Back in Beirut

I'm here.

Some people are upset by that. A couple people called to try to have me rethink the decision. But I know it's the right one. I was praying that God would make everything clear--open the doors, close the doors. And he miraculously opened the doors, with a great job, with a great package, with a really nice hook up in Hamra.

And I still have my concerns; I know the situation is not exactly stable. Yes, anything can happen.

But as Corrie Ten Boom said, "There's no safer place to be than at the center of God's will." And God has been doing all kinds of things. I know this is where I'm supposed to be.

As you can see, I haven't been on the computer since I've gotten here. Thank God. I directly went up to Aley and spent the weekend with my friends. It was really amazing to walk in the souk and surprise the few people who didn't know I was coming back.

It brought tears to our eyes. Really. It means a lot--my coming back, any of the foreigners coming back--like we believe in this place, we're not abandoning it. We're going to be a part of rebuilding, that Lebanon has a good future.

I took the bus from Aley to Cola, through the Dahiye. But the part I went through, I couldn't really see that much damage. And I haven't gone to the beach yet either. But I have a friend from the Dahiye who's going to show me around. Everyone says I must be accompanied. And I'll be going to the beach this weekend.

In some ways, it feels. . . normal. But eveyone has really sad stories. Lots of stories, about being freaked out, about having to leave.

But the South is beyond disgusting. They cluster bombed really low to the ground, and left all these explosives that haven't exploded yet that look like little toys. A reporter working in Iraq (my new boss's daughter) said that the destruction in the South is the worst she's ever seen.

And the beach--the oil spill--is beyond disgusting. They couldn't start cleaning it up at the beginning because they were still bombing. So coming in weeks later to start is too late. And for some reason they haven't brought that state-of-the-art bacteria stuff that eats the oil.

But I haven't seen it yet.

I've been doing orientation with the new job and seeing my friends. I'm sooooooo happy to be back. I went clubbing on Monot on Saturday night. My new apartment in Hamra is in an amazing location. I have a guest bed in the living room. So you should come! You are most welcome!! It's really a beautiful place. One friend said he's thinking about coming over the Christmas break.