Coffee and Kindness

           The other day my grandparents and I were supposed to meet some friends for lunch at a conference center about 30minutes away from our house. I have mentioned before how inefficient and convoluted driving directions are here. It was no different in this situation. About three different people gave me vague directions to this conference center. They all insisted that it would be easy to find; there was a huge sign and a prominent gate. I wasn’t too worried about finding the place.

            We still left our house about an hour before we had to be at the conference center—just in case we did get lost. Off we went, winding through the narrow, bumpy streets of Bethlehem. As we made our assent I began to look for the landmarks and signs that our friends described to us. I followed their directions exactly, but I couldn’t find the conference center. We drove up and down the street that we thought the building would be on a few times until we decided to ask for assistance.

            I pulled over in front of a little supermarket, walked inside and asked the friendly woman at the counter for directions to the conference center. She knew exactly what I was talking about and pointed me in the direction I had come from. So, I hopped back in the car. We all carefully examined our surroundings and looked for any sign of life—cars, people, commotion. As I slowly drove down the street, I saw a large building with a gate surrounding it. As I approached the property, I saw that the large gate was opened and several cars were parked in front of the impressive, picturesque building. This could totally be it—there are cars and a huge gate! So, I pulled into the driveway and parked near the other cars. We didn’t hear or see anyone. So, I decided to run in and ask where we could find the group we were looking for (maybe they were in the back, the weather was deliciously sunny).

           As I climbed the massive stone steps, I saw beautiful landscaping and admired the breathtaking view of the Palestinian countryside. I walked up to two pretty glass doors and tried one of them. It swung open easily so I stepped inside. As I looked around, I quickly realized that this was not a conference center. I was standing awkwardly in an empty foyer, peering into an impressive living room. The TV was on and I suddenly heard a woman’s voice yell from somewhere in the house, “mein??” (who is it??). For some reason, I didn’t run out of the house. I think I was in shock—I just walked into a stranger’s house. She kept repeating herself as I tried to yell back in broken Arabic that I was looking for a conference center in the area.

            As she came down the breathtaking wooden staircase, this adorable woman’s face lit up. She rushed over to me and somehow we communicated successfully. She told me that she could show me where the conference center was. So, she guided me back out of her house and down the long driveway to the street. There she pointed in the direction of the conference center and gave me directions in Arabic (which sounded similar to the directions everyone else had given me—maybe we didn’t drive far enough). I thanked her and started back to the car.

            This cute little woman followed me back to the car and insisted, as any respectable Arab hostess would, that I stay for coffee. This woman was so sweet and happy. I couldn’t refuse. So, I leaned through the open car window to tell grandma and grandpa that we were going to stay for coffee. After wonderful hospitality, smiles, a few cups of coffee, broken English and Arabic, we thanked our hostess and began to leave. She made us wait and yelled to someone upstairs. An attractive young man who looked like he was forcibly dragged out of bed sauntered down the stairs and sat with us in the living room. He spoke a little English and said that he would drive with us to the conference center to ensure that we wouldn’t get lost. So, we followed in our car as he drove his nice BMW down the street. Thanks to this lovely family, we made it to our meeting on time and fully caffeinated. I am constantly impressed by the generosity and hospitality of people here. It challenges me to be more welcoming to others—even when it is not convenient or expected.