After their visit in June, we invited my parents to write something about their trip for the blog. The following comes from my mom, Theresa Luby, a longtime Hospice chaplain, proud member of the Daughters of Abraham and all-around inspiration.
"If enlightenment is not where you are standing, where will you look?"
I thought I might look in Morocco. Thanks to Pete & Britt, I was able to walk in their shoes ( or at least in the shoes they bought for me in the souk) and experience some of the wonders of Morocco, the Moroccan people and a culture of hospitality.
About the shoes. If you saw their earlier pictures of Dar Luby, you'll understand why there are three different kinds of shoes. First, there are outdoor shoes (the roads are dirt, unpaved and shared with donkeys, chickens, dogs, & very mangy looking cats etc.) Those shoes are taken off as you enter the living space, where you slip into traditional Moroccan leather shoes. Pete & Britt made gifts of these shoes to us when they welcomed Dan & me to their home.
When it's time to make your "toilet" you slip into something a little more rubber and washable with non-slip soles (the perfect little number for a Turkish toilet). If the family you are visiting has carpets, you might just go barefoot in their home.
In a recent Sunday Gospel I heard: "Into whatever house you enter, first say: 'Peace to this household.' If a peaceful person lives there, your peace will rest on him; but if not, it will return to you...Stay in the same house and eat and drink what is offered to you..." Life in Morocco is closer to the world of the Bible than to 21st century North America. Every where we went in Amizmiz, people greeted us: "Salaam Walaikum," " Peace be upon you." Every household we visited offered us food and drink in delicious & splendid abundance. Like Abraham & Sarah who served three guests in the desert or Martha busying herself with hospitality for Jesus and her other guests, Pete & Britt's friends treated us like honored guests.
Their beautiful host mother & her handsome son served us traditional mint tea, which was followed by Moroccan chicken tagine with couscous & vegetables. After the meal they led us to another salon with couches. They showed us with pride the wedding DVD of a nephew. In a Moroccan wedding, the bride changes her clothes seven times during the event. (Can you imagine? She has to "Say 'Yes' to the Dress" not once, but seven times!) After all that food and all that wedding video, we were already three hours into our visit when sleep overtook us. We felt terribly rude falling asleep, but our hosts seemed to take it as a given that we would rest up for more food and socializing. With the wedding DVD as inspiration, our hostess gave Britt & me henna hand tattoos. After naps, we were served a delicious coffee, cakes, and cookies. We rolled out of their gracious, humble home full and happy, six hours later.
When we first arrived in Morocco, Peter & Britt taught us some useful phrases that Dan & I could use to navigate the social situations we would find ourselves in. Little did I realize that those phrases would help me when I got back home in Texas. I went 5,212 (or so) miles to be able to connect with my next hospice patient. She is a teacher from Iraq who fell ill while she was visiting her daughter in Texas. The phrase that she uses most often is: "Hamdu-l' Allah," "Thanks be to God." She is a person of great faith and accepts her illness as the will of God.
When I introduced myself to her daughter, I had to ask her to please repeat her name for me. Even though we were speaking English, her Mother speaking through the Arabic translator, told me that when her daughter was born she wanted to bless God. In Morocco, we had heard the phrase, "Bismillah" every time we sat down to eat, or upon beginning any new endeavor. It is often translated as "In the Name of God." Her daughter's name, "Basmal" comes from that phrase, "in gratitude for God's gift."
Being with Britt & Pete is a blessing anywhere, but in Morocco, their graciousness and goodness shine more thoroughly. It was a wonderful, unique experience. This week a friend shared a poem, given to her by her 94 year old mother-in-law that begins:
"I am the place where God shines through,
For he and I are one, not two."
May it be so. Bismillah.
"If enlightenment is not where you are standing, where will you look?"
I thought I might look in Morocco. Thanks to Pete & Britt, I was able to walk in their shoes ( or at least in the shoes they bought for me in the souk) and experience some of the wonders of Morocco, the Moroccan people and a culture of hospitality.
About the shoes. If you saw their earlier pictures of Dar Luby, you'll understand why there are three different kinds of shoes. First, there are outdoor shoes (the roads are dirt, unpaved and shared with donkeys, chickens, dogs, & very mangy looking cats etc.) Those shoes are taken off as you enter the living space, where you slip into traditional Moroccan leather shoes. Pete & Britt made gifts of these shoes to us when they welcomed Dan & me to their home.
When it's time to make your "toilet" you slip into something a little more rubber and washable with non-slip soles (the perfect little number for a Turkish toilet). If the family you are visiting has carpets, you might just go barefoot in their home.
In a recent Sunday Gospel I heard: "Into whatever house you enter, first say: 'Peace to this household.' If a peaceful person lives there, your peace will rest on him; but if not, it will return to you...Stay in the same house and eat and drink what is offered to you..." Life in Morocco is closer to the world of the Bible than to 21st century North America. Every where we went in Amizmiz, people greeted us: "Salaam Walaikum," " Peace be upon you." Every household we visited offered us food and drink in delicious & splendid abundance. Like Abraham & Sarah who served three guests in the desert or Martha busying herself with hospitality for Jesus and her other guests, Pete & Britt's friends treated us like honored guests.
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| Traditional kas-krut (snack time) |
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| A plate of couscous |
Their beautiful host mother & her handsome son served us traditional mint tea, which was followed by Moroccan chicken tagine with couscous & vegetables. After the meal they led us to another salon with couches. They showed us with pride the wedding DVD of a nephew. In a Moroccan wedding, the bride changes her clothes seven times during the event. (Can you imagine? She has to "Say 'Yes' to the Dress" not once, but seven times!) After all that food and all that wedding video, we were already three hours into our visit when sleep overtook us. We felt terribly rude falling asleep, but our hosts seemed to take it as a given that we would rest up for more food and socializing. With the wedding DVD as inspiration, our hostess gave Britt & me henna hand tattoos. After naps, we were served a delicious coffee, cakes, and cookies. We rolled out of their gracious, humble home full and happy, six hours later.
When we first arrived in Morocco, Peter & Britt taught us some useful phrases that Dan & I could use to navigate the social situations we would find ourselves in. Little did I realize that those phrases would help me when I got back home in Texas. I went 5,212 (or so) miles to be able to connect with my next hospice patient. She is a teacher from Iraq who fell ill while she was visiting her daughter in Texas. The phrase that she uses most often is: "Hamdu-l' Allah," "Thanks be to God." She is a person of great faith and accepts her illness as the will of God.
When I introduced myself to her daughter, I had to ask her to please repeat her name for me. Even though we were speaking English, her Mother speaking through the Arabic translator, told me that when her daughter was born she wanted to bless God. In Morocco, we had heard the phrase, "Bismillah" every time we sat down to eat, or upon beginning any new endeavor. It is often translated as "In the Name of God." Her daughter's name, "Basmal" comes from that phrase, "in gratitude for God's gift."
Being with Britt & Pete is a blessing anywhere, but in Morocco, their graciousness and goodness shine more thoroughly. It was a wonderful, unique experience. This week a friend shared a poem, given to her by her 94 year old mother-in-law that begins:
"I am the place where God shines through,
For he and I are one, not two."
May it be so. Bismillah.
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| Visiting English class |
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| Making msemen |
I'm just another insanely lucky guy married to a beautiful woman with creative heart with a poet's skill.
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