David, our director, announced late the previous week we would put on a talent show with the express purpose of entertaining him. At this risk of him reading this, I will say my reaction was why now? After weeks of fending for ourselves with solving problems suddenly we were being required to have mandatory fun. <<insert eye roll>>
More on that later.
I washed pottery.
I labeled pottery.
I rotated pottery.
I entered photos of pottery into OCHRE.
This week I added:
I photographed small finds.
Small finds are not pottery. They are loom weights, beads, figurines, and other items that do not fit into their own category. There is probably a slightly different definition, but this will do.
Each had to be photographed on a black or white background with a micro lens, tripod, and measurement meter. It felt complicated until Sandy reminded me the photographs are only for record keeping in case something happens to Gunnar's car as he transports them to Ben Gurian University. If they are deemed museum quality, then they will be photographed by professionals with the proper lighting and all. Just relax and do as many as possible.
That Tuesday was the only day I felt sick. Best as I can surmise, I ate some yogurt that disagreed with me and spent the rest of the day toggling between my bed and the bathroom. Fortunately they were only 30 steps away from my work site and people were understanding when they saw my green face.
That evening Liz's group gathered under the starts in the amphitheater to reflect upon our month, and to eat some Pillsbury bakery goodies (I brought the box home as proof).
We discussed our highlights. Mine was getting to know people from different cultures and shattering stereotypes through pottery washing. I also enjoyed seeing the sherds come to life -- from nondescript earthy colors to vivid reds and browns and looking like individual colors with just some water added to them.
Others said how trans-formative the month has been. I wonder if in hindsight I'll be able to say the same, or if I didn't allow Israel to seep into my soul.
We talked about how more women are entering the field and moving through the ranks, thanks to people like David and Gunnar who welcome working with women and supporting them in their careers. That wasn't always the case. This group had a 2:1 female to male volunteer ratio, and a 5:1 female to male ratio with section supervisors. That is rare.
Our age span ranged from 18 (Maddie) to 71 (Dave). It is the most ethnically, racially, and religiously diverse group she can ever remember. We had at least one Mormon, Buddhist, secular Jew, Presbyterian, Evangelist, and Jehovah's Witness and lived together in harmony. We are a smart group, well-educated, and well-traveled. We were hard-working from day one and never hit the low points most dig groups hit.
Liz saw no problems with slackers in the group. She only saw the best in us. Too late for Julie and I to point out the slackers we saw staying back at the house. She praised us for getting out of our comfort zones for a few weeks. A sentiment my friend Nancy made when I really, really, really wanted to go home after the first week.
Liz did say the importance of our site has not been properly conveyed. It will become the leading site exploring the history of pottery in Northern Israel. If any of it makes it way to a museum, there is a decent chance it will have my hand-written number on it.
It is the combination of the ancient (what we are digging) and the modern (the people) that makes the dig special for her. This was her favorite group (bet she says that every time, and means it every time).
Later Revital said Julie and I were the best helpers she has ever had because she doesn't like to tell people what to do. We would be shown what had to be done and jumped in to do it without being told in the future. As a result, a lot got done. She was able to go home a few days after us.
Three days to go.
On Wednesday we had five people staying back at the house. Most arrived around 6 am, which is better than earlier in the dig when they were arriving at 10 am. They mostly worked with Marco sorting soil -- or playing "needle in the haystack."
A group photo was taken (thanks, Alex).
I spent most of Wednesday updating OCHRE to make up for losing so much time the day before with tummy issues.
We had our final lecture. Leann and Jon gave a fascinating presentation about collective memory conversations. "We are storytelling, how we tell the stories is important." Controlling memory is power -- a lesson I never tire of hearing.
Together they are working on four big projects:
1) Updating Jon's work at Hollins University in Virginia
2) Historic sites on Wagon Road
3) Slavery
4) Israel and the West Bank including the Kibbutz, Jerusalem, and Tel Aviv (sounds like multiple projects)
In March 2018 they conducted a week-long field school at Hollins while classes were still taking place. This is how Haley and Pria learned about the dig and decided to join this summer. It was all-women led. Even though it was in Virginia, it snowed on the first day. They had a blast and want to go back to learn more about the enslaved population at Hollins. It is part of the slavery, race, and memory project at Wake Forest University. Their website went live a week earlier.
Their lecture captured so much more and probably deserves its own post, but as I am nearing the end of blogging, and still want to add pictures to the past 30 posts, this will have to do.
Dig Day 19 was fun for Julie, Tati, and I because we were brought back to the dig site. For me it was the first time since I left nearly 3 weeks earlier. It was a chance to study their progress, but mostly a chance for closure for myself. I realized by working at the house, I had the better end of the deal. More about that in my post on takeaways. I think this does merit its own post.
We stayed for only 90 minutes, then returned with David as he picked up second breakfast. We were covered in dirt as we ate breakfast in the Guest House.
After a shower, I returned to the routine of OCHRE and labeling pottery.
At noon we had a party for Ahlham and Fahrer. All tried not to cry. We were not
I headed into Akko for the last time. I wanted to buy a menorah, but was told I really wanted a Hanukkiah. The former is used in temples, the latter as part of the Hanukkah celebration. Hanukkiah it was. As I was trying to use up shekels, I didn't even haggle the price. I laid out what I wanted to spend (leaving my credit card and the rest of my shekels in the hotel) and bought the one that spoke to me the most.
Sofia and took pictures of small finds during pottery washing. She took a class in photography and is very good. In many ways I helped her, but I also got things set up and taken apart and kept the ball moving. We were a good team. Too bad it took almost until the end to work out a system for photography. I felt bad they had more to photograph after we went home.
I found a stone in the Kibbutz to put on my friend Carin's grave. The intention was to place a stone from the dig site, but from the Kibbutz made more sense. I found one near the labyrinth I walked most nights near what looked like a cemetery to me. Once school starts I'll find time to visit her grave.
Friday was a whirlwind of activity as we tried to wrap up as much as possible, while still having to pack and say our good-byes. I returned to the Baha'i Garden for a last visit. It was my
I took a few sherds home for show and tell. Hoping to tell the Bridge kids about my experiences.
We were there for so long, yet there were so many people I did not get to know. Many whose names I did not learn. It was an odd experience of having unlimited time that was somehow too short in the end. I know that probably does not make any sense.
An hour before our last dinner Alex asked me for some pictures from at the house. He generously included many of them in his slide show, even though most people had no idea who some of our helpers were. It meant a lot to me.
At the talent show Julie and I were back up singers for Haley, who sang a spoof on Arabian Nights from Aladdin that was spot on.
Had I thought of it sooner, I would have written a spoof of 9 to 5 for Julie and I to perform. Working 4 to 2, what a way to not make a living... I didn't think I could do the tone right given my hard feelings. The sections picked on the leaders, and (for the most part) not on the volunteers. Tiny Thomas was called out for missing six dig days, and at least four pottery washing sessions. Tall Thomas was called out for missing one session, which was a bit unfair but was meant to soften the blow for Tiny Thomas.
One site highlighted all the ailments (including a snake bite and smashed hand) their square endured.
The square excavating the French chapel led by a German section leader did a great section standing on a chair (their section went down the furthest) talking about "You know you are from the German French Square when...." It was perfect.
It was time for more good-byes. Soon there would be hellos.
The following morning we had a civilized breakfast in the main cafeteria and boarded the bus 10 minutes early for the airport. Tiny Thomas, in particular, needed every minute. Thankfully we all ended up on our 12-hour flight to Newark.
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