So I have this friend Ali…
Total side-note. I use the term “friend” here loosely. Basically it means that when I get a minute, I read her blog, occasionally harass her via email and I met her in person. Once. But, she’s totally and completely rad, so I am putting her in the “friend” file.
Anyway, back to my friend Ali. She’s a master at simple beauty and true clarity. Each year she selects one word to focus on for the ENTIRE year.
You can read more about that here.
She even offers a year-long online workshop to encourage reflection and action. If that piques your curiosity even a bit, you really, really should go join in. Did I mention that Ali is amazing?
She recently posted about her word for 2014 and it’s got me thinking about my own word.
I have to be honest…I haven’t settled on one, but here’s what I know. The words that come to me are all similar in nature…Simplify, Still, Pause.
I’ve been thinking about those words a lot this holiday season and I have to admit, they are already shaping my life.
We’ve scaled back a little this year. In a good way. And, we’re creating memories, not just acquiring stuff. So when my other friend Rachael (whom I totally adore and admire) invited us to attend a night at The Leonardo to see the Dead Sea Scrolls exhibit, I jumped at the chance.
After all, this exhibit will only 10 U.S. cities (we’re so lucky!).
Some of you might have experienced the five photo exhibit mini tour I shared on Instagram yesterday, but I thought I’d share a bit more of the memories made, here on the blog.
We have yet to visit the local light displays and our Christmas shopping is not done, but we trekked through the snow to meet my parents at the museum and experienced the most memorable holiday activity we will undertake this year.
What an opportunity for us to talk about the life of Christ and the true meaning of Christmas…
The exhibit includes more than 500 objects and 20 extremely rare scroll fragments. It represents the largest collection of artifacts from biblical to Islamic periods ever to tour outside of Israel.
It’s incredible that the scrolls, which were wrapped in fabric and stored in jars survived for more than 2000 years.
The sacred scrolls are so special that even most scholars did not have access to them until the 90’s.
The exhibition will include fragments from the biblical books of Deuteronomy, Psalms, Exodus, Isaiah, and a variety of others. One of the scrolls even talks about a great treasure that was stored in the Temple of Jerusalem – a treasure that has never been found!
The exhibit includes a two-ton stone from Jerusalem’s Western Wall. The kids were able to write their own prayer and tuck it into the stone. They were so very excited to learn that it would eventually be taken to the Wailing Wall in Jerusalem, where it will be placed with all of the other notes to God.
Hope you enjoyed this little mini tour. I am interested in what you’re doing to create memories this holiday season…
And, if you happen to live in Utah? DO NOT MISS this once in a lifetime opportunity.
The exhibition is on display at The Leonardo, 209 East 500 South, Salt Lake City. It is open daily (10 a.m. until 5 p.m. Sunday – Wednesday, and 10 a.m. until 10 p.m. Thursday – Saturday) and requires special timed tickets. Advance reservations are encouraged. Ticket purchases can be made through The Leonardo’s website, or in person. For more information about ticket prices and group packages, visit http://www.theleonardo.org.
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