My Journey

by Amalie Coles

As I was saying these words, I was finally admitting the truth to myself. All the struggles and all the challenges I’d endured were only part of my life because I wanted them on one level or another.

  “At ben adam miuhad. Bli gvulot,” Avi said, smiling.

  “Really? You mean I’ve got no boundaries?” I smiled back.

  “You are special, Rebecca.” He gently pressed his palm against mine. “As for the real life part, you and I are real. The Albright Institute is real. What we do here is real.”

  “Hmm, I’ve never thought about it this way.”

  “I get annoying questions about my field, too, but I don’t pay much attention to them. So please don’t let anyone make you think you’re living in some fantasy world simply because you care about learning.”

  “I’m hungry,” I suddenly said.

  “No wonder, Becky. From what I remember, you hadn’t touched your dinner at all.”

  “I was upset over the computer crash, but you made me feel better.”

  “You see? That was my goal for the evening.”

  “And you did a great job cheering me up with the music.”

  “So, what should we do food-wise?”

  “No idea. I think most of the restaurants are closed already.”

  “And the ones that are open are far away.”

  “I don’t feel like leaving the building at this hour, especially after everything that had happened yesterday.”

  “I see. It must’ve been hard for you to get lost in a place like this.”

  “It’s all right. You don’t have to feel sorry for me, Avi.”

  “Well, we can order a takeout because I’m hungry, too.”

  “Is it possible?” The prospect of eating quietly in my room looked good.

  “Wait a second.” Avi fished out an iPhone and started typing something on a screen. “What would you like?”

  “It doesn’t really matter. Whatever is available will do.” My stomach was rumbling.

  “Then I’m ordering two burgers with fries.”

  “Sounds like a plan.”

  He quickly dialled the restaurant’s number and placed an order. I offered paying for my portion, but he flat out refused. “That’s my treat for you,” he said. “I hope it’s the last time you skip a meal.”

  After the food arrived, we ate in silence with Kobi Aflalo crooning in the background. By the time we finished our meals, I was feeling cheerful again.

  “Thank you for everything, Avi,” I said in the end. “You shouldn’t have gone for all this trouble.”

  “Anytime, Becky. I’m glad it worked for you.”

  “I think you should get going.” I glanced at my watch, which was showing ten-thirty.

  “Yes! I’ll see you tomorrow at the lab. Have a great night.”

  Avi grabbed the CD player and walked out of the door. As soon as he left, I realized he had forgotten his CDs. I tried calling after him, but he was already gone. I plopped on my bed and opened the booklet of “Eliko’s Golden Collection.” I ran my fingers through the lyrics and sniffed the glossy paper. The other disks were hit collections from the Israeli mainstream.

  That evening was amazing. We talked like good friends. I learned a few things about myself. There was nothing to be unhappy about. As for the computer incident, I decided not to dwell on it. If the laptop wouldn’t be fixed on time, I would make the best from the lab work.

  Chapter 17

  “You forgot the CDs yesterday,” I told Avi during breakfast.

  “Oh, those are for you,” he replied.

  “What? No! I can’t take them.”

  “It’s OK. No biggie.”

  Before I could say anything else in protest, someone called my name. One of the computer technicians from yesterday was standing by the entrance and looking for me. I immediately braced myself for the worst. He was likely to tell me the disk was irreparable, or the information had been lost, or the waitlist in the computer shop was much longer than expected.

  “I have some good news for you,” he said instead.

  Part of me felt relieved. Yet I didn’t want to place my hopes too high.

  “I found a place where they were able to fix the laptop immediately,” he continued.

  I sighed deeply. “Did they retrieve the data?”

  “Yes, they did.”

  “So, when can I have it back?”

  “It’s in the library.”

  “Yay!” I screamed, unable to contain my excitement. Everyone turned in my direction. “My laptop has been repaired!”

  “Congratulations!” Megan and Caitlin exclaimed in unison. I walked to their table and hugged each of them.

  “Now I’ll finish your translation on time.” I turned to Avi.

