of elementary students having lunch in the park. Then one night as we were walking home from dinner, we heard someone talking on a cell phone saying something like "Man, I just wish she would give me more space..." We turned to see a young man fully dressed in ultra orthodox black overcoat, top hat and curly tendrils, discussing his love life on his cell. I remember how on the plane ride here there were a few orthodox families on their way to Israel with us. They were dressed so differently and stood out so much. Now the man on his cell phone suprises me no more than a kid in board shorts and Rainbows would in my home in Southern California.

It is interesting to me how that happens. How adaptable we are as humans. But also how quickly the extraordinary things can become mundane to us. So far there are some things which have not become mundane for me here. They have not lost their wonder - floating on the Dead Sea (which left my mother in giggles!), haggling in the Old City, the hills overlooking the Galilee. As a believer in Christ there are days when I wonder if even the Holy land could become the everyday for me. I fear that perhaps like a new believer would, Christ becomes more real daily, but then as time goes on, He fades into my life again as "just another part of life." I fear His demise into my mundane and pray that it wouldnt be so. I pray for those who are on this journey with us - those who want to journey to Israel and experience a little adventure vicariously (you know who you are!) and those on a journey of faith - I pray that Christ does not fade, that he comes into clearer focus. That God as Man would never be ho-hum, that God dying for us in His mercy would never be mundane. Perhaps we need to spend time with some "visitors" to the faith, some new-comers to Christ in order to avoid this. I dont really know the solution but I know the challenge. May life...and our God be new every morning to us!