June 22, 2002

With Elizabeth’s family.

Elizabeth's mom brought a group of her friends and neighbors over for a party tonight. A diverse group including her co-worker coming from the youth boxing center he runs in his spare time, a neighbor teaching in the African-American Studies Department at Texas Tech University, a high school classmate of Elizabeth's who had left a career of designing and making pet clothes and recently moved back to town. The highlight was the ninety-four year-old neighbor who came over wearing the cross we gave her last year - a gift from our Melkite friend in Zababdeh.

People were very curious to find out about the political situation, but also about what daily life is like. As we described what the houses like, what the food tastes like, what the family situation is like, a Mexican-American friend commented how similar it sounded to what he remembered as a child growing up in a Texas border town. Cultures are often not as distant as they may seem.