  “Just do as much as you can, Becky.”

  “You don’t know me well.” I smirked.

  ***

  “Hey, we should go out like we’ve planned,” Megan announced during dinner.

  “I thought the whole thing was meant to make me feel better.”

  “And now we can do this to celebrate,” Caitlin added. “I mean, it’s Wednesday, which is almost Friday.”

  “Exactly! So let’s do this!” Megan exclaimed.

  “Fine,” I said. “Maybe we should go. We all need a break sometimes.”

  “I’m still recovering from your last one,” George noted.

  “Haven’t we agreed to forget the incident?” I asked, annoyed by the unpleasant reminder.

  “Oh, sorry!” He smiled. “Just don’t go crazy this time.”

  “Hey, why don’t you join us?” Caitlin suggested.

  “Nah, I have to finish my pottery drawings.”

  “Here is another workaholic,” Megan joked.

  “Who else is a workaholic?” I asked, feeling curious.

  “You, of course!” She pointed at me.

  “Me? A workaholic? I’ve always considered myself a lazy type.”

  “We all become workaholics after staying at the Albright for a while,” Caitlin noted.

  “It’s all right. Maybe another time,” George said. “Have fun without me.”

  We agreed to meet in the lobby in twenty minutes. For the night, I chose to wear a pair of dark blue capris and a silky top. I also applied extra mascara and lip gloss to look good and let my hair, which I usually wore in a ponytail, hang down past my shoulders. Since I didn’t bring any heels on the trip, I had to go with my regular sandals.

  I met Megan and Caitlin in the lobby as planned. Both of them were wearing skinny jeans, tube tank tops, and stilettos. Megan also had long dangly earrings. We complimented each other on our outfits and got on the first available taxi.

  “Where should we go?” Caitlin asked, looking at the city map.

  “There are quite a few bars along the Jaffa Street,” Megan replied. “We could go there and walk around.”

  “Sure, let’s do that,” I said.

  We drove past the walls secluding the Old City, enjoying the view from the window.

  “Isn’t it Amr Diab?” I asked the driver, referring to the music that was playing on his stereo.

  “Ken,” he replied.

  I went to see Amr Diab, the star of Egyptian pop music, when I was in grade twelve. Since I had no one to accompany me, I dragged Erin along. Although the show was amazing, Erin absolutely hated it because 1) she wasn’t accustomed to such music, and 2) we were the only non-Arabs in the entire hall.

  “How do you know him?” the driver asked.

  “Great research skills come in handy.”

  Caitlin and Megan listened to our conversation without uttering a single word.

  “You’re lucky to live here,” I told the girls later.

  “Oh, we love this place. Maybe you could join us someday,” Megan said.

  “Maybe,” I said, trying to imagine what would it be like to live in Jerusalem.

  Jaffa Street turned out to be pretty busy. Couples and families were walking everywhere. Streetcars filled with passengers
kept coming from both directions. Some shops were still open, blasting the latest hits from Iggy Azalea and Katy Perry.

  The taxi dropped us off in front of a building called “Jerusalem Hostel,” which I assumed was a motel for tourists. The three of us walked a few blocks before turning into another street with a long chain of bars and restaurants. The girls asked me if I had any preferences as to where we should stop, and I said that any place they chose would be fine with me. In the end, we all agreed to stop at the bar with the least expensive menu.

  “That’s the major downside of being in the academia.” Caitlin sighed. “You’ll always be poor.”

  Megan laughed, and I said nothing. If only I could have all the opportunities they had. Then nothing else would matter.

  A waitress quickly escorted us to a table for three and asked what we wanted to drink. We ended up ordering three glasses of red wine and a plate of cookies with soft cheese.

  “Are you married?” Megan asked, eyeing my ring.

  “Four years now.”

  “Wow, you look so young!” Caitlin commented. I definitely saw it coming.

  “Well, I’m twenty-six,” I replied, taking a sip from my glass.

  “I’m thirty-two,” Caitlin said, passing around the plate. “Quite honestly, I don’t think I’m getting married anytime soon.”

