Saturday in Nahalal

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This weekend I opted to stay at Nahalal rather than join the volunteers touring in the Northern Galilee. I’ve been to the places they are visiting at least once before, and I wanted the chance to catch up on rest and work.
Currently, I am enjoying a free iced coffee at Nahalal’s café stand. They treated everyone on the excavation to a free drink, a brilliant marketing strategy I must say… because they serve good coffee, and most places in Israel offer only instant coffee!
The past week went quite well, starting out rough but improving as we went. My square had quite a bit of modern architecture which we had to excavate and record, which was good practice in excavating and recording, and also quite interesting to reconstruct modern history just like we would ancient history. However, the past two days we pic axed through it all, and will hopefully come down on Middle Bronze material before the end of next week when the half-term volunteers leave. It is nice to start getting some depth in my area!

Pottery Reading at the compound, when the
professionals analyze and date the pottery.
I am thankful to be here, and to be on staff. I know it is pushing me not only to practice and pay attention to excavation methods, but also is excellent practice in supervising and leading people. It is good experience, but a month seems like a long time left to be here! I can feel myself starting to be homesick already, which isn’t all bad, since it usually makes me more dependent on God, and causes me to be more diligent with devotions. This past week I have been encouraged by a verse in Isaiah which says “I, I am he who comforts you; who are you that you are afraid of man who dies, of the son of man who is made like grass, and have forgotten the LORD your maker, who stretched out the heavens and laid the foundations of the earth” Isaiah 51:12-13a

As I’ve been trying to do well with supervising, flying the drone, and recording information from my square, that verse has been a reminder that earthly achievements have no lasting value, and my life and my work should be for Christ, so that "with full courage, now as always Christ will be honored in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me to live is Christ and to die is gain." Phillipians 1:19-20  
The same goats and shepherd that came across the Tel
each day last year are still making the same run :)
Me by my square, after we took out the
modern stuff
Taking down the shade cloth for drone photos
the next day

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