After "traveling to the future" the group and I are very disoriented. Yesterday someone had to convince my roommate and I that it was in fact Wednesday...not Tuesday. This is surreal and although I'm exhausted, I can't seem to sleep! We've completed our Umrah, saw the Ka'ba, and avoided a very close call with a potential trampling incident. Even at midnight there were hundreds of pilgrims completing Umrah rites. Totally awe inspiring.
To top it all off, afterward my roommate and I found a Burger King and ordered our first Steakhouse Bacon burger without having to say "no bacon please". Awesome! Can't put into words how amazing this whole experience is. There are people from all over the world coming in contact with one another for the same purpose. While this is a public health frightfest, the intense spiritual affect is all but a blinder to those potential issues. We cover our faces and use hand sanitizer as we step over pilgrims sleeping throughout the Haram. In every space there is a resting body. Seeing this makes me even more grateful for our accomodations in the Clocktower. And with some basic precautions and tons of prayer, I'm sure we'll be just fine, God willing.
