Friday, January 1, 2016

2015 Holiday Newsletter

Boldog Újévet kívánok minden kedves ismerösömnek!

Below is my Christmas letter (which has turned into a New Years letter...) and a summary of the events of the past year. If you already received this by email, I apologize for the typos! I suppose that is what happens when I edit something late at night. :) I think I caught all of them.

Be sure to check back soon for my January newsletter!

Peace and love,
Aliyah




Greetings! December 2015


Peace and love to you during this holiday season! I hope this letter finds you with moments of joy as you reflect on your holiday traditions and on the light that has, once again, come into the world. You are in my heart often and I thank you for any thoughts and prayers you have sent my way during the last year.


I have been taken on quite a journey this year! I began the year with a trip to Israel and Palestine with 11 other young adults. The journey, called an alternative pilgrimage, was organized by the ELCA (Evangelical Lutheran Church in America) campaign ‘Peace Not Walls’ and was one of eight trips during 2015. We began this journey with the goals of accompaniment, advocacy, and awareness-raising, but our experience transcended anything we could have imagined. We toured the holy sites, including the Jordan River, the Sea of Galilee, the believed ascension, birth, and crucifixion sites, Bethlehem and the beautiful Old City Jerusalem.
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Group photo at the Jordan River (minus Jacob)
We also visited sites in the West Bank and gained first-hand experiences of the current conflict in this area of the world. Most importantly, we met with both Israelis and Palestinians and engaged in conversations with them. We heard about their lives, their joys, and their challenges as human beings living in an area of constant turmoil. We were met with incredible hospitality as we were invited into a Palestinian home in Aida Refugee Camp to cook and share a meal together. It was an incredible experience, to say the least, and I am grateful for the relationships that emerged from this ten day adventure. I can easily say these relationships have changed my life for the better. I would be thrilled to share more about my time there, especially now that I have had more time to process.


Upon my return, I quickly began what would be, unbeknownst to me, my final semester teaching at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse. During the month of February, I quickly and randomly applied for a program called Young Adults in Global Mission (YAGM). In fact, this decision was made the day before the deadline and came after talking with the YAGM volunteers in the Holy Land. I went through the application process and in April, I was invited to join 75 other young adults for a weekend of discernment and live interviews in Chicago. I had been invited to interview for two countries: United Kingdom and Hungary, but for various reasons, I was very uncertain about going. Luckily, a member of my support system encouraged me to go, if only to take some moments away from the stressors of the spring semester of academia. I spent the weekend in conversations, worship, informational sessions, and interviews, and joined with others in the tough process of discernment. On Sunday morning, I received a call inviting me to spend a year in Hungary with the program, and after a week of conversations with God and those close to me, I discerned it was where I was being called for the next year of my life. I said goodbye to my job and students at the university, and began to find myself in a very tough transitional time. The summer was filled with countless “see you laters” but amongst those, I felt an incredible amount of support from my communities in La Crosse/Onalaska and was reminded of the amazing friendships that I have created over the last two years.


This also meant saying “see you later” to my adorable new nephew, Lincoln. He was born in March and is healthy and growing every day. In the photo on the next page, he is about 5 months old. Shannon and Brett also have a little girl on the way and she is due in May! But I digress… anyway...
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My family (minus Tyler and Emily), and Karyn and Bridget (from my family at 
First Lutheran) came to send me off for
my year of service with YAGM.
In August, I packed my bags, said goodbye to my 
“sending team” and flew to Chicago for a week of 
orientation with the other young adults and members 
of the global mission team. We spent the week 
preparing for our year of service together, and a 
week later, we said our goodbyes with hugs, prayers, 
and long flights ahead of us. We, as young adults, 
are currently living in 11 different countries around 
the world (7 of us in Hungary), and are serving in 
our communities with our unique gifts. This year of 
service is a unique opportunity for each of us to 
build relationships with communities different than our 
own through a model of accompaniment. We are constantly challenged by the question: What does accompaniment look like? Along with that question, 
we also witness how we are being served and loved  
by our communities.
The program offers an opportunity for us to see that accompaniment is about the relationships we create by being vulnerable and willing to rely on those around us. It is about walking with our communities in the extraordinary and the ordinary moments. It is about opening our hearts and allowing ourselves to be loved by people we did not know five months ago. And it is about finding God in the seemingly unimportant moments of our daily lives. There is beauty in the ordinary, and the feeling of gratitude is overwhelmingly strong.


I currently live in Békéscsaba, a town of approximately 60,000 people in southeastern Hungary (about 25 km from the Romanian border). Though my schedule is quite flexible, I spend my time engaging in conversations with students learning English, working with the choir at the secondary school, singing with two choirs, and teaching voice lessons for adults and students at the school. I had know idea I would be using my gifts in music to such an extent! I have been constantly surprised at the relationships I have been able to build through the gift of music.
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Kistemplom (left), Nagytemplom (right)
The small and large Lutheran Churches in the city center of Békéscsaba
As my journey in Hungary continues into the next year, I am certain the God will continue to open my heart to Him and to this community in Békéscsaba. I would love to share more of my experiences with you. For reflections and stories about my year in Hungary, go to my blog: www.calledbythespirit.blogspot.com. If you have Facebook, be sure to check out my page for updates and new photos.
As your journey continues,
may you acknowledge the light from within
as you allow yourself to be guided
into the unknown places of your heart.
Step away from fear.
Brace yourself with love.
Trust that you are where you need to be.
And lest you forget,
remember that you are loved.

May peace and love walk with you,

Aliyah