the family, and there's a lot of them all go for lunch at a bedouin village in the arab district of sherferam, five cars in convoy pull up outside a massive tent. we are greeted by a short man and his boys, who sit us down around a table and immediately start to bring out masses of food, really good fresh stuff to, natural food, no chemical shit, it's great, we feast away, jake, martin and myself are shaking our heads, we had a massive dinner last night, just had breakfast and now this, how can we eat more, but it is all light stuff, and very tasty so we manage. after dinner we are invited to sit around the cushions and the hookah that stands in the middle, now suddenly i am perked, oh, great i nudge jake but instead the owner comes and sits with us and talks about the bedouin ritual of bitter coffee, apparently it is a great honour for a guest to drink this coffee with the bedouin and if they refuse they are insulted. he starts to talk about bedouin customs and the rituals that surround this coffee.this is not strong arab coffee but bitter coffee.
i look at jake and we both silently exchange a thought, 'we will drink this coffee.'
no one can believe us, or take us seriously as this coffee is so profoundly bitter, the brew can go for 20 years. our family ignore us and the bedouin continues his chat while my uncle translates.
again i ask, 'we will have coffee with you.'
the bedouin can't believe it, he shakes his head as if we don't understand. no one else want to go anywhere near this coffee but we insist we are serious and two cups are prepared,
jake and i drink out coffees in bedouin tradition, like a shot. every one looks at us as though we are mad, 'what was it like,' they ask.
unrehearsed and totally in synch we say, it's bitter but can we have another one.'
the bedouin man smiles and shakes our hands, he jumps up and invites us to his home, he is very happy.
the bedouins are nomads they move around and do not use money, they have ancient traditions and women are not treated very well at all, but the bedouins of israel all stay put, they serve in the army and their women have equal rights. i ask 'where is home for you?'
israel is home for me, israel loves me and i love her.'
'where is your wife?'
she is studying at university?'
'what is she studying?'
'bio diversity.'
this is how it is here.
we leave and return home, later i go for a walk with jake, we take the long way around the local neighbourhood, children are everywhere, they laugh and run around like happy little rodents on ecstasy, pure joy. it's a strange place, filled with beautiful plant life, colours and music everywhere, sculptures and landscapes that look as though they have been carved by a feng shui master. there's a flow to the place, a natural harmony.
jake and i discuss his options, it's always hard to give advice, i think so far outside of the box that any advice i give would be seen as subversive and dangerous but i said, as i have always said, 'don't be to hard on yourself, you can never disappoint me, and do what you love doing.'