Faith versus Freaking Out

I sometimes feel like I'm floating between two different dimensions here: having faith in HaShma that everything will work out, and freaking out (I do exaggerate sometimes, by "freaking out" I mean general worrying).

This morning, I went to the Misrad Hapnim in Nazareth. I brought all of my previous documents, plus a letter from my NGO saying that I am volunteering there and live at such-and-such residence. I didn't quite believe it when the first employee I spoke with told me to go into the private office of another employee, a lady who - fluent in English, Hebrew, and Arabic - spent probably an hour (it felt longer) helping me to explain to her supervisor why I needed to extend my visa.

Maybe it was because I had all the right documents this time, but I can't express how relieved I felt that someone was actually listening and not waving me away, as has usually been my experience at the Misrad Hapnim, and then walking away frustrated and not sure if they fully understood my English.

Today I also experienced a mini shock. I discovered that I had misunderstood the purpose of the grant proposal I was writing (I'd go into the details of the project idea, but it would take too long here). My co-worker, the one who curses a lot and is pretty hilarious, called our boss and clarified with him. At first I was kind of worried like, am I in trouble?

But then I thought no, I'm glad this is getting resolved now, as opposed to later when I might have finished writing the proposal and would've had to change the entire thing.

My newest co-worker, a woman from Canada who replaced the guy that left, made me feel better when she told me that she thought I had handled the situation well. She told me I had seemed pretty calm and open to the criticism, and that she thought most people wouldn't have received the news as relaxed as I had.

I'm glad to know I looked relaxed, lol, cuz I was a bit frazzled.

So, tomorrow, I have to revise what I've written so far, but on the other hand, at least I discovered this issue early on.

I will really have to become a sharp listener during meetings and take very detailed notes. My boss doesn't write anything down and he told us last week, "Always write stuff down when you're with me!" (I don't know how he remembers all that he does, but maybe it comes from being a professor, which he is at Tel Aviv University.)

So, the good news of today: my visa got extended until I leave for Christmas, and then when I come back in January, hopefully the Misrad Hapnim will have checked with the Jewish Agency to verify that my father is indeed Jewish, and then I could apply for an A1 visa (it's a year-long visa for people eligible to emigrate to Israel under the Law of Return; I want to get it because it means I wouldn't have to renew my visa every three months).

Another good thing: I think my new Canadian co-worker and I are going to get along quite well, in sha Allah. We were sharing anecdotes about our experiences as foreigners here, and culture shock, lol. It was nice to know that someone else also encounters things that don't seem understandable.

For example, I was bike riding a few weeks ago with a friend in Tel Aviv; I didn't have a bell on my bike, so when I wanted to warn people to get out of the way, I would shout "Slicha!" ("Excuse me" in Hebrew.) My friend asked me, "Why are you saying that? It's not necessary."

Now, I know that culturally, Israelis are not known for what Westerners call "politeness." But it just makes sense to me that if a vehicle is coming my way that could potentially bump into me or cause me injury, I would want the person controlling that vehicle (whether a bike, car, etc.) to somehow give me a heads up (so I don't get hurt or die, HaShma forbid)!

Oy vey. 

Oh, another cultural difference: Israelis don't usually say "oy vey." They say "oy v'voy."

I guess us American Jews have our own cultural differences compared to the Jews in Israel, let alone with Palestinians, Christians, Muslims, Russians, Ethiopians, Filipinos, etc...

I need to stop now before I keep going on tangents about my cultural discoveries, which often feel like metaphorically bumping into a post on the street, and then realizing there was something blocking my path.

How do you say "lol" in Hebrew?