  “Me neither,” Megan said. “Right now, I’m too busy with my dissertation and fieldwork.”

  “Do you want kids someday?” I asked.

  “I’d love to, but I’m afraid of running out of time,” she admitted.

  “Well, I want to finish my program first, then get a post-doc, and only then will I think about having a baby,” Megan said. “Right now, I can’t afford having a child anyway. Besides, with that crazy lifestyle of ours, I doubt we’ll be good moms.”

  “That’s true.” Caitlin laughed. “I’d have to hire a full-time nanny, as my parents are too old to look after a baby.”

  “Same here,” Megan added. “Mine are in their sixties already. They’ll be around seventy by then.”

  Having finished with our baby talk, we moved on to other topics. We discussed life in Israel, particularly in the academic circles. The girls shared their stories about all-nighters, piles of essays they had to mark for undergraduates, and a few computer-related incidents they had encountered along the way. After a second round of drinks, we loosened up so much that we even managed to laugh at my story about getting lost in East Jerusalem.

  “You should’ve seen George’s face when he finally found me!” I exclaimed, half-laughing. “He was so mad!”

  “Really?” Megan asked. “He was mad at you for being lost? That’s outrageous!”

  “Well, it was kind of my fault.”

  “No, it wasn’t!” Caitlin protested. “It happens to the best of us.”

  “Did he say anything mean?” Megan added.

  “He said that I’m a dreamer with my head up in the clouds. I mean, he didn’t say these words exactly, but it was pretty much implied.”

  “He had no right to act like that!” Megan exclaimed indignantly.

  “He later apologized.” I tried defending him without even knowing why.

  “But still. It was wrong on his part,” she insisted.

  “Did he tell you about his story in Jericho?” Caitlin asked.

  “No! What story?”

  “The epic one,” Megan replied.

  “You should tell me.”

  The girls exchanged a look, and then Caitlin began, “A few years ago, his group was staying in Jerusalem at the end of the dig in Tell es-Safi. Apparently, he decided to drive to Jericho by himself.”

  “OK, this is getting interesting,” I said. “I mean, Jericho is in the West Bank.”

  “On his way back, he stopped at some Arab town to get gas and snacks, and his GPS broke.”

  “Really? So, what happened in the end?”

  “The IDF had to rescue him because he drove in the opposite direction,” Megan said. “And he’s definitely not a dreamer.”

  “All right, I’m going to confront him tomorrow.”

  “No need to,” Caitlin said. “Just don’t let anyone bring you down next time you’re in trouble.”

  “Well, hopefully, it was the last time I’ll have gotten into something that serious.”

  “You never know,” Megan said. “Shit happens all the time. Something similar happened to me when I was in my second year MA program.”

  I probed her for more details, and she told the entire story. Some girls from her class decided to take a day trip to Ein Gedi to celebrate the end of the school year. They agreed to stick to together, but Megan got distracted by an ibex and decided to take a few photos of the creature. After she finished posting them on Instagram (she had portable wireless Internet like me), she turned around and found everyone gone. Worst of all, one of the students had her bag, so the poor girl didn’t even have water, and we’re talking about forty-five degrees Celsius.

  “When I finally found my group, they were so happy I didn’t get attacked by a caracal!”

  “What’s a caracal?” I asked.

  “A wild cat with tufted ears,” Caitlin relied. “You’ll see them from time to time in Israeli deserts.”

  I immediately Googled the animal on my phone and found a few pretty pictures.

  “Oh, it looks so cute!” I exclaimed, pointing at an angry cat face.

  “Yeah, it’s cute until you meet one.” Megan rolled her eyes. “The point is, nobody got mad at me for getting distracted. In these situations, you’ll be happy to see the other person alive and well.”

  “Why would they be mad at you?” I noted.

  “Exactly! Anyway, we just laugh about it now.”

  “That’s your favourite story,” Caitlin said, taking a few sips of her martini. “You always bring it up when we get together.”

