Unexpectedly during a group meditation, I heard The Our Father in original Aramaic, and it resonated in my body like a deep, physical blessing. I wondered, is this is how it sounded from Jesus’s lips 2,000 years ago? An English translation was given that barely resembled The Lord’s Prayer we know today. I had to […]
In Cambodia, David and I stand among teeming crowds to watch the sun rise over Angkor Wat, a 12th century temple. It’s 6:00 a.m. and already onlookers line the edges of a moat filled with blooming waterlillies. I hear a woman say, “I thought if I came early, I’d have the place to myself” and […]
The Grand Bazaar in Istanbul, Turkey is the size of four soccer fields, a shopper’s Nirvana packed to its mosaic rafters with pashminas, pottery, exotic lanterns, evil eye keychains, and rugs, rugs, rugs. Every day about 250,000 shoppers teem through its corridors and tunnels. While there, the lack of female salespeople surprised me. The beginnings […]
David and I grieve for the victims and their families in the unspeakable tragedy in Ankara. Why those rallying for peace were victims of twin bombings is bewildering and heartbreaking. Here in Istanbul our Turkish guide, Cihan, arrived this morning, full of sorrow, preoccupied and worried. Our day of tourism began on a mournful note. […]
October 10, 2015. After an 11 hour flight from Boston, we arrive at Ataturk Airport in Istanbul. A young man in a suit and tie holds up a sign, “David Standring.” In a foreign country, it’s sure nice to have someone know your name. His name is Wassim, and he navigates us through the crowds, […]