Gifts from Israel

My mother decided to vacation in Israel this year. It isn't the location I would have chosen, in fact I mentioned that Montana is quite nice this time of year; however, she was determined to visit Israel. She had also intended to extend the trip to Egypt until the travel company canceled that leg of the trip for her. Of course the first day she was there a bus blew up on a public street. Not too comforting but the probability of Mom being in that exact spot at that particular time were slim so I wasn't too worried. There is no option for international calling on the type of phone service she subscribes to so I logged onto CNN at work until they had more information.

As it turned out she had a lovely time, arriving home safe and sound. Soon a package arrived, a little somthing for Taylor's Easter, plus a few gifts from her trip for both our household and my daughter, Becky's. Our son, Sean, lives in Seattle and received his gift separately; however, it was his name in Hebrew, crafted from silver, on a necklace.

For our home: A Home Blessing kit which contains a Jerusalem Stone, candles, holy water from the Jordan River, holy soil from Jerusalem, olive oil from Bethlehem, holy incense from Jerusalem, a copy of an ancient icon and a cross of olive wood.

For me: a silver cross and an aromatic rosary, For Tom: a rosary and keychain, For Taylor: a olive wood cross necklace, For Becky: a home blessing kit, saints necklace with earrings and a cross.

She also sent a cd with 165 photos which show a beautiful landscape, breathtaking churches, floating in the dead sea, and lovely seascapes. It is a beautiful area.

I'll have to make an appointment to get our gifts blessed. Hopefully someone will be able to tell me what scent my rosary is. The wooden beads are very red and the scent is strong. If you have any ideas, let me know.

Click once or twice on the photo to enlarge.