  “It was also one of the best memories from grad school,” Megan admitted. “Ein Gedi is totally worth visiting.” She turned to me. “Just make sure you stick with your group in case an ibex or a caracal shows up.”

  “I’ll remember your advice.” I smiled at the memory of the Ramon Crater. Apparently, Megan and I shared fascination with ibexes.

  “By the way, George is a really nice guy, but he is a bit obnoxious,” Caitlin said later.

  “How do you know him?” I finally asked, realizing they must’ve known him for quite a while.

  “We took the same class as undergrads,” Megan replied.

  “Where did you study?”

  “We went to New York University. Then we kind of lost touch until we ran into each other here a year ago and became friends again.”

  “Some say his ex-girlfriend is trying to get him back,” Caitlin added. “According to the rumors, she’s somewhere in Israel right now.”

  “Have you seen her?” I asked, imagining some skinny Harvard graduate with a trowel in her hands. I could bet she was an archaeology whiz.

  “No. We aren’t even sure she exists. George hardly ever mentions her.”

  “Hmm, that’s interesting. Anyway, he’s fun to talk to.”

  “But don’t let him be mean to you again,” Megan warned me.

  “Don’t worry, I won’t.”

  Three guys walked into the bar. As they came closer to the order stand, I recognized one of them. It was Avi, and he looked completely different from the one who worked at the Institute. Normally, he wore plain, casual clothes that made him look nice and professional. This time, he was wearing trendy jeans, a Hawaiian shirt, and some jewelry. Apparently, he had an ear piercing like Kobi Peretz, but I hadn’t noticed it before. The moment he saw us, his eyes lit up.

  “Becky, ma inyanim?”

  “Hakol beseder, mami.” I smiled.

  “Hey, motek! How did you find us?” Caitlin exclaimed.

  “It was easy. You always go to this bar, don’t you?”

  “Kind of. But this time we did consider going somewhere else.”

&nbs
p; “Anyway, I just didn’t feel like sleeping yet, so I decided to go for a drink. By the way, let me introduce you to my buddies, Eitan and Aron.”

  “Nice to meet you,” I replied, exchanging glances with Caitlin and Megan, who were smiling at the two guys.

  “Do you mind if I buy you a drink?” Avi asked me.

  “Sure. I’ll have another margarita.”

  “Way to go, girl!” Megan gave me a nudge.

  Someone turned the music on. The moment I heard the Oriental groove, I felt like getting up and dancing.

  “Shall we dance?” I asked, unable to sit still on my chair.

  “Sure, let’s go for it!” Megan exclaimed.

  The six of us moved from the table and began swinging our hips to the music. The rest of the bar followed our lead and started moving.

  “Look how you can lighten up the crowd,” Avi told me while dancing along. He had one of the warmest smiles I’d ever seen.

  “It isn’t me; it’s the music,” I replied.

  “Would you mind sharing a dance?” he asked, moving closer.

  At first, I considered declining the offer but went along with it in the end. After all, it was just a dance. So I grooved together with Avi, while Caitlin and Megan ended up dancing with his friends.

  Long before we knew it, it was already past the midnight. Normally, my tolerance for alcohol was very low, and I could pass out after anything heavier than light beer. Tonight, I was feeling better than ever.

  “Should we get going?” I suggested at one-thirty.

  “Definitely,” Avi replied. “We’ve got a busy day tomorrow.”

  His friends, however, decided to stay longer. By the time we were ready to head out, they were already checking out some other girls. The four of us went outside to look for a cab.

  “I’m cold,” I admitted, as the air was a bit chilly. The desert climate made afternoons unbearably hot, while nights were often colder than expected.

  “Let me warm you up,” Avi said and started rubbing my hands.

  “Are we going to Ein Kerem first?”

  “By all means no! I’ll wait for the driver to drop you off first.”

  “Why don’t you stay at the Institute for the summer?” I found myself asking. “Wouldn’t it make things much easier for you?”

  “Trust me, I’d thought about it in the past but decided that staying at the hostel while renting wasn’t going to make sense financially.”