Jurish

We left Rosh Ha- Ayin at 14:15, traveling in the direction of Jurish.  At Za’tara Junction, we saw two border patrolmen who stood at the hitchhiking stop going in the direction of Ramallah.  We arrived at Jurish at 15:00.

At the Center in Jurish, young women started to arrive and we began our language club activities with a larger group than usual.  During the first part of the activity I guided them in English. I asked the young women who were at our previous meeting, to speak about the article that Shosh had brought about the Al-Midan Theater.  S. volunteered to speak and remembered the details.  The young women who participated in the activity expressed interest in the topic. 

Afterward, we learned the new song that I brought, “Yellow Submarine,” by the much-loved group, the Beatle.We read the text and the young women began to giggle at the simple/childish and creative sentences of Paul McCartney and John Lennon.  There was no need to heavily analyze the words, only to translate them to the young women who didn’t understand the text. 

We listened to the recording on YouTube and afterward we learned the song. The young women immediately grasped the melody.We sang and I glanced at the young women whose faces expressed so much pleasure from the words and from the rhythm of the song.  Afterward we moved on to sing other Beatle songs that we had learned in previous meetings, “Imagine” and “Yesterday.”

When we finished singing, we applied ourselves to the lesson in Hebrew/Arabic. I greeted them with Salam ah-LAY-kum (Hello) and they answered me ah-LAY-kum Salam.  Afterward, we moved to Hebrew, Shalom Aleihem (Hello) and they responded Aleihem Shalom.

Again I woke up our friend, Hamudi the teddy bear, from his sleep and greeted him in Arabic with sah-Bah el hir(Good Morning) and the young women answered with joy, sah-BAH el noor.(response to Good Morning.)

I turned to the young women and said in Hebrew, Boker tov (Good Morning)and they immediately responded enthusiastically to me, Boker Or (response to Good Morning).

I could see on their faces how happy they were that they remembered the words and expressions from last week.

I turned to each one of them and asked:  Ma shlomeh?(How are you?) and they remembered to say Shlomi tov (I am well).  I added that they could also respond, Tov, without the shlomi.They also remembered to respond, Ka-ha Ka-ha (so-so).

Suddenly one of the young women asked me in English, “What does it mean?”  She told me that she encountered a soldier who answered, Ka-ha Ka-hato one of the members of her family who asked the soldier a question.  I explained to her what the meaning was.

I asked Hamudi the teddy bear, Ma shlomha? (How are you?), in masculine form, and Hamudi “answers” Shlomi ra (I feel bad.) Ani holeh (I am sick).  In Arabic:  Ana ma-rid.  He explained that he had a stomach ache.  We are looking for a rofah (doctor, feminine form) in the kahal (community).  I turned to the young women and asked each one of them At rofah? (Are you a doctor?) Each one of them answered me, Lo, ani talmida (No, I am a student). In the end, it was clear that I was the rofah/doctora.  For the sake of drama, I asked Hamudi, in Hebrew, Ma kara? (What happened?) The young women taught me in Arabic, Shoos ar?  Hamudi answers in Hebrew, Koevet li ha beten (My stomach hurts);  in Arabic, To-alem Mah ee-da.  I instructed Hamudi not to eat. In Arabic, Mitukalish. Only drink, I said. In Arabic, Ish ra-av. After this we ended the visit to the rofah.

Again I presented them with a flower, as I had in the previous lesson, and each one of the young women approached another and said with a smile, “Perah bishvileh” (A flower for you.)  In Arabic, I said, Warda elek.

We left Jurish at 16:45.  At Harus Junction, we saw an army jeep among the trees. We arrived at Rosh ha-Ayin at 17:30.